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Coolant leak between turbo and manifold, HELP!

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Old Apr 8, 2007 | 04:31 PM
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Default Coolant leak between turbo and manifold, HELP!

I have a 1.6L greddy turbo miata, and everytime I top off my coolant, or put on my high pressure radiator cap, I notice 3 things:

1. Motor shakes
2. RPMS VERY choppy when throttle opened
3. Coolant seems to be leaking onto the headers from the turbo, around the gasket.

What is the problem here? What needs to be repaired/replaced?
Old Apr 8, 2007 | 04:33 PM
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Sounds wrong to me - there shouldn't be any coolant going into the turbo on the Greddy kit.
If you have a pressure problem like that my first thought would be head gasket...
Old Apr 8, 2007 | 04:41 PM
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That was a thought of mine, but the coolant looks fine and so does the oil, any other possibilities of where this leak might stem from?
Old Apr 8, 2007 | 05:10 PM
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a busted hose,where water cooled turbos get there coolant from.
Old Apr 8, 2007 | 06:03 PM
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I had a similar problem, I was poping out water from the exhaust. But it was minimal, and only happened for a day or two when the weather gotten very humid here in Hong Kong.
Old Apr 8, 2007 | 06:06 PM
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turbopezz- I'm running the stock greddy TD04, is this turbo water cooled? If so where are the hoses located becuase I can't seem to find them anywhere. Thanks!
Old Apr 8, 2007 | 06:44 PM
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I had an external oil/coolant leak from the had gasket when my head bolts were stretching under load. Get in their with a flash light while the leak is occuring (may require a few revs) and see where it's comming from.
Old Apr 8, 2007 | 11:50 PM
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The leak seems to be coming from the gasket/flange between the turbo and the manifold
Old Apr 9, 2007 | 12:19 AM
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Dude. There is no coolant line going to or coming from the greddy TD04H turbo.
Old Apr 9, 2007 | 12:55 AM
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look at where i used the yellow,the red doesnt exit on your car ok.

you shouldnt have coolant leaking out your exhaust/turbo flange.
are you burning smoke.out the tailpipe.
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Old Apr 9, 2007 | 03:30 AM
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I had a simular problem a couple of weeks back.
i found out that the coolant hose going to the heater on the back of the engine was leaking coolant.
That coolant was leaking on the manifold, so i thought is was coming from somewhere around the manifold.
Old Apr 9, 2007 | 01:30 PM
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I checked those two coolant hoses behind the turbo and they're both fully intact without leaks - I'm so baffled at this point :(
Old Apr 9, 2007 | 03:07 PM
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Did you check it when the car was warmed up also check the hose clamps on the heater hose.
Old Apr 9, 2007 | 03:39 PM
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i'd check:

the lower radiator hose, the one that sits directly beneath the turbo.
the hardline that mounts directly beneath the manifold, it only sits in with an 0-ring, that could easily fail.
the coolant hoses on the firewall.
the headgasket
Old Apr 9, 2007 | 06:40 PM
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I checked the spark plugs and the o2 sensor and they are dry as can be, meanwhile coolant it still seeping from this flage btween the turbo and manifold, is it safe to rule out the headgasket being bad?
Old Apr 9, 2007 | 07:15 PM
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no but first check the other lines such as lower rad and heater etc. my money is on the solid line that goes into the oring running under your header.
Old Apr 10, 2007 | 06:07 AM
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Any chance the turbo's bearing cartridge could be cracked causing a leak into the turbine side then running into the manifold? The missfire could indicate a blown head gasket where coolant is entering the combustion chamber and exiting thru the exhaust then seeping thru a leak at the turbine inlet flange. Is there any (heavy) condensation or milky oil on the inside of the oil cap?
Old Apr 10, 2007 | 08:04 AM
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if he had a Water cooled turbo this would be applicable but i line towards a line failure if performance is uneffected.
Old Apr 10, 2007 | 08:34 AM
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if you have a leak between the manifold and block, it's from the coolant hardline spraying up onto it from underneath!


it's not your turbo.

Last edited by Braineack; Oct 2, 2007 at 03:01 PM.
Old Apr 10, 2007 | 08:54 AM
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exactly



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