I got the thing running finally. Now I think one of the freeze plugs is bad. Water is coming from the back of the engine between engine and trans. Any suggestions if this is the problem and the best way to fix? Thanks all.
It's me again. It looks like I'm gonna have to replace the valve seals also, she's smoking.
Get a good look at the area to be sure that it is a freezplug before doing anything else. They sell small inspection mirrors on a telescoping handle at most auto parts stores. (the handle is exactly like a short version of a radio antenna)
As far as replacing expansion plugs/freeze plugs go, it's usually a very easy thing to do AS LONG AS YOU HAVE GOOD ACCESS.
If the plug has to come out, there are several ways to get it out.
One is to drill a small diameter hole in the middle of the plug and then use a slide hammer or something heavy and a hook to yank it out.
Another way is to use a flat bladed screwdriver on one edge of the plug and tap it inwards, which will usually result in the plug rotating and the opposite side then will protrude enough to grab and yank out. The drawback about this method is that if you are heavy handed, you can drive the plug all the way into the block.
A third way is a combination of the first 2, making a small hole and then levering the plug out.
Reinstalling the plug is straightforward.
Clean the sides of the casting hole very well, being sure to get all the rust/corrosion and and any grease/oil and assorted crud off of the area that has to form the seal, and thenuse a good grade of sealer (I prefer a NON hardening sealer) on the lip
of the new plug and carefully tap the plug in using a suitable size of socket (the biggest diameter one that will fit into the plugs' recess.
For maximum retension, the depth of the installed plug should be such that it's lip should be even with the bottom of the tapered section of the hole, no deeper. Sometimes the taper is very short (maybe 1/16-1/8") so it's easy to put it in too far.
Once it's in you don't get a second chance so make certain that the plug goes in STRAIGHT, because you can't simply pull it out and start over , because pulling the NEW plug out will damage it. If it's cockeyed and you leave it that way, it may
seal temporarily, but it's not liable to last for long.
In that case,it may frustrate you, but DON'T waste your time trying to pull it out and reuse it, start over with a new one. I always try to have at least one extra on hand for each size that I'm doing, just in case.
You can usually return the extras without any problem.
By the way, some sizes of expansion plugs can be replaced with a block heater, so if that is of any interest to you, you might be able to do both things at one time.
Do I need to pull the engine? or drop the trans to do this?
You didn't say which engine you have.
If you're CERTAIN that the coolant is coming out from some place that is covered by the transmissions' housing, rather than leaking from some other place such as the head gasket, or a coolant hose, and running down externally so that it only LOOKS like it is coming out of the transmission housing, when it's really dripping off of the joint between the block and the trans. housing then it's likely that an expansion plug or a cracked block is the source of the leak. (A bad head gasket might very well lose coolant in such a way as to look like this.)
Clean off and dry the engine in and above the leaking area, all the way up to the cylinder head and then watch very carefully for the leak to reappear. You may be lucky and just have to replace the head gasket, which can be done from the top of the engine without removing it from the car.
If the leak is truly coming from behind the transmission housing, you would have to separate the trans from the block to determine the source of the leak and to fix it.
something you might want to check
I'm not sure about a 77 but my 73 wagon with ac has the condensate drain in the trans hump. the heater core was leaking and it went onto the bell housing. From under the car it looked like it was comming from between the Eng and trans.
Joe
Alright fellows. Sounds like I need to do some more investigating. That was the first thing that poped into my head. I'm gonna try to get some time tommorrow and see what I can find. I'll let ya know what's up.