Coolant leak, low levels. Smoke. All over READ belt area driver side. Topic is solved

[GreenMagicMan]

As titled.
2010 XC70 3.2L 204K miles. coolant leak at driver side of engine. The accessory drive belt there is now soaked.
Several weeks of coolant mysteriously being low after filling. Nothing observed on ground.
We drove up a one mile hill and smoke was coming out of engine.
Coolant leaking heating up on engine was the cause, that whole area is soaked in coolant.
It’s my understanding it could be water pump, thermostat - is that in this area? And an oil cooler connector that frequently goes bad?

So far having no luck isolating leak point. But likely have to pull battery and tray and airbox (damn torx bits again).

Are those three things in that area plus some more coolant lines? Coolant is everywhere. Coating PS lines, that belt and more. It’s not splatted on the firewall that I noticed. And there were just a few drops of coolant only making it out of the lower splash guard to snow on ground. I’m hoping it’s not a water pump.
Oh and maybe related or not: sometimes we hear a noise with a little heavier throttle than mellow driving (like uphill and more when cold). Ease off throttle and it goes away. Our V50 did the same thing.
A noise like a mechanical rattle. It seems to our ears to be coming up higher in the engine when driving. I’ve already replaced the upper torque rod aka upper engine mount that was broken.
Any advice very appreciated. Thanks!

[abscate]

Have you looked for a diagram of the Read system and cooling group? I’ll see if Alldata has one and post

I believe your3.2 is like my xc90 3.2 with the water pump being driven by pins on the power steering pump. Repair and replace is about 3 hours book time.

From your description it looks like the water pump has let go and is spewing onto the PS pump. At 200k miles, I would do the pump, thermostat and all hoses as PM

[pgill]

The Thermostat is a known failure point for the 3.2

And because it has a mechanism that recirculates the coolant when the engine is cold it can fail and not flow coolant to the radiator.

But the Thermostat is not the leak. If the Thermostat leaks the coolant will be on the Alternator and intake manifold not the serpentine belt

The most common failure is a large coolant hose under the AC compressor

It can be seen in the picture on the left side the belt is almost touching it



Good luck

Paul

[pgill]

This link is discussing that hose

viewtopic.php?t=107618

[GreenMagicMan]

Thanks so much you two!!

Does this mean the only way to replace that hose (if it is the leak) is to remove the AC pump?
Is that hose the connector to the oil cooler?

[pgill]

I replaced the hose on my LR2 from below.

It is located below the AC compressor.

With the AC compressor removed it is easy to see what you are doing. With it installed it is challenging but not impossible.

I think you will need to remove the tube for the intake

Let us know what you find out

Good luck

Paul

[GreenMagicMan]

I’m half time at the Volvos location. That and specialty tools (no right mechanic has star tools on hand) and the inaccessibility of this area has all delayed me.

What I did:
Removed airbox, battery and had to leave tray (thanks idiotic hood release cable design), removed the air intake plastic tube BUT only after having pulled the radiator cooling fans to get access.

I then used mirrors and bright LED flashlights for photos and then gave a video a shot. That was the best thing to do.
I just posted a link on youtoobs here:

https://youtube.com/shorts/oETEolBBCQg?feature=shared

I am best guessing this shows that the water outlet plastic 3 say connector has failed (internal o ring?) and dribbling coolant all over with buildup on the engine metal pipe. Thoughts?
It COULD be it is the water pump and it leaked lots (??) on the READ belt which flung it everywhere and FORWARD (?)
But in my experiences almost all leaks move backwards in a moving car and not forwards. I’m sure there can be exceptions. Again, thoughts?
Should I just order this part and replace it (shooting a small parts cannon off) and cross fingers and hope for the best?
Anyone think it still could be the water pump?

Thank you!!

[pgill]

The common failure of that hose is that the rubber will swell and a pin hole leak will form.

It is possible that you have a new failure mode at the O ring

But it isn’t clear from the video

The water pump isn’t very far away and it could be the source for the leak

Good luck

Paul

[GreenMagicMan]

Thank you.
That phone angle was directly underneath the fitting. The oxidized reddish rusty looking stuff had collected underneath it

[pgill]

Based on that information I would replace the hose and check the top side of the metal pipe to see if it is stained.

If the stain is only on the bottom then it is likely that the O ring inside the hose failed and that is the leak

Good luck

Paul