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Thread: What might this be?

  1. #1

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    What might this be?

    I saw a wet spot under the truck previously but did not find anything leaking with a cursory look. I moved it here the other day and the spot I moved it from had a smaller wet spot under the same place. Today I crawled under it and felt for wetness The shiny spot was dirty wet gunk. I did not notice wetness when I did the body mount but I did not touch the spot that is now shiny either. Everything above it is dry, the rad, the window washer and the rad overflow. I'm tending toward a theory that I spilled coolant when I was doing those flushes and its somehow staying wet and slowly dripping even though we have had 95+ heat here for a couple weeks.
    Intermittent rad leak without pressure? Any ideas for tracing this?

    drip.jpg Wet spot.jpg

  2. #2

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    I know this isn't classy but - smell it. If it's coolant it will smell sweet. If it smells like detergent it might be the washer bottle (don't use detergent additives in your washer bottle people, it will eat the rubber seal...) Chances are you did spill a little coolant and the run off finally trickled out of the fins and off the bottom tank. Roll the truck back and see if it creates a new pool on the driveway overnight/during the day.

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    if you overfilled the coolant reservoir bottle (after flushing) it will overflow...as the truck cools down antifreeze flows from radiator to reservoir...see if the reservoir is "within range" (it should be now)...if it is within range I bet it won't leak again.

  4. #4

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    I thought both things. Everything is dry and the hose for the overflow drops down about even with the motor mount and the level is right. I'd tend to think the same thing Ragragtimetime but like I said the overflow hose drips well behind and below this spot. I did smell it and it didn't have much of a smell not oil not sweet. I only use windshield cleaner usually all weather stuff so I don't have to deal with it freezing or changing it out in winter.
    I mentioned I saw a spot like this before and found nothing leaking. Once I moved the truck there was no new spot (until now) so I left it alone.
    This morning the spot seems to be drying up and the shiny spot is dry. If I didn't say so with the exception of starting it and rolling it a few feet one way or the other its been parked for more than a week.

  5. #5

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    Went out and looked there was a smaller spot. I felt nothing wet. I removed the carbon filter and it smells heavily of gasoline. I don't have anything hooked up to the other end of those hoses afaik. Maybe one leads back to the gas tank? The part I could touch on the bottom was moist. Nothing under it seems wet. I couldn't figure out how to take it apart. Is this a one piece filter or can I replace the insides?

  6. #6

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    Are you talking about the vapour return cannister? These can't be disassembled. I have no idea what their seviceable life is or how to know if it is still working. And I would be surprised if you could get a new replacement unit. I swapped the metal cased single inlet cannister on my truck to a plastic one from a wrecked Cordia turbo (it has a provision for A/C but I am not sure how that is hooked up yet). I have noticed some Mitsubishis have a problem with fuel tanks self pressurising when temperatures are high (some cars I have seen vapour lock and won't pick up fuel until the tank cap is cracked open!) The pool looks like it's too far forward of the cannister to be the source but stranger things happen.

  7. #7

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    This morning the new spot is dried up. I'm thinking The new (more than a year old now) radiator may have a crack or the bottom hose may be seeping and the fan is driving the moisture over to that side. I expect I may have found out why my MPG's might be low, that carbon filter is getting gas into it somehow. Your idea about pressurizing may be it Geez. I have a lot going on but hopefully if I get my shop floor done in the next week or so I can get to removing the bed and working on an electric fuel pump. Do you guys have a return line on your elect fuel pumps? Maybe that line from the tank to the carbon filter could go into the intake somehow?

  8. #8

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    The vapour return line vents from the tank as a safety precaution and probably EPA regs as well. I think there is meant to be some sort of breather vent/catch can thing that is mounted by the tank from the vapour return line (it looks like a tiny white fuel filter). The tank vent is meant to go into the air cleaner box from the charcoal cannister. You shouldn't be losing any fuel through the vent line or anywhere else. If the carb you're running has a return barb on it I would recommend you keep it connected. Don't know what to suggest - maybe open the fuel cap and run compressed air through the vapour line to check for a blockage? Take the cannister out and see if it is full of fuel or blocked up in some way (?).

  9. #9

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    The truck has always had a Weber since I've owned it. I just put a new one on. The carbon filter has 3 hoses attached I forget right now but at least one of them just deadends on its way across the firewall into a plastic thingy. Probably a valve. The guy I bought it from removed all of the pollution controls so I have no idea where they should go or what to do with them since there is no pollution control on the thing beyond the ancient CAT which I suspect had been emptied. No I know its been emptied. I've had it off and looked through it. I did remove the hoses and lift the carbon filter out. It smells heavily of gas and was damp to the touch on the bottom exposed filter area. It weighed a couple pounds at least maybe as much as 5. But except for the possibility of the vent line from the tank needing to dump into the carbon filter why would I need it at all?
    EDIT- Just to be crystal clear I do not think the canister is the source of the drip. I smelled it wet and put my nose to teh spots on the ground there was no odor. Since the carbon filter smells heavily of gas I'd expect whatever might come out of there to as well.

  10. #10

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    So today there was a fresh spot. I opened the hood and it was wet under the window washer can. The can was dry, looks like the hose was leaking up under the overflow can as it routes that way. I changed the hoses, readjusted the jets and discovered on refill there is a pinhole in the top that lets out coolant if its very full. Don't know for sure but I think that solves it. Weird it was all dry both times previous when I checked. Must have something to do with the air pockets in the lines since it was almost empty.
    Oh yea I paid more attention to what the carbon filter said on it.(I had my glasses) and the one that goes to a plastic diaphragm was to the AC so this must have had AC originally. I vacuum capped both outlets. One went to the carb and was hanging on the firewall so I stuffed it into that hose from the secondary air filter that has something to do with the emissions that was also removed from this thing. The last one goes to the gas tank connecting to a hard line just below the canister.
    Here is a picture of the two hoses. The white plastic is the end of the hose that says 'to AC" the other one looping over it and into that larger hose is the one that says "to carb". That hose its stuck in goes to the outside of the air cleaner.
    there it is.jpg

    EDIT- Looked this morning no spot under the rig.
    Last edited by 85Ram50; 09-17-2017 at 12:25 PM.

  11. #11

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    I drove it on my errands today. Should it be running better now that I capped that white plastic thing and put the other hose into the air cleaner? It seems like it is. I want to think this has something to do with the hose I stuck into the air cleaner drawing some suction on that carbon canister. ????
    There was a lot less valve noise and it seems smoother. The valve noise is from lugging it sometimes starting out.

  12. #12

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    I drove it again today, first time since the last post. Aside from being a pain to get started for the gas having drained out of the pump and lines it ran better. There is no lugging or idk the exact term at the mo for when you have it mistimed and the valves ping and you have no power at the pedal like trying to start in 3rd. It starts from a stop better and it seems to be running a lot better.
    Is it possible those two hoses might have that much of an effect on how it runs? It doesn't seem like it should but that is the only change I made before it started running better. Its smoother, quieter and ready to go when I am no having to rev it.

  13. #13

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    OK I have a theory. It is my theory.....
    The tube from the OE air cleaner box that has the extra filter in it is supposed to be connected to something that sucks exhaust gasses or crank case gas or ??? anyway since it was just hanging out there in midair it was sucking a lot of extra air into the air box which was screwing with the air fuel mixture. My sticking that hose in there has restricted it enough that the motor is getting the right amount of air via air intake. IDK whether or not it sucking air from the carbon filter which smells heavily of gas is helping hurting or neutral.

  14. #14

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    If it's pulling gas vapours into the intake then, in theory, it should neutralise the lean out effect from pulling air only. Plus it should also have a degree of restriction from the carbon filter can as well. Hey, if it works and it's running better then it's a win.

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    I'll take it.

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