Porche Cayenne Coolant leak

[jdw1222]

2014 cayenne V6

Been having to add a small amount of coolant every 6 months or so. Like maybe 1/2 qt. Today I finally see a little sign of the leak. Very small Puddle under car after sitting a couple days. Hard to see but tried to take a picture of front of motor where it appears to be wet. Looks like water pump but was curious if anyone else had any thoughts

 

[RooflessVW]

3.6? Water pump.

Buy two and keep one on the shelf.

 

[avacado11]

Sounds and looks exactly like the water pump leaking through the weep hole. If I remember right there’s no rubber hose that runs behind the crank pulley.

These engines have two water pumps. One for the engine and another for the heater core. I believe it’s called the auxiliary water pump. It’s up towards the passenger side of the engine. Usually when one goes the other is on its way out, but the aux pump is easier to get to so you can hold off on it for now.

 

[jdw1222]

3.6? Water pump.

Buy two and keep one on the shelf.

Ok Thanks! Is it that common of an issue on these?

Is the best option going with a VW OEM pump?

 

[RooflessVW]

Is it that common?

Is the best option going with a VW OEM pump?

I would normally say so, but the newer 3.6s drop water pumps while still under the new car warranty so I don't know anymore.

I'd probably go Graf or Geba

 

[jdw1222]

Ok, Will see what I can find.

Looks like i will lose a lot of coolant when I pull the pump

Is the Zerex G40 ok to use ?

 

[RooflessVW]

Ok, Will see what I can find.

Looks like i will lose a lot of coolant when I pull the pump

Is the Zerex G40 ok to use ?

Should be good to go as long as you already have the right stuff in there now.

Porsche or VW antifreeze is pretty cheap though.

 

[jdw1222]

Have the old pump out and ready to install new one. Anyone know if gasket maker/sealer is needed? It comes with a rubber o-ring that I will install but wasn't sure if it needed anything else. One video i found shows putting gasket sealer all around the pump, But not sure if its needed. The original doesn't appear to have any?

 

[RooflessVW]

O-ring only.

If there is some pitting or corrosion you could use some gasket maker around the flange to help.

 

[jdw1222]

Thanks!

Just noticed that the new pump has a smooth pulley and the original pump has a grooved pulley. I nicked the original pulley a little bit getting it off

Guess I am going to try and smooth out with a file and swap pulleys and see if that works.

 

[BHopkins]

Hey, I've just got to say, imho, this thread is a good example of what is great about BITOG. One of our fellow BITOG members asking for advice, and others of us, drawing upon their personal experience and knowledge, to share information and advice that is usable.

No critique. No condescending. Just good, friendly help.

 

[jdw1222]

Yea. It’s been a big help having this forum. Thanks to rooflessvw who has helped me numerous times

Got the water pump pulley swapped and all put back together. Added coolant and everything seems good. Hope everything will be ok with pulley. Will keep my eye on the belt

It looks like when I searched, I crossed the part # with a VW part # which I thought was exact same. Everything seems identical except for the pulley.

Went ahead and did oil change which in turn gives the under carriage a nice coating of anti rust treatment

Anyway. Original pump appears to have been leaking out of bottom weep hole

 

[Stimp]

Yea. It’s been a big help having this forum. Thanks to rooflessvw who has helped me numerous times

Got the water pump pulley swapped and all put back together. Added coolant and everything seems good. Hope everything will be ok with pulley. Will keep my eye on the belt

It looks like when I searched, I crossed the part # with a VW part # which I thought was exact same. Everything seems identical except for the pulley.

Went ahead and did oil change which in turn gives the under carriage a nice coating of anti rust treatment

Anyway. Original pump appears to have been leaking out of bottom weep hole

What mileage were you at when this happened? I've had a 17' Cayenne w/VR6 for more than a year now and it always smells like coolant when I pull into the garage, but exhaustive searches never have found a leak. No noticeable loss of coolant either. Just waiting for the day the pump shows itself like this. Awesome car nonetheless.

 

[jdw1222]

What mileage were you at when this happened? I've had a 17' Cayenne w/VR6 for more than a year now and it always smells like coolant when I pull into the garage, but exhaustive searches never have found a leak. No noticeable loss of coolant either. Just waiting for the day the pump shows itself like this. Awesome car nonetheless.

I also had been noticing a coolant smell for at least the last year. Coolant level only dropped a small amount Over that timeframe . Just recently had started noticing a few drops in driveway

Have roughly 92k

 

[willbur]

Should be good to go as long as you already have the right stuff in there now.

Porsche or VW antifreeze is pretty cheap though.

Cheap Porsche antifreeze? When I was doing a coolant exchange four years ago, Porsche dealership wanted $60 gallon. Went with Peak Global full strength $18/gallon

 

[RooflessVW]

Cheap Porsche antifreeze? When I was doing a coolant exchange four years ago, Porsche dealership wanted $60 gallon. Went with Peak Global full strength $18/gallon

That's almost double list.