Mystery Coolant Leak?

[AaronB]

I am trying to track down a coolant leak in my 94GrandCherokee. I have looked for a traditional weep hole on the bottom of the water pump,but can't see one. The leak appears to be coming from above where that would be. The radiator hose going into the top of the water pump is fine. There is some kind of bypass hose that runs from the pump back into the engine. From the location of the leak, it seems that where this bypass hose connects to the block(I am assuming) could be the culprit.
I quess I have 3 questions
-Is there a weep hole on this water pump?
-Can the bypass hose(heater I assume) be checked without pulling out the pump?
- Could a faulty water pump gasket be causing a leak?
Thanks for your help, my Chilton's hasn't been much help on this one.

 

[graewulf]

i can give you at least a few answers -

#1 - most water pumps do (i think all may have one)
#3 - absolutely.. any gasket can leak.....

is it a fast or a slow leak?

 

[AaronB]

It is a slow leak. It is far behind the water pump and above it. The water pump is bolted to the engine, but the part of the engine that the water pump is bolted to is also bolted to the block, if that makes any sense. The leak seems to be along that surface. I don't even know if there is a gasket there at all. It is nearly impossible to see where the heater bypass hose enters the block, but if it were leaking, that might be the source. I'd love to avoid taking off the entire pump assembly just to check a hose for a leak. Any other ideas? Thanks in advance