Awkward Coolant Leak

[RG1984]

1999 Explorer XLT, 4x4, v6 SOHC.

I know exactly where the coolant leak is, but I need to know if it's going to lead me to something more severe than I'm just looking at:

As soon as I top up the radiator, it leaks (more accurately: drains) from the Thermostat Housing.

Would this just be a matter of replacing the Thermostat itself or the entirety of the thermostat housing? Or far more serious, such as water pump?

There are tell tale signs of some issue with the thermostat, as there's some coolant coming from the seam where the top of the thermostat housing bolts down on top of the thermostat.

EDIT: Just going to replace the whole assembly.

 

[donalds]

Use a all metal unit

 

[410Fortune]

Very common the plastic thermo housing just fails over time

All aluminum units available cheap and they work fantastic

Install is straight forward and covered in great detail on the internet! Good luck! Let us know how it goes