Seepage around water pump?

[98 5oh XLT]

Ive got a touch of coolant seepage from where my top radiator hose connects to what i believe to be is my water pump. not enough to drop onto ground but enough to burn onto the engine when running. the hose is secure and the clamp is tight. What might be causing it? Im hoping no one ran stop leak through this because i have heard that can cause more harm than good. Is it possible for the water pump to get clogged? My engine temp is fine, my oil is fine, my heater runs nice and hot, and when its cold it does throw alot of condensation possibly looks like white smoke however it smells gas heavy and goes away after about 15 to 20 min of travel so i dont think its a head gasket problem. Anyways Thank you for reading this and i appreciate any help anyone can offer. If you need rig stats its in my signature. Thank you.

 

[MrQ]

Wrong forum, bud. This forum is for 1991-1994 Explorers with the 4.0 OHV engine.

However, white smoke on start up is a definite indicator of a coolant issue. Also a heavy gas smell coming out of the exhaust, means your system is running too rich. Check with the guys over in the 1995-2001 forums.

 

[98 5oh XLT]

yeah i just realized i accidentally posted in the wrong forum. If a mod wouldent mind moving this and my other post over I sincerly apologise. Thought i was in the right forum.

 

[Tony H]

Ive got a touch of coolant seepage from where my top radiator hose connects to what i believe to be is my water pump. not enough to drop onto ground but enough to burn onto the engine when running. the hose is secure and the clamp is tight. What might be causing it? Im hoping no one ran stop leak through this because i have heard that can cause more harm than good. Is it possible for the water pump to get clogged? My engine temp is fine, my oil is fine, my heater runs nice and hot, and when its cold it does throw alot of condensation possibly looks like white smoke however it smells gas heavy and goes away after about 15 to 20 min of travel so i dont think its a head gasket problem. Anyways Thank you for reading this and i appreciate any help anyone can offer. If you need rig stats its in my signature. Thank you.

On the First Gens.. I would point righ to the Intake manifold gasket. Right next to the Temperature sender... it leaks and runs down ofer the top edge of the water pump and down and around. Drys before it hits the ground.
not sure if the '98 engine is similar.

 

[Anime]

Coolant seepage is pretty common on engines. Usually it's just from things like loose bolts, an old gasket, old hose clamps, or hoses that are getting dry and stiff.

Sometimes an easy fix is just to tighten the bolts or clamp, but usually a more permanent solution is new hoses, new clamps, new gasket, and bolts torqued to spec, maybe with some loctite on there.

Water pumps do go out, but when they go, they tend to either leak out the weep hole, or make noise from the bearing going bad. Another thing that happens with cooling systems is the thermostat can slowly start to get stuck closed, making it so it flows less and less coolant, and increases the pressure so leaks are more likely.