Went out to the truck this morning, and noticed that there was a small puddle underneath the truck on the driver side. Upon further inspection of the puddle it was coolant. I took a flash light underneath it and could see what looked like it was coming from behind the pulley tensioner behind the fan. Possibly even near the water pump. Anyone have any ideas, or maybe this might be something that could be common. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

 

maybe needs a new water pump. just my uneducated guess as this happened in my old truck (non-ranger) and it needed a pump

 

Check the water pump puour water in radiator and crank it water pump has a WEEP hole i think thats what its called and it will come out of there if the water pump is gone. But thats not a real hard fix.

 

Yes. All water pumps have a vent hole and a weep hole.

They are somtimes hidden by the pulley. You might have to remove it to see them.

If the water pump is leaking you may not see a wetness. But you'll at least see a white or maybe greenish staning of the areas beneith the weep hole.

btw:
The vent hole is always straight up which allows for vapor to escape.
The weep hole is always down which allows for fluid to drain away from the water pump bearing. If it puddles it would quickly wash out the grease and the bearing would fail.

Rich