Saleen/Chicane heat exchanger leak

[blackjack07]

My 2007 GT has unexpectedly developed a coolant leak. I believe it to be coming from the heat exchanger. New Bosch pump installed about a year ago. May or may not have had the supercharger/hoses burped completely. Maybe 3,000 mi driven since install. Car was driven about 25 miles without knowledge of the reservoir dry. Oil level in the supercharger reservoir registers normal on the feeler gauge/dip stick. OBD reading results in normal operating temps and no error codes driven 6 miles during refill and diagnostic road test. Undercarriage inspection shows a flood of coolant from the radiator aft. How screwed am I and what's your best advice? I'm pulling the front clip this morning.

 

[DieHarder]

Need to determine exactly where the leak is coming from first. Do you monitor IAT's or HE temp? Supercharger should be okay unless you rode her very hard and note something amiss. The Heat Exchanger is just a radiator and shouldn't be all that hard to either weld up or replace. I'd also be sure to test the Bosch pump for water flow before putting her back together. Then, I'd recommend adding gauges to monitor either HE or IAT's. I monitor IAT's (before and after Intercooler) which by default tells me whether the HE is working or not.

 

[blackjack07]

Thanks for the reply. Yep we're starting to pull parts off to see if we can find where the leak is coming from. The only way I monitor the IAT is via my OBD. Temps are now and have always hovered around 180. Car was last driven "lively" but not overly hard. Once I got the system filled and flowing again the Bosch pump seems to have performed extraordinarily well despite running dry for an estimated 30 minutes or so. We'll see what the life expectancy is though. I'll likely order a new HE regardless. I'm more worried about the sealed bearings in the SC more than anything else. Vehicle and SC only have about 42,000k.

 

[DieHarder]

Thanks for the reply. Yep we're starting to pull parts off to see if we can find where the leak is coming from. The only way I monitor the IAT is via my OBD. Temps are now and have always hovered around 180. Car was last driven "lively" but not overly hard. Once I got the system filled and flowing again the Bosch pump seems to have performed extraordinarily well despite running dry for an estimated 30 minutes or so. We'll see what the life expectancy is though. I'll likely order a new HE regardless. I'm more worried about the sealed bearings in the SC more than anything else. Vehicle and SC only have about 42,000k.

You mean Radiator water temp or IAT?

If OBD still says IAT is 180 maybe that's normal for your car but my understanding is the computer starts to pull timing after 130 so you may not be getting full power.

Superchargers are quite stout so unless you overstressed/overheated/warped something it should be okay. I know all cars vary IAT wise but 180 seems really high to me. I've never run more than 130 (got up to 150 once when my intercooler pump failed; hence how I knew it wasn't working). Might be worth adding a temp gauge to the HE circuit so you can monitor water temp.

 

[blackjack07]

My bad, should have clarified. Running coolant temps are 180-ish. IAT on the last OBD was 102.

 

[05Coupe]

Check all of your coolant lines inside and out as well, if Temps got over 3/4 on the gauge you could have the same problem as I've been tracking down.