99 ranger v6 3.0l coolant leak

[wonkwagon]

i have recenty noticed a considerable leak in coolant. the leak seems to only occur while driving as no puddles form underneath while parked. within minutes of starting my truck i can smell the putrid coolant steam. almost every time i stop i need to top up the coolant. the radiator, thermometer (and thermometer gasket), and a rusted out elbow fitting on intake manifold were all replaced less than 1500 miles ago at a ford dealership in nebreska after overheating mid cross country drive. ive checked the oil and its still free of coolant. i cant find the leak but its definitely there...

 

[Big Jim M]

hmmmm

i have recenty noticed a considerable leak in coolant. the leak seems to only occur while driving as no puddles form underneath while parked. within minutes of starting my truck i can smell the putrid coolant steam. almost every time i stop i need to top up the coolant. the radiator, thermometer (and thermometer gasket), and a rusted out elbow fitting on intake manifold were all replaced less than 1500 miles ago at a ford dealership in nebreska after overheating mid cross country drive. ive checked the oil and its still free of coolant. i cant find the leak but its definitely there...

If you can smell it the chances are it is leaking inside the vehicle from the heater core.. Check the carpet on the passanger side to make sure.

If not there then what I'd do is to crawl under her and look closely with a flashlight for that ONE DROP of coolant that would lead to finding the exact leak.

Few leaks occur where it is possible to find them from the topside.. Also of note there are only a couple of places where the coolant traditionaly leaks. Check all of the heater hoses, both ends of the radiator hoses, the drip outlet on the bottom front of the coolant pump, and the radiator itself..

There is always a chance the small overflow hose from the radiator to the catch tank has a leak in it and the radiator pulls air back into itself as it cools.

Best of luck... be sure to not overheat that thing as you risk cracking a head or burning a headgasket.
Big JIm

 

[mickyv]

coolant

and if you dont find any leaks in or under, there are 2 other things to check. there is a preheater going to the throttle body by the "pcv" hose, and a gasket under the thermostat housing. if it goes out the coolant puddles off on top of the engine until it cooks off.

 

[srteach]

Compression test the engine. That will tell you if the leak is internal to the exhaust. You said it did overheat, so head gasket / cracked head is possible.

 

[wonkwagon]

it wasnt a leak at all. coolant was bubbling out from top of tank. radiator fluid is rusty. water pump is new and dry at weephole. replaced thermostat. all to the same effect of the coolant boiling over the top. coolant gauge stays flat at the bottom until it begins a quick heat up to the top.

 

[joecool85]

My coolant looks rusty too and I periodically (maybe once a month) smell a little antifreeze inside the truck. I'll probably replace my heater hoses, thermostat and antifreeze this summer. I suggest you do the same and then go from there.

 

[Big Jim M]

and ME??

My coolant looks rusty too and I periodically (maybe once a month) smell a little antifreeze inside the truck. I'll probably replace my heater hoses, thermostat and antifreeze this summer. I suggest you do the same and then go from there.

I betcha you have burnt a headgasket or even worse cracked a head from too little coolant in the coolant jacket!!
Them bubbles are from combustion and it is now time to tear her down and see what is broke..
And YES you do have a leak elsewhere that you havn't yet found..
Big JIm

 

[masterbrenden]

i am with big jim... blown head gasket... lucky the 3.0l is extremely easy to do the head gasket... i did mine in 5 1/2 hours after driving it in... the block was still a little warm when i started it... look for milk in the oil... and remeber they say your supposed to replace head bolts when you do the head gasket... they stretch. have fun you got a full saterday or sunday ahead of you. my temp gauge wasn't working when mine bluw from the air in the system... i bluw mine after having to drive down the freeway with no serpentine belt after the tensioner bolt broke... all fixed now...

 

[joecool85]

I betcha you have burnt a headgasket or even worse cracked a head from too little coolant in the coolant jacket!!
Them bubbles are from combustion and it is now time to tear her down and see what is broke..
And YES you do have a leak elsewhere that you havn't yet found..
Big JIm

No bubbles, just brown/rusty looking antifreeze. I think it's from a corroded radiator and/or heater core. No "milky oil", no smoke from the exhaust pipe, and no oil or antifreeze consumption to speak of (I've had the truck 2 years and haven't had to add antifreeze).

Anyone know about replacing the hoses that go to the heater core and intake manifold? Do you have to buy special hoses from Ford or do you use regular hoses and get "T" fittings for them?

 

[Big Jim M]

Sorry Joe!

My post wasn't meant for you!!! It was for WONK! He has coolant bubbeling out the catch tank.
If you (JOE) have a problem start your OWN thread..
Big JIm

 

[MichaelPaladin]

No bubbles, just brown/rusty looking antifreeze. I think it's from a corroded radiator and/or heater core. No "milky oil", no smoke from the exhaust pipe, and no oil or antifreeze consumption to speak of (I've had the truck 2 years and haven't had to add antifreeze).

Anyone know about replacing the hoses that go to the heater core and intake manifold? Do you have to buy special hoses from Ford or do you use regular hoses and get "T" fittings for them?

This is the same thing mine did, now I'm in the process of tearing down my engine and getting ready to replace the head gaskets.

And yes I had some corrosion in my radiator, had it replaced and the block power flushed. Within 3 days of getting it back the new radiator busted. But I had no milky oil or white smoke either.

But from what I've been told, on the heads there is a cooling jacket port and exhaust port right next to each other and this is where the breach in the head gasket or the crack occurs (though I haven't got that far into it yet to see it for sure).

So depending on what part of the year your truck was made, the gasket are either about $70 or $94 and new bolts are around $30. As for new heads they run about $350 apiece.

 

[ussraven61]

The same thing happend to mine and it was a head gasket leak. I replaced the gaskets but now im leaking oil. Tried to retighten the head bolts but im still leaking oil. Any advice for that one?