texasbanzai
New Member
- Joined
- February 9, 2010
- Messages
- 6
- Reaction score
- 0
- City, State
- Arlington, TX
- Year, Model & Trim Level
- '02 Sport Trac
02 Sport Trac Coolant Leak
I need some advice on how to tackle a coolant leak in my '02 Sport Trac with about 145,000 miles. [Edit: Forgot to add, V6 4.0L SOHC]
I turned on my heat last week for the first time this year and noticed it started randomly blowing cool and I also noticed the temp guage fluctuating a little. When I checked the coolant was about 1-2 quarts low. I hadn't noticed any persistent coolant smell or leak stains where I park before this. After topping it off the smell has been pretty noticeable when the truck is first run but seems to subside after being run for awhile (I drive ~30 mi to work each way) and haven't seen any large puddling of water. It seems to be leaking about 1 cup or so per day or two.
I am going to replace the whole thermostat housing and associated parts this weekend since this seems to be a common cause of coolant leaks (and thanks to the post on these boards for the great how-to walkthrough!).
My concern is that I have not been able to get a good view of where the leak is actually coming from. I am positive there is a leak somewhere but because of the cramped conditions I haven't been able to see where the leak is coming from. There doesn't appear to be a leak from any of the coolant hoses on the upper side of the engine. I have been to find the coolant leak landing onto the engine block (see picture below, red area), but can't figure out where it's originating from.
I'm trying to figure out the best option for figuring this thing out. I am going to get a pressure tester from AZ tomorrow and am hoping to employ some coolant dye. I'm considering pulling the alternator and removing the fan to give myself more room to look around the coolant system to see if I can find the leak. I'm worried there may be a leak somewhere closer to the water pump or from the water pump itself.
In full disclosure, I'm not an experienced mechanic and have never done the majority of this work, so any advice is very much appreciated. Namely, I'd like to avoid having to disconnect the fan (this seems pretty daunting), but I can't seem to get much room to look around with a mirror with the belt and fan taking up so much space.
Thanks, Adam
I need some advice on how to tackle a coolant leak in my '02 Sport Trac with about 145,000 miles. [Edit: Forgot to add, V6 4.0L SOHC]
I turned on my heat last week for the first time this year and noticed it started randomly blowing cool and I also noticed the temp guage fluctuating a little. When I checked the coolant was about 1-2 quarts low. I hadn't noticed any persistent coolant smell or leak stains where I park before this. After topping it off the smell has been pretty noticeable when the truck is first run but seems to subside after being run for awhile (I drive ~30 mi to work each way) and haven't seen any large puddling of water. It seems to be leaking about 1 cup or so per day or two.
I am going to replace the whole thermostat housing and associated parts this weekend since this seems to be a common cause of coolant leaks (and thanks to the post on these boards for the great how-to walkthrough!).
My concern is that I have not been able to get a good view of where the leak is actually coming from. I am positive there is a leak somewhere but because of the cramped conditions I haven't been able to see where the leak is coming from. There doesn't appear to be a leak from any of the coolant hoses on the upper side of the engine. I have been to find the coolant leak landing onto the engine block (see picture below, red area), but can't figure out where it's originating from.
I'm trying to figure out the best option for figuring this thing out. I am going to get a pressure tester from AZ tomorrow and am hoping to employ some coolant dye. I'm considering pulling the alternator and removing the fan to give myself more room to look around the coolant system to see if I can find the leak. I'm worried there may be a leak somewhere closer to the water pump or from the water pump itself.
In full disclosure, I'm not an experienced mechanic and have never done the majority of this work, so any advice is very much appreciated. Namely, I'd like to avoid having to disconnect the fan (this seems pretty daunting), but I can't seem to get much room to look around with a mirror with the belt and fan taking up so much space.
Thanks, Adam