Problems after installing 4.11 Rear End

[michael_l_matthews]

Finally finished putting the 4.11 rear end in my Cutlass and drove it for the 1st time in almost 2 months and I be damn if it didn't over heat on me on the way home, looks like coolant is pouring out from right above the water pump and also from the timing chain cover, any suggestions that can help me pinpoint the issue?

hopefully the motor didn't blow..... #back_to_the_daily_driver ;-)

 

[V8 Rumble]

Might want to check the t-stat and make sure it's not sticking. Take it out and put it in a pot with boiling water. Make sure to use a pot you won't use for cooking food.

 

[V8 Rumble]

Also check the water pump gasket and bolts. That is probably where the coolant is coming from since the pump is right above the timing cover.

 

[michael_l_matthews]

I'm quite sure it was over heating bcuz I could smell the coolant from inside the car, but I guess it could've been me smelling the actual coolant that was spilling out. I could see that the water was coming from the right side of the water pump and I could clearly see that it was coming from the bottom of the timing chain cover (I'm more concerned about the coolant coming from the timing chain cover as I've never seen that happen before and from what I read, if the coolant is coming from there then the block might be cracked)

 

[307 Regal]

Do you have a tach? If so I'm curious as to how many RPMs you were running. If you hit a highway at some point and had to maintain high RPMs maybe your engine just wasn't ready for it after sitting 2 months. A friend of mine bought a junk 70 Monte with 4:11s and a 3 speed which was sitting in a guy's yard. He decided he wanted to drive it home and it started leaking and smoking pretty good on the highway.

 

[michael_l_matthews]

I do not have a tach and yes I did drive on the highway...... are you saying that maybe the higher RPM's caused too much stress on the motor? If so and its just the water pump or a gasket issue what can I do about that to prevent this from happening again?

 

[V8 Rumble]

If you say it's coming out from the timing cover it could be mixing in the engine plus if it leaking out of the timing cover it could be a bad timing cover gasket and the coolant seeped in and out of it. Was the coolant milky looking? That could be an indication that coolant and oil could be mixing. That could mean you have bad head gaskets.

 

[michael_l_matthews]

coolant was green and I checked the oil which was just changed and its still crystal clear and doesnt look milky at all

 

[CHRIS.O]

Theres always the possibility that the gasket just let go because it was old. Sometimes weird events coincide with changing something on your car. I would redo the gaskets maybe even the pump and thermostat if it has been a while since any of them have been replaced and go from there.

 

[pontiacgp]

have you checked your heater hose to make sure it's not leaking?