Leaking coolant fitting

[smlranger]

Always something to fix on the giant Repair Vehicle . The coolant fitting in the pic has been 'fixed' by my local Cummins Coach Care dealer twice and still leaks. Initially, we thought a threaded elbow at the top was the culprit so they tightened it, installed new silicone hose (blue hose), new clamp. No fixy.

Second trip they said the hose needed to be snugged up on the elbow and clamp tightened. No fixy.

So, going back one more time and curious if anyone else with a CC has had similar issue. If there is a crack somewhere in this thing I cannot see it. It does appear to leak where the elbow (blue hose fitting) is threaded into the pipe. I am going to ask the Cummins guys to remove the fitting, clean the threads, coat well with Rectorseal and reinstall; unless they have a better idea.

[swedegis]

We were on the side of the road this past September in Myrtle Beach with the same thing. We lost all our coolant. The Cummins guy put on a new clamp and that broke . ( I was driving behind and the car was covered in coolant) . We made it to the cummins dealership and they put on a new hose, etc like yours. I think having them take it all off and clean etc is a great idea. Hopefully that works. So far so good on ours.

Sheila and Roger
04 Country Coach Allure
Sammy, Ozzie and Lola the fur kids

[deandec]

You might try this approach:

http://www.permatex.com/products-2/p...-repair-detail

I used this product about 7 years ago to avoid paying Cummins their $1700 to $2100 parts changing estimate to replace my gear cover gasket.

It is still working today. $6 vs $1700 is a good deal in my world.

[smlranger]

Originally Posted by deandec

You might try this approach:

Sealants : Permatex® Spray Sealant Leak Repair

I used this product about 7 years ago to avoid paying Cummins their $1700 to $2100 parts changing estimate to replace my gear cover gasket.

It is still working today. $6 vs $1700 is a good deal in my world.

Tell me more about this. Are you referring to the timing chain/gear cover? If so, I have a slow leak around that gasket and another on the oil pan gasket. What kind of surface prep is needed to get this stuff to work?

[BarneyM]

Had the same problem with ours. I drained the coolant into a small inflatable kid pool, removed the fitting, cleaned it up and place a good amount of Teflon tape on the threads and still had the problem. There was a lot of corrosion inside the threads on the pipe. Looked like there was no sealant applied at the factory. Tried a few other things, nothing seemed to work. I finally removed the large hose clamp and installed two regular clamps with the worm gears on opposite sides of the hose. That fixed the problem. The threads were leaking originally also.

Good luck,

[smlranger]

Originally Posted by BarneyM

Had the same problem with ours. I drained the coolant into a small inflatable kid pool, removed the fitting, cleaned it up and place a good amount of Teflon tape on the threads and still had the problem. There was a lot of corrosion inside the threads on the pipe. Looked like there was no sealant applied at the factory. Tried a few other things, nothing seemed to work. I finally removed the large hose clamp and installed two regular clamps with the worm gears on opposite sides of the hose. That fixed the problem. The threads were leaking originally also.

Good luck,

I have pretty much decided to ask them to do same....remove the entire assembly, take it apart, clean it up, and use a good sealant on the threaded fittings. Mines seems to be leaking at the top fitting not around any of the hoses. I'd do it myself but since Cummins charged me for the initial fix, their response has been to apologize and tell me they will fix it no charge.

[deandec]

Originally Posted by smlranger

Tell me more about this. Are you referring to the timing chain/gear cover? If so, I have a slow leak around that gasket and another on the oil pan gasket. What kind of surface prep is needed to get this stuff to work?

Yes. On my C8.3L it is the cover that fronts the injection pump so it is difficult to see behind the cover where the exact oil seepage was.

I used a couple of doses of brake cleaner on that area and tried to wipe it clean.

Then I sprayed the Permatex all around the back of the cover, as best I could, three times.

No leaks since.

I am not even qualified as a shade-tree-mechanic so try the process at your own risk.

The Permatex solution was provided by another RV.net member at the time. He learned it from a relative who had a fleet of trucks if I recall. His repair was successful.

I suspect it might work on the oil pan gasket also. However, replacing the oil pan gasket might be a cheaper fix than the gear cover gasket replacement cost estimate.

[pumper9x9]

I had a bunch of coolant hose replace at a Cummins dealer. I had to take it back 3 times. The first time they tightened all the clamps to specs. They leaked. They tightened them more and they still leaked. The third time was the charm. I wasn't happy about that. But that's the only issue I've had with them and I have been using Cummins Dealer for coach service for years

[smlranger]

Originally Posted by pumper9x9

I had a bunch of coolant hose replace at a Cummins dealer. I had to take it back 3 times. The first time they tightened all the clamps to specs. They leaked. They tightened them more and they still leaked. The third time was the charm. I wasn't happy about that. But that's the only issue I've had with them and I have been using Cummins Dealer for coach service for years

I've had a couple of glitches with my local Cummins shop. First time I ever had service there their mechanic did not lube the chassis but I was charged for it. They apologized profusely, did the lube and gave me a $75 credit for future work. They have always been courteous and I think they want to be fair and efficient. They have my coach now and I am hoping the third time is the charm on this coolant leak.