problem

[rancid420potheadpunk]

ok so heres the problem ive been haveing lately. my car is leaking radiator fluid from somewhere (i think the thermostat gasket is bad) and the belt for the alternator (the inside belt) squeks sometimes and i lose all power when it does. my g/f's dad replaced the belt the day after thanksgiveing and it stoped until yesterday and on my way home from work it did it again. he said i need to replace the lower radiator hose and could that be the problem or what?

perry youve seen my car so you might be able to help me out alittle bit more.

[torpedan]

If its nogt being tighted down enough and its leaking onto it sure.. Really the belt should be able to be tightened and not slip when wet

[OsoSlo z28]

your thermostat housing is on the opposite side of the motor from the belts. it's poosible that your water pump seal is going. one thing i've noticed is that sometimes the alternator belt tends to loosen itself from time to time. check to make sure it's tight.

[rancid420potheadpunk]

so tighten belt an tighten the thermostat housing down, and that should fix it?

[OsoSlo z28]

it's possible your thermostat housing is leaking, but it has NO affect on the belts. it's on the other side of the engine.

[rancid420potheadpunk]

i know where they are both located, i just needed to get some help before i broke something, if the thermostat housing is cracked how much would that cost me?

[OsoSlo z28]

if it's the housing itself? junkyard or someone parting out a car.

[UnkleDuke]

Just go and get a thermostat housing from a junkyard--probably 5 bucks...
I think the reference to wetness on the belt is that the gasket seal between your water pump and engine may have sprayed coolant on the belt. It won't directly cause anything to break, but if the seal is gone and you loose all your coolant, you could blow/sieze the engine.
Unfotunately, I don't know if you can buy a pump gasket seperate from a new pump, but if you have any real doubts about your pump you should change it anyway (about 60-70 bucks Canadian). As for you're thermostat gasket, I paid about 10 bucks (I think) for the thermostat, and about 7 bucks for the gasket. If you're doing either, do them both at the same time so you don't have problems again down the road.

[rancid420potheadpunk]

i'll replace the gasket for the thermostat and tighten the belt thursday and also replace the lower radiator hose, the water pump will have to wait till january, which sucks, i guess i'll keep adding water and fluid till then.

[UnkleDuke]

Make sure you mix a coolant-rich mixture for freezing protection.

[rancid420potheadpunk]

i poured in three cups of water the other day and pu in about a cup of radiator fluid yesterday.

[plusinfinit]

I am not sure but i used to have a leak, it turned out my pump had to be replaced, i did so, it's no big deal. U might want to do the coolant pump. And as for the mixture of coolant I use only 50%50% that comes already mixed. Most antyfreez brands on the market are already mixed.
Good luck.