Coolant leak

[Omathisen]

Hi,
Woke the car up two weekends ago as the temperature in NY went up past 70. Had to take advantage of that weather in NY in January so we went for a little run. Everything seemed to work fine. When I took it out, however, I noticed there were a couple of drops on the floor, but did not think any more of it. When I put the car away for the winter, I had changed and topped up all the fluids so I thought (wishful thinking) maybe I had spilled something. Then yesterday I noticed there was antifreeze on the back of the engine just below the rear of the intake manifold. Hope I did not blow the head gasket, but have not seen any coolant in the oil or oil in the coolant, and there is no white smoke or other indications. I had a little overheating issue this past fall, but everything seemed fine after I changed the thermostat. My car has a 351 Windsor. Does anyone have any ideas before I take it any further?
Thanks.
OMathisen
427 ERA

[woody2]

Do you have a cooling system presure checker or can you borrow one? This
is a great tool for finding leaks. Good Luck!

[Woodz428]

There are coolant passages on each end of the heads. It could be leaking from one of those where the intake bolts on and be an intake gasket not a head gasket. I second the suggestion regarding a pressure tester, it could helps you trace the problem quicker. If it is either the intake or head gaskets though, you should be able to see traces of the coolant on the area between the mating surfaces.

[Ron61]

Also, and especially if you have an aluminum intake and heads, you might want to check the torque on the bolts. I had that happen a few years ago, except I caught mine in the front when it was just one small drop falling off the bottom of the block. After checking the thermostat housing and everything, I decided to check the torque of the bolts and about 5 of then had backed off just a little. I torqued them back down and have never seen a drop since then. But I do this on a regular basis now and especially after driving the car hard for a few days. Hope that is is something as simple as that. good luck.

Ron

[*13*]

Pressure check it for sure! That'll tell you where the problem is coming from. I had a leak under the valve covers. W/o the pressure tester & would have probably pulled the heads & sent them out to be reworked. Fortunately it was an easy fix, the rocker studs were weaping. Reseal, Retorque, oil change & I was good as new!

[Omathisen]

Thanks. I appreciate the advice. Hope to have time this weekend to check it out and will let you know.
OMathisen