head gasket

Hello all, Unfortunately my first post here is on the heels of bad news. Bottom line up front: independent auto shop diagnosed my ‘17 Explorer Sport as having a leaking head gasket, with no overheating indications preceding. Background: Bought this ‘17 Sport in 2023 at 94,000 miles, and have...

I have a 2013 no turbo 3.5l. For about a month now, my explorer has been hard starting, but it eventually starts. It runs fine after it starts. I thought maybe a fuel pump, but i can actually smell gas thru the exhaust. It's also pulling a misfire on cylinder #3 on start up. But no CEL. I...

I have 2018 Edge SEL. Last month with 70K miles on it, the head gasket "blew". Minor, it seems--I was still able to drive it with a "Misfiring Cyl#3" code. I watched YouTube on how to add gasket sealant. I bought the high-priced good stuff that was recommended--with carbon fibers-- and FOLLOWED...

Yesterday I drove around 5-6 miles and when i stopped I noticed white smoke/steam coming from under my hood so I checked and found a puddle of coolant on my manifold the vehicle has never run hot I checked my oil to see if there was coolant in my oil but there isn’t I can’t find any visible...

Hey guys. To start I've guy a 98 OHV that's leaking a good amount of oil. Constant drip at running pretty much. Dripping from the mating between Engine and Transmission. I had believed it was all from the Rear main and replaced that months ago (horrible job to do alone). That helped the leak a...

A friend gave me their truck after it's been sitting for a year. I did some inspection on it and it looked ok. It started right up so I shut it down immediately. Then I started inspecting the fluids and found the coolant had leaked into the oil and had been completely emulsified into a nice...

What's up Explorer folks! New to the forum and recently purchased a 03 Explorer for a low price of $900 due to a head gasket leak. The owner was told by many mechanics that he should just put another reman engine in and all said and done would run about $3800. He didn't want to do that, so he...

Okay, thought the problem was fixed. 2001 Ford Explorer Sport, 4.0 SOHC. I can idle all day but once I drive it or rev it high around 2k, the temp rises. I run the heat and AC, no changes still rises. A lot of the water in the radiator goes back into the reservoir, no bubbles that I've noticed...

Hello, I'm concerned I have a cracked head or a bad head gasket or a cracked block. Coolant reeks of exhaust fumes and is darkened in color. . Upon changing my oil, the oil looked like coffee or really dark chocolate milk after 800 miles. A sample has been sent to Blackstone. The prior...

Hey all. I have a 1999 Explorer XLT with a 4.0 OHV. The codes and the local Ford dealer tell me i need a new Left O2 sensor. Here is my problem. Driving along, the engine will lose power. It barely accelerates and will eventually stall. I'll start it up again and it will run fine for a bit, then...

Hello, I just finished replacing my heads and manifolds with headers. Got it all back together went to start it and it started right up. Wouldnt idle but thats nothing new (Probably bad IAC). Normally it will idle after a minute or so of holding the gas to about 1K rms. It did eventually idle...

Ok, first time Ford owner. Replaced the water pump because it was losing coolant to discover that the freeze plug in the driver's side head had a tiny, oval shaped hole in it and had to be replaced. Replaced that to find that it is overheating with no loss in power leading me away from the...

Its time to bring the old Exploder back to life. You have this unique opportunity to give advice, spells, potions and wizardry. Help bring back an old Explorer that has been dead and unstarted for over 4 years. All suggestions and comments, directions to other threads or books are welcome. 1996...

Hello I bought a 2001 Explorer Sport almost 5 months ago..200,000 miles in (seemingly) great condition inside out . I bought it from an older gentleman who seemed impeccable and very knowledgeable about cars..especially Fords. He had bought a new Ford SUV and wanted to sell his 2001...

Phase 1 of 3 was to finish rebuilding the '94's engine and get it back on the road. Phase 2 of 3 has begun. See if the '03's engine is salvageable. Should just have two blown head gaskets. Heater core hose check valve (?) busted on the previous owner causing an over heat. A friend and his...

Hey guys. I recently picked up a 2002 Explorer with the 4.0. It had been wrecked but otherwise ran and drove. I replaced the radiator, fan, fan clutch, and water pump (all damaged in the impact). While replacing the water pump, I removed the thermostat housing to give myself room. So I...

Can someone please help me, just brought a 98 explorer sport 4.0 sohc engine 138.000 miles and im not sure if i have blown head gaskets, it does not smoke, it does not mix oil/coolant, it is not over heating what i do nitice upon review is small drips of water thru exhaust but stops when it...

Hello everyone, i just brought a 98 explorer sport with a 4.0 sohc but it turns out the reason why i got it so cheap is because it has blown head gaskets. Im thinking on replacing the gaskets myself and would greatly appreciate any tips on what special tool i need and in greate need of any...

My 96 4.0 has blown a head gasket. I've done 4.0 gasket before and it's a bunch of work. The engine has 160,000 miles on already and had a noisy lifter before the head gasket blew. I know I'll need gaskets at least and lifters and who knows if I have a warped or cracked head. The...

I have a 1996 manual transmission Explorer, 4.0 L with almost 150,000 miles. I love having a stick shift explorer, but I've been experiencing engine problems since almost the time I bought it a year ago. I thought I resolved this issue a while ago, after I took my car for a rough idle. I had...

Hi all, Pretty sure my heads are cracked and I'm about to order some. I have a 2000 4.0 v6 4wd OHV explorer and have a question about purchasing aftermarket heads. Where could I post a question like that? Jackson

I have a '06 4.0L that has 106K that I have to pull the heads (coolant leak), my question is if I'm going to have it apart should I replace the timing gear also (benefit v cost)?

So as the title says, the head gasket let go on my 96 Ranger 4.0 OHV @ 163,000 kms. It was an external leak on the passenger side. Pissed coolant all over the ground and was running hot - but not quite at "H", and I limped it home. Since a pricey repair is a questionable investment at this...

Hello Everyone! I'm attempting two auto repairs concurrently. One is replacing the battery cables on a 1994 Nissan Sentra GXE 1.6L (manual transmission) in the hopes I won't need to replace the alternator. The other one, which is what this thread is about, is a 1992 Ford Explorer Sport...

Hey guys, I have been a member since Jan 2012 and have gotten alot of good info from all of your post. But now I have a problem that I can't seem to find any answers. I have a 2001 Explorer Sport with a 4.0. That is pushing coolant into the expansion tank until it overflows. In the morning I...

Hey there, I just bought a 92 explorer with 330000 original miles... unfortunately the only original thing is the engine. The guy i bought it from told me that he had to put a quart of oil in every month. I suppose its not terrible but id like to fix it. I had a friend who is a technician look...

2003 Explorer XLT 4.0 V6. 215,000mi, temp gauge had always spiked hot for 10 sec every morning. The other day it stayed at HOT. I pulled over and whited smoke came out tailpipe. Coolant leaked out below reservoir. Car novice hear. Checked oil and had no water or grey substance. Towed...

My head gaskets failed on my 1996 OHV 4.0 (big white smoke cloud from the exhaust 2-3 miles from my driveway, and there was the obvious milkshake on the oil cap). I got her home, shut her down, and ordered a new water pump, t-stat and complete gasket set from Rock Auto. I had been losing...

Hi there. I have a 91 Explorer that my dad and I recently finished an engine rebuild on. We suspected a blown head gasket a couple of years ago and just got done putting it all back together. Has nice shaved heads, all new gaskets, and cleaned block (all acid dipped). After getting everything...

I have a 2001 Ford Explorer Sport Trac with a 4.0L v6 engine. I have water in the oil, oil in the water and a lot of water in the air filter. It has NOT been driven in flood water. There is no white smoke coming from the tail pipe, although there is some water. It will start but water get...

Hi everyone . Im new here but have followed some nice post and learned alot about my 97 Ford Explorer Sport 4.0 Sohc engine ... Heres the problems im having . Cold start trouble until it warms up . I believe its the intake rings . Now my coolant fluid is leaking from back and front left of...

I have a 2000 Explorer, 6 cy. Yesterday, we took a day trip, about 200 miles from home. Just as we were starting our return trip, my truck overheated. We stopped for gas, and after letting it cool, I topped off the radiator, noticing that the level was low. We tried driving and there was...

Hello I recently purchased a used mazda B4000 4x4 standard trany that has just developed a coolant leak at the back of the motor above bell housing. there is some sort of sending unit at back of intake manifold just above the bell housing and the leak appears to be coming from this area. I can't...

Hello I recently purchased a used mazda B4000 4x4 standard trany that has just developed a coolant leak at the back of the motor above bell housing. there is some sort of sending unit at back of intake manifold just above the bell housing and the leak appears to be coming from this area. I can't...

I have a 1995 4wd 4.0 6 cyl. Aerostar. Over the past several months my coolant level has been going down on a regular basis. I can't see any obvious leaks and there are no puddles on the ground. I did run a bottle of 'Stopleak" through the radiator just for the heck of it but no change in...

Hey all. I am working on a mileage monster - I am porting and polishing and gasket matching the 2.0L SPI for my Merc Tracer. I have all the intake and exhaust ports practically so I can see myself in them. I also worked to clean the mating surfaces up and someone pointed out that "If the...

So I am currently looking at a very bad (potentially good) situation with my father's 2002 Explorer Limited. Awhile ago he replaced his engine due to the notorious timing chain problem. His plan was to replace it and sell it in the summer. However recently he ran into troubles again! At this...

Hi everyone, I'm trying to figure how to get my ranger running at its best again. I'm no expert or mechanic, but plan on doing the work myself. Problem: Running, but poorly, lower than normal MPG's, not much power, been like this for a while. It also loses a lot of coolant, but there are no...

I've been trying to diagnose this problem for a little bit now and I want to see if anyone has an opinion out there. I'm pretty new to car repair. I'm going to get in there this weekend I just want to have it kind of nailed down before I get there. I know I have a misfire on cylinders 5 and 6...

I have a 91 Explorer and finally have the cooling system in order. New water pump, and radiator and thermostat. Flushed the system very well, and now its clean as a whistle and runs at the right temp. However, 3 or 4 weeks after all this is done, it has started missing badly when its cold...