1994 Chevy S-10 My radiator fluid is leaking

XXMESTIZO904XX

MEMBER
1994 CHEVROLET S-10
4 CYL
FWD
MANUAL
219,304 MILES

(with replaced engine about 80,000 miles

Originally I just had a radiator fluid leak from a hose, and I already fixed that, but now I also noticed another leak which is spewing out of the muffler

the truck broke down while I was driving
and it will no longer start- although the engine is not seized, it will turn over it just doesn't fire

tonight I'm going to remove the radiator and also the muffler to see whats going on, I also plan on changing the distributor cap tomorrow

when I checked the oil level after trying to start up the car I noticed it was empty. I added oil and some water to the radiator, and it no longer runs, this may also be due to the first leak out of the hose which was spraying fluid all over the distributor cap, I already went to a junk yard to get an estimate a new engine and they told me 500 dollars plus tax- I was wondering would be a cheaper way to fix my problem?

1 Reply

RUDY NIELSON

MEMBER
2 POSTS

The same thing happened to me on my 2001 S-10.
In my case the freeze plugs rusted out. Lost the coolant and over heated.
This caused the head to warp and blew the head gasket. Water came out the exhaust. Because of water in the cylinders it was verry dificult to restart.
My solution was to rebuild the engine.
Had the head milled and checked for cracks. $75.00
Gasket set, freeze plugs, water pump, and radiator.
Soon after the rebuild the catalitic converter glogged from the water going through it I suppose. GM replaced that because the cat because it was still under warrantee. I did the work myself and had it running again for around $250.00.