Gametime: Where is the coolant coming from?
 

Ever since I've owned this car, it's been leaking coolant from every orifice. I've replaced many cooling parts, including the thermostat housing, radiator, various hoses etc. My original fear was that I had a head gasket leak due to the sheer amount I'd lose. (It's slightly more manageable now at about 1/2 the reservoir every 800 miles) And now looking at the block, my only assumptions at this point are that it's either an outer head gasket failure, or timing case gasket leak. Attached are some images, opinions would be very much appreciated.

http://imgur.com/vzVzAAQ

The engine bay. Coolant will pile up in the little space below between the a/c pulley, and the water pump pulley.

http://imgur.com/2Kqsa6j

An upward shot at what I believe is the head gasket. Is all that buildup carbon/oil, or coolant? Whatever it is seems to slightly leak from the gasket.

http://imgur.com/4L03g95

An even lower shot. This weird buildup is all over down here.

Any help would be soooo amazing.

Doze pictures don't do a whole lot for me. Can't tell what's what. If your oil and coolant are clean then you can borrow a coolant pressure test deal from O'riely's or autozone or the like. Clean it up, put pressure in there an you should see where it is coming from.

I'd say you need to do some cleaning and remove all those plastic shields from underneath, so you can get a good look. The last picture shows oil leaking above the split in the timing chain covers. could be the valve cover gasket or upper timing cover gasket. I've been chasing oil leaks on my 'ti for probably a decade now. You'll either need to do some good cleaning/detective work, or just tear into the engine and tackle them all at once. The coolant leak shouldn't be hard to find, especially if it's enough to pool up. How many miles?

That's probably my best bet, since it is pretty dirty the further down you go. It's got about 183k on it. I got it around 20k miles ago and have been loving it to pieces. Its just cost me more than I'd like to admit, but it's easily worth it, plus I sort of knew what I was getting myself into. What are some good methods for cleaning surfaces like this? I'd imagine just get a wet rag or something and go to town.

I've been using the Autozone house brand of engine degreaser - cheap, safe on plastics, and it doesn't evaporate immediately. Put some cardboard and a large towel that you're not fond of underneath, put on some gloves, and use a rag. You can follow up with something water based like Simple Green, then rinse with water.

Expect the coolant leak to be easy, the oil leaks not so much. There's lot's of DIY out there for both. Regarding oil, the most likely culprits are the valve cover gasket, the oil filter housing, the profile gasket between upper and lower timing cover, the profile gasket between the lower chain case and the head, and the oil pan gasket. The front and rear main seals are good for a long time and other than the head gasket, the other gaskets are embossed metal, and I don't think they wear readily.

You might try an inspection mirror and flashlight for the coolant that's pooling; you'll be able to see the underside of the water pump and thermostat areas a little better.

Paul