What does it mean when your freeze plug is leaking?

A leaking freeze plug can be an indication that your cooling system did or came close to freezing. When a leaking freeze plug is found, the engine should be checked for damage and antifreeze checked for the proper mixture and freezing point.

Can a freeze plug fall out of a car?

Freeze plugs rarely fall out or fail completely so they cause slow leaks. As long as you keep your engine coolant full and your engine never gets hot, you could limp your car along with a leaking freeze plug although we never recommend it. It’s messy and at any point could leak to your engine overheating.

What are engine block freeze plugs?

Freeze plugs are usually aluminum or brass plugs pressed into holes in the water jacked of your engine block. In some cases, as the water freezes and expands in your block, the freeze plugs will push out relieving the pressure of the freezing water and partially draining your cooling system.

What can I use to protect my car from freeze damage?

The engine in your vehicle also has a secondary line of defense against freeze damage, freeze plugs. Freeze plugs are usually aluminum or brass plugs pressed into holes in the water jacked of your engine block.

Can a freeze plug get out of an engine block?

First of all, even a leaking freeze plug is very difficult to get out of your engine block due to the tight seal. The freeze plug will probably need to be drilled or cut out which can damage your engine block if you’re not careful. Once you get the old one out your need to pound the new one in.

What happens if you have a freeze plug leak?

If you don’t have adequate freeze protection the freezing water in your cooling jacket can exert over 100,000 PSI on your engine block which is more than enough to crack cast iron or aluminum. A cracked block makes your engine just about useless as they are extremely difficult to repair.

Why does my freeze plug crack on my car?

In the case of the water jacket in your engine block, this is more than enough pressure to cause it to crack destroying your engine. The engine in your vehicle also has a secondary line of defense against freeze damage, freeze plugs. Freeze plugs are usually aluminum or brass plugs pressed…

Can you drive with a bad freeze plug?

If you have no other option, you may be able to drive with a bad freeze plug. Freeze plugs rarely fall out or fail completely so they cause slow leaks. As long as you keep your engine coolant full and your engine never gets hot, you could limp your car along with a leaking freeze plug although we never recommend it.

What can I use to seal a freeze plug?

BlueDevil Pour-N-Go is incredibly simple to use and will permanently seal a leaking freeze plug without having to drain and refill your cooling system or ever crawl under your vehicle. BlueDevil Pour-N-Go uses a chemical that reacts to the temperature differential at the leak point forming a permanent bond…

Can a bad freeze plug cause exhaust smoke?

White exhaust smoke could also be a symptom of a blown freeze plug. The engine constantly overheating is probably a sign that most of the coolant in the engine has leaked.

What does it mean when your freeze plug is leaking?