That opening in the head is a combination freeze out plug and drain plug.
The only time I touch them is when pulling the heads so I can remove and
catch as much coolant as possible without making a mess or getting coolant
into the crankcase if the cylinders move. There is not much pressure here.
Some sealant on the washers and screw threads will seal it just fine.

Dennis

From: Steven Shelton [mailto:shelton4@gmail.com]
Sent: Friday, February 21, 2014 9:37 AM
To: Dennis Haynes
Cc: vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com
Subject: Re: Coolant Leak

It's been two years since the coolant was changed so it was on my list.  I'm
having a hard time finding the drain plug crush washers - NAPA and AutoZone
didn't have anything close.  I ordered some from the dealership but I'm not
convinced they are the right part.

Any ideas on why there is even an opening in the head here?  The only thing
I can think of is that it was used in manufacturing the head.

On Fri, Feb 21, 2014 at 12:08 AM, Dennis Haynes <d23haynes57@hotmail.com>
wrote:

Could be the gasket or the plate is badly corroded. The screws may put up a
fight. Plan on replacing them. If the gasket is bad most likely a sign the
engine has been badly over heated.

Dennis

-----Original Message-----
From: Vanagon Mailing List [mailto:vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com] On Behalf Of

Steven Shelton
Sent: Thursday, February 20, 2014 10:35 AM
To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
Subject: Coolant Leak

While troubleshooting the oil pressure light problem on my 1985 1.9L, I
found a coolant seep.  It seems to be coming from a small, 2" X 1" diamond
shaped cover plate at the front of the driver's side of the engine, just in
front of the spark plug .  It's held on by two allen head bolts.  Could this
just be a matter of taking off the plate and sealing it with Permatex or
will removing that plate open a Pandora's box of problems?