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I have had an intermittent coolant leak for some time, with not much more missing from the radiator than what I find on my floor after shutting the engine off.  I understand the "finding its own level" thing, and am not overfilling.  The location baffles me as it appears (without jacking the car up and waiting) to be coming from the area of that baffle pipe on the left rear of the block.   Does this make any sense?
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The are you mention does not make imediate sense.

 

Don't forget that the early cars do not have an expansion tank therefore are very prone to dribbling coolant through their overflow pipe... these dayes that would be recycled by the expansion tank.

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The estimate of the location of the water leak was close, but as usual, misleading.   We had 10 Triumphs from the BCTR travelling up to the Ralley in the Valley (in Penticton, BC) - and one of the mechanics said I had "white or blue" smoke showing when I accelerated.  With oil I leak, but I don't burn.  I then mentioned my strange water leak issue and Lee looked at the breather pipe, shook his head and walked around the car.  There was water dribbling down from the other side, where there is a drain spigot, and it was dripping by the exhaust pipe.  The little tap was leaking and the natural reaction is to tighten it.  But I learned something I hope to remember for a long time - "some of these parts can get brittle after 40 years.  You don't want to tighten that tap until you are in a garage, with a new part in your other hand."  Very sage advice.  And quite a relief to understand where the coolant leak is, and the intemittence of it, due to revs, heat and pressure.
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Did you check if there is any water collecting under the valve cover. Some TRs, especially, TR3 leak water via the cylinder head studs. When I bought my 3, I obseved a water leak via the studs under the valve cover. Now after engine overhaul I noticed a minor leak via one of the outer studs above the exhaust. It will probably seal off itself with time :(

Anyhow in case of a major leak, I think some attention is required.

Jean

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  • 2 weeks later...

dennis

the temperature of my engine creeps up when first turned off, this will equal an increase in pressure and any points prone to dribbles will show up.

jean suggested that i put the kenlow fan on a permanent live feed (runs with the ignition off) but havn't bothered as my system is dribble free, may be worth a try.

regards

peter

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Thanks for the input - I got what was supposed to be the right part, more of less.  The right Moss number supposidly crossed over to a Rover style drain, but it looked rather strange.  So the distributor gave me a spigot that looked just like what I had, and said the threads are all the same.  When I adjusted the old tap at home, the adjustment position it was leaking at, was the best location.  It leaked more everywhere else.  I also luckily didn't have the right size wrench to remove it.  At the shop the next day they worked on the threads of the new part and got it to fit - and now the coolant behaves properly (for a TR3 with a crank hole in the toy radiator).
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