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About two weeks ago, my car's 'check coolant level' message came on. I grabbed some coolant and filled it back up, thinking I must have just had a small leak somewhere. I have had this car for about two and a half years, and never had a problem with this before. The next week it came on again - I knew I had a problem. Upon further inspection, I saw that the leak was coming from above the serpentine belt on the right side of the engine. I determined that the problem was part number a 200 271 11 52, which had been superseded by part a 200 271 15 52. I ordered the new coolant tube, and when I went to replace it, I saw clearly that the old tube had broken off inside of the engine. This was clearly my problem. I installed the new tube, and after refilling with some coolant and starting the car again, there was still some coolant that looked like it was coming from the same spot. My buddy said that it must have just been some leftover coolant that was sitting there that you could see now. I don't know why, but I believed him. Fast forward to yesterday and my car is definitely still leaking coolant. I don't know what to do. Last night, I unscrewed the tube and put it back in. I figured I hadn't tightened it down enough. However, this morning, there was a trail of coolant where I park. I don't know what my problem is. Some pictures are attached, and here is a Google Photos link to all of the below photos. https://photos.app.*******/HBm5PkK1F3BrGUzu5
I'm at a loss as to what could have gone wrong. If anyone is well versed in this motor, please help!
Did you get an OEM pipe and not a (poor quality) aftermarket one?
Did you damage the mating surface between the o-ring and the engine block somehow? Hopefully you didn't take a screwdriver to the aluminum engine block when getting out the pieces that broke off.
Are you sure it's not just some residual coolant that spilled out when replacing that pipe?
Worst case is the o-ring is defective, which should be covered under warranty if you picked up the part at a dealer. If they refuse, the o-ring can be purchased separately for a few bucks.
Lastly, are you sure you only have 1 leak? You might want to take a look at this thread. I had 3 different pipes explode on me in a 3 month window, as well as a nipple that connects to the pipe you mentioned. One pipe is the one you mentioned, one is at the front, and one is a tiny hidden one in the back between the engine and firewall. If you haven't done so, you might want to replace the other ones.
Last edited by slammer111; 02-19-2019 at 10:41 PM.
I found and fixed the problem last night. The O ring broke when I went to install the new pipe. It is no longer leaking. I went to AutoZone and got a generic fuel distributor O ring. I have 3 OEM O rings on the way though, $10 isn't going to kill me and if something goes wrong I will want to install the correct part. However, I needed the car!
Thank you for your suggestions. If I start leaking again, I'll look through everything you mentioned!
02-19-2019, 08:33 AM
*HELP* C230K M271 Unsolvable Coolant Leak
