Explain This....

Drove about half a mile from my house to the grocery store, drive back home, pull in, then back up to straighten out. I get out and I noticed spots on the ground from where I backed up, so i check under my jeep and sure enough, it was leaking out of the front..so I let it sit for a little bit, go back out to check it out, I wipe everything clean to try and see where it was coming from..couldn't find it. Checked it a couple hours after that...nothing...Drove it over to my buddy's shop...got out after a 8-10 mi drive...absolutely nothing leaking out on the ground....get him to put it on a pressure test...he left it on there for like 2 hours...drove it around...completely dry....what gives? The stuff that originall came out smelled like antifreeze and it was hot. and no it was not condensation from my A/C.

He even have someone else look at it and nothing at all. says its bone dry underneath.

maybe your overflow canister is cracked a little and it only leaks when it's hot (more full)? dont think that would show in a pressure test.

Maybe first signs of the water pump leaking. When mine started to go I would get very random coolant spots until it finally became a steady stream.

Check all the hose connections, one of them may be loose enough that when things are cold at start up fluid can leak past a clamp but when things heat up and expand the leak stops.

I had this happen with my upper radiator hose.

What year is your jeep? Your rad cap might be going bad.

well drove it from the shop to the grocery store, when I got out, it had already made a nice sized spot on the ground. Saw where it was dripping from (looks like water pump to me) so I put my hand under there and let it drop on my hands and smelt it ( yes someone can use this in your sig if you'd like ) and it was coolant..... It just makes me mad that someone can look over this thing and call me and tell me it isn't leaking a drop and then all i have to do is drive it and park it and it does it for me....So it looks like I will be taking it back over there tomrrow morning...(I living where I do am not allowed to work on cars because it looks bad to the neighborhood, and yes I rent). It is not over heating or anything, stays quite cool driving, but I guarantee its my water pump or lower radiator hose...its a little too far back to be teh radiator. If you are looking at my jeep from the side....its on the drivers side towards the middle right behind where the sway bar bushing is....

my jeep is a 97

The water pump has what is called a "weeper" hole that leaks just ever so slightly when the water pump starts to wear out. With where the weeper hole is, when it starts to leak, the fluid travels down the body of the pump to the lower radiator hose until it gets to the lowest point on the hose and finally drips down to the ground. I have had to replace mine twice as well as others. Sounds like to me thats what you got going on. Shouldn't take more than 45 mins to swap it out.

Water pump is exactly what it is... all done now. just can't believe it didn't leak at all yesterday while he was pressure testing it.

Your cherokee is just marking it's spot like all jeeps do, nothing to worry about.