Cooling system squirting water into engine compartment

[chardog]

Just got a 1996 Challenger. Today it suddenly lost power. I popped the engine cover and noticed that the snap on cover with the red circle in the middle at the furthest back position that comes out of what appears to be a small compression tank is leaking/squirting water (there are three of these covers, two are right by the spark plugs and the third is toward the rear and seems slightly more heavy duty with a bigger spring underneath it). The boat would only do about 15 mph top speed. As I was getting ready to dock I tried to gun it and I suddenly had full power again, but water is still coming out of the furthest back cover with the red dot in the middle. Sorry I don't know what this part is actually called but I'm hoping someone can understand what I'm saying and help me.

 

[Dr Honda]

That "pressure Tank" is your muffler. Normally called a water box. The cover is the top of a water regulator. It injects water into the muffler.

You can take that regulator apart, clean it, replace any seals that may need to be fixed... but you will probably find that it's just rusted out, and needs replaced.

Good luck. :cheers:


Just an FYI... the 2 covers on the engine are the tops of your RAVE valves. They need a periodic cleaning.

 

[chardog]

Thanks!

I actually cleaned it up last night. There was some sand in it and one part was rusted. I fixed this, but it still leaks water. Is this actually an issue? Will it damage my engine? Was I losing power for another reason? Thanks again for helping out.

 

[scooper77515]

If the water regulator is not working correctly, yes, your engine will not get the correct rpms, and yes, it will damage your engine.

So verify it is working correctly and prevent burning your engine up.