Hey everyone. Some of you have heard about my recent vacuum issues with the HVAC system, but I haven't been able to find the cause. But tonight I found something possibly disturbing and I don't know what to make of it. I had the intake gasket replaced just over 3 years ago and except for an 8 month period where orange was put in without my consent during a coolant change, it was running green the whole time and the coolant was changed once a year at the most (Coolant was changed or topped up after repairs several times in 3 years. It is fresh and clean.). I found that the big blob of sealant that was left over from when they put the new gasket in broke partially away from the intake and was a bit wet. I used a stick and put a tissue on the end of it and while it was a little green, I could not really smell anything and when I took some of the brown stuff in my fingers on the tissue, it was a faint dark red under a blacklight. As a comparrison, I put some antifreeze on a paper towel and it didn't glow under the LED blacklight. I also looked around the A/C compressor with the blacklight and found little green dots all over the place meaning I have an A/C leak around there since I put UV dye in 2 years ago. I don't see fluid under the possible leak site, so I am not sure what to make of this.

EDIT: I am not so sure that is leak anymore. I drove it about 5 miles and took additional photos and they appeared the same meaning there was no new fluid buildup. Does RTV appear "wet" where it splits? Could the sealant have melted but the gasket inside is intact?

 

I checked it again and it seems that there are some small bubbles when it is cold and running, but no antifreeze dripping or pouring out. The dash vents don't work properly at higher RPM and I have been chasing a vacuum leak for a while even after replacing the hoses. Otherwise it runs fine. Do bubbles mean bad gasket? I can see a portion of the gasket or sealant sticking out next to the blob of sealant. Anyone believe that there is a real problem here?