Intercooler Fluid Loss

[M1GarandGuy]

Guys:

Hate to be the new guy always pissing and moaning but I think I may have a leaky intercooler and want some advice from the guys who have been there.

The truck is a bone stock 2001 with 50k miles on it. When I got it, the tank was low, about an inch from the bottom line in the "fill here" area of the tank. I filled it up and now about 1,500-2,000 miles later, it's low again. I looked in the valley of the block and there was a light sheen of what i think was intercooler fluid.

Anyone have experience with this? Could it be a quick, simple fix like a hose or a seal?

Thanks

 

[M1GarandGuy]

Anyone? I know the '99-'00 trucks had intercooler troubles.

 

[SID297]

Pull the blower and check the hose connections and hoses for the entire system. Check the heat exchanger for damage too. If the intercooler itself was leaking you would not see coolant in the block valley.

 

[M1GarandGuy]

Thanks for the response.

No coolant is on the ground under the truck and the heat exchanger and intercooler pump look fine. Even checked the bottle and its not cracked. The lines to the intercooler look fine, too.

It couldn't be leaking inside the intercooler and into the manifold, could it? If it was, white smoke would be pouring out of the exhaust, right?

 

[SID297]

Thanks for the response.

No coolant is on the ground under the truck and the heat exchanger and intercooler pump look fine. Even checked the bottle and its not cracked. The lines to the intercooler look fine, too.

It couldn't be leaking inside the intercooler and into the manifold, could it? If it was, white smoke would be pouring out of the exhaust, right?

If the intercooler is leaking that's what would be happening. You may not see smoke if the volume of the leak is not great enough. You can pull the intercooler and inspect it. It may just be a pin hole leak in a weld.

 

[M1GarandGuy]

Thanks. What's a ballpark estimation of the time to take off the blower and intercooler?

 

[SID297]

If you've never done it before you can probably get it done in less than 3 hours taking your time. After you've done it a few times it can be done in less than an hour.

 

[69mach]

Can't you just rent a pressure checker for a radiator and check the intercooler?

 

[SID297]

You may be able to do that.