Freeze Plugs

Hi All,
Has anybody had to replace freeze plugs?
I just replaced the lower hoses in my '92 and was distressed to find the
leak is actually from the plug on the driver's side (NA) #1 cylinder.
Advice would be appreciated.
Ephar & Bambi
'92 Classic Red 'A'

Ephar wrote:
> Hi All,
> Has anybody had to replace freeze plugs?
> I just replaced the lower hoses in my '92 and was distressed to find the
> leak is actually from the plug on the driver's side (NA) #1 cylinder.
> Advice would be appreciated.

Not on the 5, but my wife's previous car had a leaky core plug,
eventually resulting in such rapid coolant loss that we had to refill it
halfway through a 10-mile trip to the garage.

Gaining sufficient access is the usual problem; then you just drill the
plug, yank it out, clean up the hole and bang in the new plug with the
right size drift. We let a tame professional do it; it was about a
pound for the plug and 90 times that for labour.

A common cause (as it was in that case) is missed coolant changes; the
head gasket may not be far behind, if you're really unlucky. I know the
HG on hers failed a month after she sold the car (an old Citroen
diesel). It had a cooling system of such terrible design that no
service mechanic had dared empty it for fear of airlocks. Citroen
suggested the use of a header tank high above the engine bay, sealed to
the filler neck, and even then it was tricky.

Thanks for the info...
As it turns out I had to pull the airbox out a few times (once to replace
the hoses and once to find the leaky plug) so I can do that in about 5
minutes.
With the airbox out of the way I've got about 12 inches of a straight shot
to install the new plug... That's like miles after working in the console
or under the dashboard!
After years of running straight water as coolant I doubt it will be long
before others corrode away, I may get them done in ~5000 miles with the
timing belt, water pump and other things.
Considering the abuse I've put Bambi through:

M y
I t's
A
T ough
A utomobile
!

Ephar & Bambi
'92 A Classic Red
The Original Winkin' Miata
Limping at the moment,
Waiting on parts,
Looking forward to Dancing again!

"Ephar" > wrote in message
...

> After years of running straight water as coolant I doubt it will be long
> before others corrode away, I may get them done in ~5000 miles with the
> timing belt, water pump and other things.


Not to mention anything made of aluminium. Expect the water pump & head to
have some serious corrosion as well!
>