Honda Coolant Leak Under Engine

[phw]

Hey all:

OK, I know it is not an Odyssey, but my other car is an Accord... I have a coolant leak on my 97 Accord LX between the crankshaft pulley and the oil pan... Here is a picture:



I am hoping that this is just a leaky hose or something like that, but I didn't see anything under first inspection.

Unfortunately, I did change my oil at the same time, and it was a light milky brown, which I know is a sign of a leaky head gasket. I have never had any oil leaks in this area, and I hope that it is running down the block from say, the water pump or something else. I haven't dug in real deep yet...

Any suggestions on where to start the troubleshooting?? I feel like I can change the head gasket if needed, as I have the helms manual, and I have done about 4 honda timing belt changes already.

Thanks in advance

Phil

[EricD]

water pump would be my first guess.

Eric

[DavidGSR]

I would also guess water pump, but that would not allow cooland into the oil (I don't think).

[Jerry O]

Water pump would be my first suspect. There may be a path for coolant to get into the oil pan, but I have not been inside one of those engines, so I do not know for sure.

Jerry O.

[SuperDad]

Silly question, on any of those timing belt changes, did you replace the water pump?


It is most likely the water pump that has failed, but I could also see a head gasket causing the leak too.

[manualman]

I don't believe in coincidence for matters like this. If there is coolant leaking AND coolant in your oil its a good bet that they're related. And a water pump leak couldn't get coolant into the oil on any design I know of.

Try pressure testing the coolant system overnight. Then pull the sparkplugs, crank the engine and see if any coolant comes spurting out?? If yes, head gasket (or warped head) is the culprit. If no, that could still be it, but with a very slow leak.

Have you had to add much coolant?