After 1 (one) year my Dorman water outlet started to leak. $87 CAD went down the drain (actually in the PartSource pocket).

This time I replaced it with Chrysler's MOPAR outlet for $181 CAD.
I also bought that 8 mm swivel ratchet key from LOWE'S store ($12 CAD) and I didn't need to lift up the upper intake mainfold at all. Thanks for posting this approach guys.

One more thing, I was surprised that Dorman sensor showed lower readings of the water temperature, compared to my original sensor. Guess what, the new Chrysler MOPAR is showing the same as original, which is about 1/8 more than Dorman, with a normal running range between 3/8 and 1/2, as it used to be.

Now, I still do have another smaller coolant leak, which might be the water pump... no overheating though.

 

Let's hope you have better luck with the Mopar part, but remember, it was a Mopar part that failed in the first place.

Water pump leaks are very problematical in the 2.7 L engine. Because of the internal location of the water pump, it can leak into the crankcase causing contamination of the engine oil and serious problems. Get it checked out immediately and watch your engine oil carefully. If it turns chocolate milk brown you have a problem.

 

I need help!!!!! I have a 2004 sebring touring love my car......but after replacing the water outlet by taking off the upper intake the car was fine. Coolant leaked fixed......but now the car drove fine and after about a 25-30 mile test drive i came home and parked went to sleep and then woke up to get breakfast and now my car wont start and when it does i push the gas pedal and the car dies!!!! Wtf is going on any help is helpful and much appreciated. Doctor can you help?

 

Codes?

 

I replaced my leaking Coolant Outlet Manifold (COM) last night (this is the official name Chrysler calls the contraption). Thanks to this forum, it went without a hitch and took about an hour including firing up the engine and heating it up, checking for leaks. I know several folks have more or less outlined what I have below, but I figured I would put in it a nice methodical order for those changing this ridiculously designed POS themselves.

Since the leaking COM was 12 years old, I bit the bullet and purchased a new manifold with emission temperature sensor attached from my friendly local Chrysler dealer figuring, with my luck, the sensor will go bad soon enough. The COM was $110 plus tax. Whether you buy it from the dealer or aftermarket, the procedure for replacement is the same with the exception of removing the sensor from the old and installing it on the new. This may pose a problem if the old one doesn’t want to leave its former home. I don’t address that issue here.

I did not remove or loosen the intake manifold to access the problematic Left Front Bolt (LFB). To be clear, Left in this case is the driver’s side of the car, the bolt will be to your right when working on it and facing toward the rear of the car. Also, I refer to the four machine screws that secure the COM to the engine as bolts… easier to type “bolts” instead of “machine screws.” The longer bolts secure the right (passenger) side of the COM, short ones secure the left (driver’s) side.

You can try to drain some coolant out of the system, but because fooling with the radiator drain plug or lower coolant hose has the potential for creating another nasty project as things can easily break and go wrong, I opted to pull the hoses going to the COM and mop up whatever comes out with rags. As I did this, I found that all the coolant in the COM had already drained from the leak and negligible coolant came out from the hoses, so draining was unnecessary. I am glad I didn’t fool around with draining the radiator.

After installing the new COM, I actually did try to bleed air out of the system with the bleeder screw… it didn’t work. Disgusted, I tightened the bleeder screw carefully… it will never be tampered with again. (As a side note: I tried to turn the bleeder screw in the leaking COM and found the brass seat it screws into began to spin in the plastic COM with the screw. My opinion: NEVER turn that bleeder screw unless you’re throwing away the COM anyway).

I know this seems like a lot of steps, but each one doesn’t take much time. I broke it down to make it as easy to understand up-front as possible for someone to decide if they want to do this themselves. I am mechanically inclined, but rank this as pretty easy to do. Take your time and it isn’t that big a deal considering how much money you might save when compared to having someone else do the work.

Here is the summary of how to do it:

1. If you don’t have it already, go to Lowe'sand purchase the8mm flex head/swivel socket ratchet wrench (by Cobalt), $20 with tax. It was worth every penny.Without this, I don’t see any way to get to the LFB out without removing or loosening the intake manifold.

2. Disconnect the electrical connector to the COM. Disconnect the electrical connector going into the Intake Manifold to gain more access to the LFB. Pull wiring harness of said connectors out of the way.

3. Start with the uppermost/smallest hose and remove smallest hose off the COM by pinching the clamp with pliers and gently pulling the hose. Have an absorbent rag/towel ready to capture any residual coolant in the hose. Do the same with the next larger hose down (Note: These hoses go to the heater core). Leave the lowest/largest hose (goes to radiator) connected to the COM until after you have removed it from the engine.

4. Proceed to removing the COM my starting with loosening each of the four bolts securing the COM to the engine. Start with the LFB using the 8 mm swivel ratchet socket wrench. In my case, it did not require a lot of torque to turn the LFB with this wrench at all. Proceed to loosen the other three bolts. The Left Rear Bolt may be reached with 8mm socket on an extension, although it will be at a slight angle because of tight clearance due to the Intake Manifold. It is not so severe an angle that a swivel is required (it wouldn’t fit in the tight space anyway).

5. With all four bolts loosened, remove the three bolts leaving the LFB last. As mentioned elsewhere, it will take a lot of short turns of the 8mm swivel ratchet socket wrench to get the LFB out. Be patient and it will go fine. Pull up on the COM as you ratchet back on the wrench to create enough friction so the bolt doesn’t simply go back and forth… it is that loose if there if there is no dirt in the threads of the bolt/engine.

6. With the LFB fully unscrewed and still in the COM, remove the COM and LFB by pulling up and sideways toward the passenger side of the car and away from the Intake Manifold.

7. Remove the LFB. Remove the remaining largest hose off the COM by pinching the clamp with pliers and gently pulling the hose.

8. Clean the surface of the engine where the new COM and its gaskets will seat. I did not need anything more than a clean towel to remove lightly solidified residual coolant. Don’t allow anything to fall into the coolant passages on the engine.

9. Installation of new COM is reverse order of above. Begin by installing the large hose and clamp. Place LFB in COM, and place on engine by sliding under the Intake Manifold.

10. Threading the LFB is a bit of a challenge (Do Not Cross-thread!) but with the help of a piece of wire (coat hanger will work), I was able to manipulate the bolt as I turned the wrench and had no issue getting it threaded. Ratchet the LFB several turns to be sure the bolt is started, and then continue until it is slightly seated. As with removal, pull up on the COM as you ratchet back on the wrench to create enough friction so the bolt doesn’t simply go back and forth.

11. Install the other three bolts, making sure not to cross thread. The Left Rear Bolt is a bit tricky because of the tight clearance due to the Intake Manifold, but is easily done. Tighten the three bolts to snug only.

12. Return to the LFB and ratchet it down and tighten as much as you can. I felt at the time that I couldn’t get enough torque on the wrench, but when I checked for leaks later, there wasn’t an issue.

13. Tighten the remaining bolts, starting with the Right Rear Bolt, then the Left Rear Bolt, finishing with the Right Front Bolt (i.e., in a “cross” pattern so you don’t warp the COM. Also, don’t over-torque these bolts… you would hate to strip the threads machined into the top of the engine… another nasty repair project).

14. Install the two remaining hoses and clamps (heater core hoses).

15. Reconnect the electrical connectors to the COM and the Intake Manifold.

16. Don’t mess with the bleeder screw in the COM. Just fill the reservoir with the proper coolant mixture, slightly overfilling as air will bleed from the system after running the engine. Re-install the pressure cap to the coolant reservoir.

17. Run the engine with heater on and up to operating temperature. Check for leaks. I had none.

18. Let the engine cool. Top off the coolant reservoir as required.

 

I have a 2005 2.7 Convertible Sebring with an excessive radiator fluid leak. We fill the bottle and it just completely drips out from underneath somewhere. We checked the bottle and no leaks. We checked the operation of the water pump and pumps to heat up the car until the fluid runs out and it can overheat just sitting idleing cause it soon runs out of fluid. We can't find the leak and we think it might be a crack where the rubber hose connects but we can't see it. Please help, we just bought this car, got it home and it overheated sitting in our driveway. The thermostat didn't even register the overheating and it was just replaced....

 

I gather that the coolant is running out on the ground. That's good, it least it's not leaking into the crankcase. Nobody here can tell you where the leak is. If you suspect that it's leaking from a radiator hose, then you should try to verify that, and if the hose is bad, replace it. If you don't have the mechanical ability to replace a hose or find a leak, then your best bet is to seek professional help.

 

hi, when you say drain coolant from "Bottom right side", who's side are you looking at it from? As sitting in car or standing in front of it?
thanks

 

The "right side" of a car is always the right side as if you were sitting in the driver's seat looking forward. It's the car's right side, not necessarily your right side. The car has its own front, back, left and right sides, just like you do, and they don't change.

 

I'm not a Chrysler Tech, and not even a mechanic... I just don't like to pay outragous $$$'s like that, ( OK, I'm cheap.. no, I meant "Thrifty"), and
enjoy the challenge.. did my 1st oil change at 2 years old on a 2 ton stake truck.. ( OK, I guided my grandfather to do it, who barely knew how to swing a hammer, while my dad was home sick and the truck had a long trip the next day.. Then in my teens, took the 4 banger out of my Vega and put in an 283 V8, and took the A/C out of wrecked 75 Sky hawk, and installed it in my car.
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