See pics of the areas in question below.

Just recently my car has been pissing an imennse amount of coolant. And every time I have to drive it I have to fill the expansion tank again. It doesnt do this while running it will sit and idle and not drop a leak, well that I can tell then about 30 seconds after you shut the car off it just pours out. I dont mean drip I mean pours. We traced the leak to the drivers side of the engine but even with the airfilter off we can't see where its coming from. I'm trying to sell my car and the guy that wants to buy it is a self proclaimed german car guru. He owns many BMW but has not owned any Benzes. We went for a test drive and he was really impressed with the way the car ran and then when we got it to his house it was pissing coolant like there was no tomorrow in his drive way which obviously made him look harder at the engine. He looked around and said "You head is ready to go that is where the coolant is coming out of." So he checked the oil and smelled it and said there is water in the oil. I smelled it but I smelled only oil. I know what coolant smells like. Then he opened the expansion tank and checked for oil and said "well thats good there is no oil in the coolant." and I just stayed quiet while he looked. He noticed a bit of oil coming down the block below the head and I could see the oil was leaking from the head gasket. This is on the pass side at the front up by the timing chain it would be just forward of the first pipe on the exhaust manifold. He "said thats really bad, that denotes that there is a crack in the block also. Some one probally over torqued the head bolt and cracked the block" It sounded stupid to me that the block was cracked but I just went "oh man that is bad" So I started thinking what if he is right and the block is cracked? So I called some friends. My dad is a bit wealthy and owns many mercedes and loves to have his cars done at Omega Motors in Portland Oregon on 105th off of airport way. So I called and said who I was and he recognized the name and I gave him the above story.

His response to the story was about the water leak

not exact quotes but pretty close.

"I t sounds to me like a water pump probelm. In 1992 M 103 engines had a drain line off the bottom of the water pump that was prone to leaking after xxx amount of use. I see that all the time. your biggest concern should be having your water pump checked out. rather than doing head work. That water pump goes then you will have a larger problem on your hands. So you need to get that water pump looked at ASAP."

How accurate does that sound?
Professionals chime in on water pump issues.

About the block crack.

I gave him the scoop then he said

"Hmmmm well I can't see it for sure but it is most likely not cracked. most likely the oil leak is orginating from the timing chain cover. This is pretty common, is oil leaking anywhere else between the head and the block."

I answered not that I can see

"Well thats a common for oil to start seeping out on M103 I-6s I see it alot on 300Es and 300SELs. it will need attention but I dont think the block is cracked. How much oil is it using?

I said about a quart of 10 W 40 non-synthetic every 1000 miles.

"Well thats not normal but its not horrible for 120k miles. You would see alot more oil consumption if the block were cracked. "

"You need to have a professional look at it"

Then he gave me the name of a shop in the dallas area that he had a couple of customers say was good and that he has heard is reputable.

Accent Bimmer and Benz. Is the name I called them immedeatly after and asked them the same questions and gave them the same story.

They said almost exactly what my dads mechanic said.

The general consensus was that the water pump or a line going into it is bad and needs to be replaced.

I was quoted $500 for the entire job, which was music to my ears. That included a water pump and the kit that goes with it. Plus the 5 hours of labor it would take to do the job.

So with all that said.

What are some expert opinions on the situation? does the BMW guy sound like he is right? do you think the two benz mechanics I talked to were too optimistic?


Now here is another problem.

I live in abilene and the shop I have an appointment with is in Dallas which is 200 miles away. What tricks should I use to make sure the car survives the trip. I plan on leaving when it is cool 5AM to arrive by 8AM.

I will make sure that I have pletty of water and coolant. I will top off the expansion tank before I leave. And check the oil level. I plan on filling up with 93 oct. gas the night before and not use A/C on the trip. I don't plan on stopping at all so the coolant shouldnt leak out. I'm going to watch my coolant level warning light like a hawk. Of course I will have my cell phone Can anyone else think of anything else?

Sorry long and boring I know.

I will repost on this thread and let you know how things went. What Accent bimmer benz found out and if they are a good company to deal with.

Thanks for your time

ANDY

1992 190E 2.6 (Leaking ....ALOT)
heres the pig.

oil seep area

Water pumps leak cause the bearing is the seal, and it gets loose. That can be easily checked by trying to wiggle the water pump pulley, there should be very little if any movement.