leaking and i dont know where....

so theres a leak in my car, and its on the passenger side of the car, but no one can seem to pinpoint just what it is.

when i got the car inspected for this year i told the mechanic it was leaking but i didnt know from where and he said he thought it was the waterpump. which is fine and great, but he quoted $650 for it which i thought was a bit high, so i went to get it pressure tested, and that said it was the radiator.

so i had a mutual friend go under and check things out and he said the waterpump was wet but he couldnt tell if thats what was leaking. so i go and buy parts for the radiator and we check out the radiator and they said it looks fine except a few fins here and there. so we put on a new lower hose and it still leaks, but the hose is only wet where it connects onto the radiator.

my question is has anyone else had problems with the car leaking but not knowing exactly where? it leakes on the side of the waterpump, but to me it looks like it may be something radiator-related.

anyone have any suggestions?????

I'll take a shot, how much seems to be leaking?Does it leave a puddle or just a few drops? Do you have to add coolant on a regular basis? I believe if it's leaking on the pass. side it probably is a water pump. You can change it yourself for less than $100 and that would include replacing your timing belt also.I had a mechanic friend once who would have us dummies find mysterious leaks by putting a large piece of cardboard under engine and then marking where tire was on it then you had a reference point to where the leak was and you could work back up til you found it.
Post back with info and I will try to help!Good luck

well our mechanic friend said he doesnt want to replace bc the timing belt is in the way and he doesnt want to fuck that up. but aside from that he could. and we have an actual mechanic who claims hell do it for $120, bc we already bought the waterpump. but our friend doesnt want to bc he says the timing belt is too iffy to mess with. and the leak is on the passenger side where the waterpump and all is so it makes sense for it to be the waterpump.

the leak has made its way to a little puddle. it overheated a few weeks ago and since then the leak has been a little bigger, which is why we thought it may be the radiator(that and a pressure test said the radiator was leaking). but what completely throws me off is if it is the waterpump and if the radiator is completely fine, which our friend said it was, then whyis the lower radiator hose wet where it connects to the radiator??

You could have a leak at the weld where the lower radiator hose attaches,as for the timing belt,it is very easy to do.There is a tensioner about half way downand if he loosens the bolts on it he can remove the belt.If you cancheck this site for previous posts under "avfan" I have gone over the installation of the timing belt in detail.What parts did you buy for the radiator?

everyoe has just said they dont want to mess with the timing belt bc they dont want to mess it up when putting back on, but were trying to have a friend come out and see if hed be willing to.

I had a Dodge that had similar symptoms. I could see the puddle under the radiator, but not the leak.

I pulled the radiator out and had it tested...no leak. Put it back in and found a puddle again.

With the engine hot and shut off, I searched with a flashlight and saw a thread-thin stream of water coming from the pump housing. It was squirting all the way over to the bottom of the radiator. As the engine cooled, the leak stopped, leaving a wet spot on the pump and a puddle under the radiator.

Look around real good for the leak, (head, block, pump, hoses) the source may not be as obvious as the resulting puddle.

well the leak is on the pump side and not the radiator. and i havent run the car for awhile other than to turn it on for a little bit to keep the battery good. so not being driven it still leaks.

so being more than likeyly the waterpump...is it still driveable, and if so how long until it needs to be replaced asap? im going to replace it but dont have the money to do so right now, and i need it for work, so im curious how much longer i can drive it before it gets worse or harms other shit...