Power steering issues then coolant everywhere!!!!!

[Piznapple]

Hey guys, at 1am I get into my xterra and hop into it to go to work, and first it was kind of hard backing out of my driveway as if my power steering was out as the car warmed up it felt fine. Then I get off work at 8am and drive to 7-11 upon pulling in and getting out of my car I smell something sweet in the air and look to find out that my car is leaking radiator coolant. So my question to you guys is, do my power steering and coolant leak have anything to do with each other, and if so what is the solution so I can get my daily up and running agin. Thank you!!

 

[Big_THanks]

Hey guys, at 1am I get into my xterra and hop into it to go to work, and first it was kind of hard backing out of my driveway as if my power steering was out as the car warmed up it felt fine. Then I get off work at 8am and drive to 7-11 upon pulling in and getting out of my car I smell something sweet in the air and look to find out that my car is leaking radiator coolant. So my question to you guys is, do my power steering and coolant leak have anything to do with each other, and if so what is the solution so I can get my daily up and running agin. Thank you!!

They aren't connected to each other. Can you not see where the coolant is coming from?

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[Piznapple]

No I can't see where it's coming from, but I have a general idea of the area it's coming from.

 

[Muadeeb]

PS leaks are very common for the Gen 1 trucks. The clamp at the base of the reservoir is typically the culprit, but the hoses have been known to go bad too.

Coolant is another matter. There's no real common issues there (other than the undersized radiator) so you'll have to go digging. Could be a loose clamp or a broken fitting.

 

[Piznapple]

Thanx guys!!!!

 

[Piznapple]

Once I take off the radiator cap, wherever it's leaking from starts poring out. Has anyone had this issue or is my motor toast??

 

[Muadeeb]

Depends. Where is it coming from?

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[Prime]

Sounds to me like the radiator or a hose. The cap was maintaining some vacuum on the cooling system. Once you took the cap off, the vacuum was released and the coolant could free flow.

 

[Piznapple]

So I still can't tell where it is leaking from. I'm thinking it's leaking from somewhere around the water pump. But I'm thinking I'm going to have to replace the water pump and the timing belt.( looking at about $840 at the nissan dealership, and I really don't want to pay that when I can do it myself.)

 

[Muadeeb]

Bypass hose behind the thermostat. Grab the timing belt kit from Courtesy and do it yourself if you feel up to it.

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[Piznapple]

I'm just thinking that I'm going to bite the bullet and do it myself. The water pump I'm confident in doing but the timing belt replacement has me a little worried. But I really really don't want to spend that $840 dollars. So I will let you guys know what goes down but I won't be able to tear into it until friday

 

[Muadeeb]

Timing belt isn't as bad as you might think. There is a write up here (I think); I'll try to look for it later. Biggest thing is to be slow and methodical. If you can, order pizza the night before so you can use the box to keep track if where the screws in the timing cover go.

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[Piznapple]

Alright so I drive to work in the x, and filled my radiator and the heat level never changed on my drive to work.(3mile drive at the most) but once I parked the car I could see steam coming from the lower hose. So I'm thinking and hoping that it's just the hose. But for sure I'm still leaking peer steering somewhere and the belt needs to be tightened. All is well I guess until I can repair on Friday.

 

[Big_THanks]

Alright so I drive to work in the x, and filled my radiator and the heat level never changed on my drive to work.(3mile drive at the most) but once I parked the car I could see steam coming from the lower hose. So I'm thinking and hoping that it's just the hose. But for sure I'm still leaking peer steering somewhere and the belt needs to be tightened. All is well I guess until I can repair on Friday.

Just go ahead and change all radiator hoses or you'll be doing it later. Change the thermostat too since its opened up.

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[Piznapple]

Hey guys, the main problem with me whole car was the water pump. That thing was a ticking time bomb just about to explode. Needless to say I did the timing belt and I wasn't that bad. For my first time things went very slow but in the end everything was fine. Once agin thank you guys for the support