Hey everyone. i've got a 1998 ford f 150 stx 2 wheel drive 4.6lt v8. After driving it a couple kilometers up the road and back it seems to leak antifreeze somewhere around the oil pan(When I have it idling it doesn't leak. Only when it gets hot). I don't know very much about vehicles but i'm assuming it's not the head gasket because there's no white smoke coming from my exhaust, no antifreeze in my oil or oil in my antifreeze. When I turn on the heater I can smell the antifreeze after a few minutes. My check engine light is on but it turned on a few weeks prior to this hapening, i'm fairly sure this is because there's a hole in my exhaust. Anyways I was just wondering if someone could give me some info on what this might be. Thanks for the help!

 

Smelling it from the vents makes me think heater core. BUT, that wouldn't explain the antifreeze on the ground. I'd put my money on the water pump, though. Probably weeping a little bit and blowing back to the oil pan area.....

 

Thanks for the info man. I forgot to mention that their is some water dripping from the exhaust, but no sweet smell at all. not sure what that means.

 

A little bit of water dripping from the exhaust is normal and a byproduct of the combustion process.

 

Get the truck warmed up, turn on the A/C, put your nose up to a vent, and take a big whiff. If you smell the antifreeze strongly through that vent, you have a bad heater core. Also get a good flashlight and take a good long look at the two heater hoses where they attach to the heater core going into the firewall. That might be your leak. Prepare for a hell job. It has been discussed here many times.