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Pipes replaced but still have coolant under starter
I have a 2006 Cayenne S, with 108,000 miles. I have been losing coolant and there is a fairly strong odor of hot coolant outside the vehicle. This weekend, i was going to replace the cooling pipes, but i discovered that the plastic pipes have already been replaced with the aluminum pipe kit. However, I found coolant under the starter and the white oxidation that would indicate this has been going on for a while.
I disconnected the starter, thinking that I would go ahead and replace it, but it doesn't look like it will come out without removing the cooling pipes. There isn't any coolant residue on top of the starter. It looks like it is filling up the lower spots on top of the engine and getting on the starter from underneath. I tried looking with a mirror, and touching the underside of the coolant pipes with my hands, but i can't find anything wet. It looks like there has been coolant sitting on top of the engine toward the front, but it is bone dry right now. I don't see any evidence of a leak from the water pump, and it seems like the connections on the water distributor on the back of the engine are dry also. Would a leak back there end up on top of the engine, under the starter?
I hesitate to remove the aluminum cooling tubes to dig much farther without know what I should be looking for.
Any suggestions on where this coolant might be coming from?
I thought about that, but since the thermostat is toward the front of the motor, I would think I'd find the coolant on top of the motor in front. All of the water on top of the motor is toward the back under the starter. Under the thermostat housing looks dry although it looks like there has been water there at one time. I can see a white, crusty residue. Thanks for your reply. I suppose i should go ahead and order the thermostat and gasket, I was just hoping not to dig too much further.
That is exactly what I found. I borrowed a cooling system pressure tester from Advanced Auto Parts, and when i pressurized the system, coolant started spraying out of the rubber coupling hose between the two pieces of the lower cooling pipe. Of course it was spraying directly on the starter and then dripping down on top of the engine. Since I already had the aluminum pipe kit, I decided to go ahead and take out the old aluminum pipes and install the new ones. I didn't want to take any chances on having to do this job a second time. Removing the aluminum pipes was a huge pain in the ***. At any rate, I replaced the starter, replaced the aluminum pipes and put everything back together. When I pressure tested the cooling system after it was put back together, it wouldn't hold pressure. Turns out I had to use some channel lock pliers to get the tester radiator cap tight enough to hold pressure. Thank you for the suggestion. I wonder how common a leak on the hose coupler is, and whether or not the person that did the original work on my Cayenne bothered to test it.
That is exactly what I found. I borrowed a cooling system pressure tester from Advanced Auto Parts, and when i pressurized the system, coolant started spraying out of the rubber coupling hose between the two pieces of the lower cooling pipe. Of course it was spraying directly on the starter and then dripping down on top of the engine. Since I already had the aluminum pipe kit, I decided to go ahead and take out the old aluminum pipes and install the new ones. I didn't want to take any chances on having to do this job a second time. Removing the aluminum pipes was a huge pain in the ***. At any rate, I replaced the starter, replaced the aluminum pipes and put everything back together. When I pressure tested the cooling system after it was put back together, it wouldn't hold pressure. Turns out I had to use some channel lock pliers to get the tester radiator cap tight enough to hold pressure. Thank you for the suggestion. I wonder how common a leak on the hose coupler is, and whether or not the person that did the original work on my Cayenne bothered to test it.
If you do enough reading on the replacement of the plastic pipes - you'll find that leak isn't "uncommon" - but pretty much restricted to aftermarket pipe kits not purchased through Porsche. Apparently the machine work done to the coupling area (where the rubber hose ties the two parts together) wasn't up to snuff, and with some time/heat - it eventually started leaking.
You aren't the first. If you do a search you'll find mention of the vendor - perhaps they might make good on at least the cost of genuine replacements.
That is exactly what I found. I borrowed a cooling system pressure tester from Advanced Auto Parts, and when i pressurized the system, coolant started spraying out of the rubber coupling hose between the two pieces of the lower cooling pipe. Of course it was spraying directly on the starter and then dripping down on top of the engine. Since I already had the aluminum pipe kit, I decided to go ahead and take out the old aluminum pipes and install the new ones. I didn't want to take any chances on having to do this job a second time. Removing the aluminum pipes was a huge pain in the ***. At any rate, I replaced the starter, replaced the aluminum pipes and put everything back together. When I pressure tested the cooling system after it was put back together, it wouldn't hold pressure. Turns out I had to use some channel lock pliers to get the tester radiator cap tight enough to hold pressure. Thank you for the suggestion. I wonder how common a leak on the hose coupler is, and whether or not the person that did the original work on my Cayenne bothered to test it.
I had to go back into my engine last month because I was still leaking coolant after upgrading my Ts to aluminum and changing out my coolant vent tube (which was really leaking due to a crack). It turns out the rubber coupler on the big pipe was leaking due to the worm clamps getting loose. I took off the 3 upper tubes to access the clamps, wrapped the joining area with silicone tape, added some loc-tite and tightened the clamps back down. Pressure tested OK and so far ZERO leaks.
New '06 CTTS owner here. Thank you to all for the wealth of info that gets put on here and the amazing willingness to help. I hope this is the appropriate spot for my question - if not, please guide me in the right direction and I shall shift the conversation accordingly.
I am in the process of getting to know the car and one of the issues to address is of course the coolant pipe replacement. The previous owner said that they had not been replaced, or at least that's what his mech had told him, but that they were in good shape. I decided to see if I could get a picture ot verify this and snapped the attached. Much to my surprise, it looks like aluminum pipes are already installed but that the retaining bracket is missing - is there an expert on here who can verify whether that's correct from this picture? If that is indeed the case, what is the risk of not having the large black retaining bracket installed?
I am experiencing slow cranking and "stumbling" ignition when turning the key as well so maybe the starter has been damaged by coolant after all... thoughts?
Stripped my 4.5S down today to get to my 'obviously' split coolant pipes under the air intakes and injector rails etc. 'Obvious' because the water loss was immediate and came from the back of the engine, so I convinced myself it was the dreaded lack of the upgrade. When I got to them, they've already been done! The whole area dry as a chip! YIPEE. Can't find where the leak is tho!! BOO. Any ideas of where I can start? Any other problematic pipes at the back of the engine to cause this that anyone is aware of? Waiting for a tool to pressurise the system to make it leak and hopring to get some mirrors down there to see. Any other suggestions please? Thanks.
03-20-2016, 07:10 PM
Pipes replaced but still have coolant under starter
