Coolant disappearing on 4.6 ed b

[03explorereb]

guys, need some input. my wife came home the other day and since i hardly have her hood open for anything besides routine maintenance, i thought i would take a peek.
coolant was MIA from the overflow, well, most of it so i figured there was a leak somewhere. no leaks, no signs of leaking anywhere. i know obviously this is not normal behavior. so i added some to get it back to the line. a day later i checked it again and it showed about a quarter inch below the line. added some more. seems like the same deal again, losing about a quarter of an inch driving about fifty miles plus. noticed a little white residue inside where the fill cap is, but no noticeable inconsistency in the oil when i changed it. i figured this might have been condensation since her commute to work is about 7 miles.
i find it doubtful that it is burning it in one of the cylinders for two reasons:
runs great
coolant system is not under the kind of pressure that would suggest a leak into the combustion chamber

i did take a look at my intake and noticed down on the bottom side a crack that is about 1 plus inches long. pressing around in that area, the intake feels very spongy, almost rotten. that would be an air problem but where the hell is the coolant going? would a head gasket truly be the culprit? or is it evaporating into thin air due to a leak from the crossovers on the intake? another question. do these have oil coolers either built into the radiator or on the side of the block going to the filter? just trying to think of all options. any help once again is greatly appreciated!

 

[edward]

mia coolant

what state are you in??

if your in the snowbelt, cold weather states like i am (IL) i lose coolant in very cold weather. the plastic end caps on the radiator expands when cold and leaks from there. i bet this doesnt happen in summer?

it slowly leaks when you drive so you dont see a puddle at home.

i see it in real cold mornings(below zero) and i have the truck warming up.

just refill or buy a new radiator and hoses.

 

[03explorereb]

right next door to in MO you about 70 miles sw of st louis. never thought about that but there is no smell outside that hints of a coolant leak. figured there would be a scent of coolant. i will have to check that out!!

 

[esclamada]

bet you have a leaking intake manifold, the coolant goes into the valley and some of it if not evaporated goes out into the transmission bell housing. Look for stains in that region. The foam insulation on that valley could also absorb some of the leaking coolant making it not noticeable.

http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?f...80691366.78120.110528882348605&type=3&theater





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[03explorereb]

i will probably replace the IM and see what happens. IIRC, aren't the original IM"S completely plastic or do they have the aluminum runners for the crossover/thermostat housing? mine has the aluminum runners to me (at least i thought this way) indicating a replacement manifold. er regardless, it needs to be replaced because of the crack i noticed in it.

 

[edward]

bet you have a leaking intake manifold, the coolant goes into the valley and some of it if not evaporated goes out into the transmission bell housing. Look for stains in that region. The foam insulation on that valley could also absorb some of the leaking coolant making it not noticeable.

http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?f...80691366.78120.110528882348605&type=3&theater

had this done too. had a slow leak and then one morning driving to work
white smoke , open the hood coolant all over . had to replace intake gasket.



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[03explorereb]

thanks for the input fellas. i sprayed down the intake where the crack was to see if there might be a vacuum leak there. no leak. at this point i think the intake needs to come off anyways. where there's one crack there might be another. i will keep you all posted on my findings.

 

[esclamada]

thanks for the input fellas. i sprayed down the intake where the crack was to see if there might be a vacuum leak there. no leak. at this point i think the intake needs to come off anyways. where there's one crack there might be another. i will keep you all posted on my findings.

I think the crack you're seeing is the foam insulation on the original intake manifold. It;s normal that it has cracks, once you take out the intake manifold it will disintegrate into pieces. The Dorman replacement doesn't have it.



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[pet575]

i will probably replace the IM and see what happens. IIRC, aren't the original IM"S completely plastic or do they have the aluminum runners for the crossover/thermostat housing? mine has the aluminum runners to me (at least i thought this way) indicating a replacement manifold. er regardless, it needs to be replaced because of the crack i noticed in it.

Both the stock IM and the Dorman replacement have an aluminum crossover/thermo housing. Or at least my stock IM did.

 

[03explorereb]

wasn't sure pet575 if they were like that or not....thanks for letting me know that. i am rolling under the ol ******* tonight to see what i can see. hopefully i will see evidence of a leak or something. stay tuned.....