Overheating Demon is back... HELP

[David Griffith 2]

Well after replacing the T-stat the Trac ran great all week, until last night. Heated up again and I noticed coolant smell. I let it set and waited until the daylight to get a good look. Now I can tell the issue.. The thermostat housing is leaking at the o ring seal where the upper and lower pieces of the housing connect. From my looking around it looks like I can't get to the lower housing without the manifold coming off.. So doubt I'll be attempting it. Unless... It is possible to get to the O-ring with having to take off the lower housing. I'm not talking about the t-stat o ring, this one sits below where you drop the t-stat in. It's worse on the backside but I can see where it's trying to seep all the way around. I've been calling around and got a quote of 418.00. That's to replace the whole housing. Does this sound fair? That's the closest shop to me, besides a dealer, and I cant be driving the Trac far in it's condition. Anyone been through this? Any advice? Thanks in advance.

 

[Tom Schindler]

Have you changed your radiator cap?





Tom

 

[David Griffith 2]

No. And I did see a little seepage there as well. Just a very tiny mount (1 drop prob). Should I try that?

 

[Rodger Tellefson]

Also, replace the serpentine belt with a 60" belt.

 

[David Griffith 2]

I'm headin out to get a Rad cap.. be right back..lol

 

[David Griffith 2]

Replaced the cap. Still leaking from the back of the o ring on the housing. I can hear what sounds like sizzling when I turn it off after idling for about 5 minutes. It doesn't seem to be the coolant sizzling it seems to be pressure on the t-stat housing..i can see it trying to spit fluid out of the o ring. Seems like the pressure really builds up when I turn it off. Also seemed to build more pressure as it idled. Any suggestions? :wacko:

 

[David Ponder]

Griff,



Do you see any bubbles coming up in the overflow tank? Building too much pressure can be a sign of a blown head gasket or a cracked head.



Dave

 

[EddieS'04]

Are you sure its not the bypass hose leaking?

If your handy with tools and good memory. Its not that hard to pull theupper intake. Just looks complicated, because of all the disconects.

 

[David Griffith 2]

I can actually see the liquid coming from the back of the housing. Let me see if I can snap a shot. Didn't see any bubbles in the overflow tank.

 

[David Griffith 2]

I've marked where I've seen fluid. It's all along the O ring that connects the upper and lower housing. It's worse in the back. Hope this pic helps.

[Broken External Image]:

 

[EddieS'04]

I have never done t-stat on our motors. Is that just a spacer under the t-stat? Maybe someelse will chime in.

 

[David Griffith 2]

Looks like 4 layers. The top housing, a layer that has studs for screwing the upper back on to it, another layer, and the bottom housing below that. It's leaking between the 3rd and forth layer so to speak.

 

[Roger Batts]

That is actually part of the bottom half of the housing. The lower housing needs to be replaced. I would suggest replacing the sensors as well because they don't seal very good once they've been pulled out. There are two different ones depending on if it has one sensor or two. The bottom housing is about $60.

 

[Todd Z]

Yup,



you need a lower housing...



Todd Z

 

[scott degroot]

I replace these all the time. Get a lower housing, a water pump bypass hose and also the heater hose that connects to the lower housing. You do not need to remove the intake to do this. Remove the t-stat and then remove the lower housing, unplug the sensors and they will come out with the housing, you just have to wiggle it around a little. The o-rings that seal the 2 sensors into the housing will need to be replaced but you can't get these from Ford unless you buy the whole sensor, just go to your local parts store and pick up 2 o-rings. Book time for the repair is 2 hours. You will also need a 8 mm swivel socket on a 1/4" drive with at least a 6 inch extension to get the lower housing bolts out. The bolt farthest back in the lower housing will not be able to be removed from the housing due to clearance from the intake but is no big deal.



Forgot to add that you need to remove the throttle body also to do this.