uses coolant

[cutlassranger]

i check it so often and it seems to use a little coolant ... what coudl this be

 

[Wicked_Sludge]

a coolant leak...

 

[low_five]

is there coolant in the oil? little bubbles on the dipstick? lots of white smoke from the exhaust?

 

[cutlassranger]

nope none of those i dotn see no bubbles no white smoke and the oil level stay right where it was last time it jsut uses some and i dotn know where its goin i dont see any spot on the garage floor so i dont knoe

 

[Wicked_Sludge]

pressure test the cooling system. its probably burning it, 2.9's like to crack heads.

 

[2ranger87]

a coolant leak...

Wow....that's helpfull.....

Seriously though, could be leaking at the heater core, water pump, radiator, etc... all of which could cause it to evaporate before dripping to the ground. Look for the telltale white traces.

OR... it could be a typical 2.9 head issue in it's early stages.......

 

[2ranger87]

pressure test the cooling system. its probably burning it, 2.9's like to crack heads.

Aw damn.....

Ya beat me to it!.....

 

[UnderMedikated]

My 88 loses coolant

My 88 Ranger has lost coolant for years
(a little). I suspected a small head crack or head gasket.
It's using alot more coolant now but does not seem to spew white smoke out the exhaust.
There is no antifreeze leaking on the driveway. I just purchased a 6.00 bottle of leak detector for the coolant. I have a UV flashlight and will check for leaks tonight. I'm getting sick of adding antifreeze. The water pump is a fairly new Motocraft unit and I just replaced the radiator cap. The hoses are not that old. I really don't want to do the heads because the engine probably will need to be rebuilt sometime (141K) in the near future even though it uses no oil. It has the typical 2.9 poor oiling issues (knocking/rattling/ticking) which occurrs from time to time. My engine bearings are probably worn if antifreeze is getting into the oil. I've always had a small amount of milky substance on the inside of the oil cap but that may be condensation? I'll post what I find on the board this week. I need to do a compression test.

 

[doorgunner]

ten-four,,my '89 has been losing coolant, but not internally---finally noticed a small drip above #2 cylinder at headgasket--coolant boils off b4 it drips aarrrgghh--gonna keep adding coolant & watch temp gage for now til i got enough nerve to pull head...

 

[low_five]

I really don't want to do the heads because the engine probably will need to be rebuilt sometime (141K) in the near future even though it uses no oil. .

that 2.9 is in the prime of its life, lol. it could go another 100,000 without surprising anyone here.

I got a 2.9 that uses coolant. I have good heads to put on it, but why fix something that aint broke?

sometimes radiators will leak when they get hot, and also the purge container might be overflowing and leaking.

 

[cutlassranger]

ya mine only has 87,xxx on it , where can i bye that leak detect and a uv flash light

 

[Bryan22]

I would start by replacing the cap, and checking the hose from the radiator to the overflow.if coolant escapes out of that hose you'd never know b/c it'd really only do it when you were driving.

 

[MichiganLarry]

I had that problem with my son's 89. Had it to the local mechanic several times with no luck finding the problem. Bought some Blue Devil sealant. Worked great. Been 6 months and no leaks.

 

[UnderMedikated]

Bought a short block and World Heads. Getting the rest of the parts this week. Doing the oil pump, battery cables and even the motor mounts. Going to finish rebuilding the driveshaft. I feel like I'm sitting on the long end of the driveshaft at the moment. I'm fighting multiple problems and decided to throw 1500.00+ into my truck. It's paid for and it's in decent shape. I have a 1500.00 repair fund set aside for the truck. I suppose 2.9's could be good if you took care of them. I bought mine used from a "Shit-for-brain" and amazingly it has lasted ten years with alot of TLC.
My darker side likes to trash the 2.9's but they are not that bad, just crude relative to the 3.0.

 

[UnderMedikated]

UV dye at Autozone for 5.99 and the UV lights you can get from Amazon.com or Ebay etc.
Be careful, UV lights are not toys. Never, ever shine them in yours or others faces. Basically keep the light pointed into the engine compartment when looking for leaks.