bought this bike recently but noticed i was getting a temperature light coming on now and then. checked reserve bottle and it was low, looked in the rad and could not see any antifreeze. could also smell burning coolant while driving.

see a spot just under the waterpump where it appears to be leaking. its either the gasket or 1 of the 2 o-rings from the water joint.

anyone ever replace these o-rings or gasket?

you can see a parts layout here: parts 3 and 10
04 rubicon waterpump layout

 

Yes, I have seen them leak after coworkers installed them improperly.
There is also a weep hole under the water pump. If it is leaking from th eweep hole of coarse the water pump is defective.

Top off the anti-freeze. Get a mirror and inspect under the water pump while the unit is running to identify the leak. If you cannot tell exactly where it is coming from, spray the area real good with brake cleaner and blow around the water pump and cylinder top end with compressed air and blow nozzle. Take a small bottle of baby powder, squeeze it around under there to cover the surfaces. Start the unit and let it run for 10 to 15 minutes. Inspect the area with your mirror. The soiled baby powder will lead you to the leak. Also inspect the coolant drain bolt copper seal to make sure it is in good condition.
If you do end up removing the water pump and tube, when reinstalling put some oil on the o-rings once slipped onto the assemblies to ease installation.

----- Gimpster -----

 

We keep LOTS of o'ring #10 in stock because when installing the waterpump it is VERY easy to cut that o'ring ..


We've had 2 Rubicons both 2008 models back leaking antifreeze at the head gasket (on the header side) ... The heads weren't flat ..

 

this bike has 10,500kms on her, so without looking more into where it is leaking, im guessing the pump may need replacing.
But will take the advice as stated above and may get away with just a few o-rings [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img]

replacement water pump is around $180 or so?
still waiting for my repair manual to arrive before i dig into her, probably a fairly easy job though.