My excellent luck with automobile cooling system

Went dirt bike camping on the beloved E150.
Spark plugs and ignition coils replacement worked fine and no warning light on freeway.

Got off and climbed up twisties then all of a sudden engine overheats.
Turned around and went downhill. Water temp goes down.. phew

But it went back up again in a few miles so I pulled into the NAPA I saw before.

Called AAA for the tow truck. She says all the local repair shops and rental car places are closed.

I bought a thermostat and replaced it in the parking lot. It works.
I am safely home now.

That "service engine soon" warning light is back on. Could be blown head gasket?
I will buy the HF code reader tomorrow.

It could be but pressure testing the cooling system would tell the tale, there is also a chemical test you can buy for something like 30-40 bucks that I have heard works well, it detects combustion gasses in the coolant, a cooling system pressure test kit would cost 150 or so, HF has a pressure test kit, not sure of how good they are or their price..., my last purchase needed a complete engine rebuild, hope you have better luck.
A code reader will not say anything about a blown head gasket, it will say what the sensors tell it but i`m certain they aren't smart enough to say if the head gasket is blown.

Late model Ferds have cylinder head temp sensors....if it has overheated enough to cause a head gasket failure, it will set a code for cylinder head overtemp. Check the engine oil for signs of coolant....check the coolant for signs of oil.
Did you happen to hear any "pinging" when it was showing to be hot?? It sure sounds like there is a restriction in the cooling system somewhere....possibly the t-stat that you have changed out now. Could also be a timing issue causing the higher than normal engine temps. See what code(s) you can get out of it first....that will give you at least some sort of direction to go in for diagnostics. :good:

Thanks.

Got the code. It's P1299 $07E8
Coolant looks oil free.
Don't know how to check oil other than tiny amount on the dip stick.. guess I need to drain it.

Oh and I didn't hear any pinging.

:shock: Ruh Roh....P1299 Indicates an engine overheat condition was detected by the cylinder head temperature (CHT) sensor. An FMEM Strategy called Fail-safe Cooling was activated to cool the engine. So that's not good. Is this thing leaking/puking any coolant? Does the reservoir always show to be empty?
It's possible there is air trapped in the engine somewhere causing the overheat condition....
Coolant in the oil would show up as milky oil...like a chocolate milkshake look, plus the oil level would be high. Once the engine sits overnight, you can check the oil. Water/coolant will separate from the oil, and settle to the bottom of the pan. The dipstick would show water on it at that point, depending on how much coolant is actually in the oil. If there's enough, pulling the drainplug would have straight coolant coming out first, then oil. If that happens, it's time to open the engine up and fix/replace it.... :crying:

Thanks again.

I noticed coolant level was low once and added some. Not sure it was like that when I bought it.

The coolant in reservoir doesn't look like chocorate shake. No coolant on the tip of dip stick either and the level is normal but I started the engine briefly this morning before the check.

I will wait overnight and check again.

If I don't find any sign of oil/coolant mix (not only visually but with the chemical zman says), am I good to go?

Maybe just air in the system, heater cores are higher then the engine, I usually take the cap off when cold, let it warm up then add coolant.

Just making sure.

I drove the van home around 90 miles after I replaced the thermostat. No overheating.
Doesn't that indicate it was the thermostat that caused the sudden overheating?

As for the radiator cap, the van doesn't have one.
The coolant poured out of the engine when I removed the housing to replace the thermostat. After that, I put the housing back on and put the coolant in the reservoir. Some sort of air bleeding came across my mind but I couldn't think of any ways to do it.

No coolant cap? More than likely got air in the system now. There is a specific procedure to "burp" the system. The specific procedure for your van I don't know.

If that engine is anything like my Taurus engines, we did not have a radiator cap either. The coolant reservoir is also the pressure vessel and the cap is pressurized. The coolant circulates through the reservoir. (At least it did on our Taurus's). Should have seen the mess when that reservoir split! Happened to both Taurus's we owned.

Again, I am not sure about the van, but Ford liked using these things!

[url=https://classicgoldwings.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=175823#p175823:20ht6oaw said:

mcgovern61 » Mon Jun 27, 2016 12:49 pm[/url]":20ht6oaw]
If that engine is anything like my Taurus engines, we did not have a radiator cap either. The coolant reservoir is also the pressure vessel and the cap is pressurized. The coolant circulates through the reservoir. (At least it did on our Taurus's). Should have seen the mess when that reservoir split! Happened to both Taurus's we owned.

Again, I am not sure about the van, but Ford liked using these things!

Click to expand...

So that means no burping procedure? (in Taurus' case)
Just pour the coolant in the reservoir and run the engine?

BTW, I ordered this chemical kit.

https://www.amazon.com/Lisle-75500-Combustion-Leak-Detector/dp/B0007ZDRUI

It talks about inserting that rubber cone into a radiator. For the Fords, that means the reservoir opening..

So that means no burping procedure? (in Taurus' case)
Just pour the coolant in the reservoir and run the engine?

Click to expand...

Well, sorta. You add the coolant to the reservoir with the engine off initially. Then run until warm and slowly add coolant to the reservoir. The system purges into the tank while running.

Another thing to look at if it does it again under load is an internally clogged radiator or debris on the front cooling fins.

Thanks.
The further checkups depend on if the engine survived this overheating episode.
I hope it did...
Whatever the "FMEM Strategy called Fail-safe Cooling" did prevented the head gaskets from total meltdown.. :beg:

I was curious about "fail-safe cooling" so googled.

Here's what I found on F150 forum:

"It is controlled by the CHT [ cylinder head temperature sensor] and when the sensor indicates a overheating problem the PCM takes over and starts shutting down injectors. This makes the cylinder or cylinders become a cooling pump for the engine and still lets you drive the truck without damaging the engine."

I hope it's true and my engine was not damaged. I drove only a few miles or around 5 or so minutes. :beg:
The benefit of computer controlled modern engines, I guess.

[url=https://www.classicgoldwings.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=175836#p175836:330ilyvk said:

zman » Tue Jun 28, 2016 7:58 am[/url]":330ilyvk]
Another thing to look at if it does it again under load is an internally clogged radiator or debris on the front cooling fins.

Click to expand...

+1. I like to fit a new radiator as soon as possible to any secondhand vehicle that we purchase that has done a bit of work and still looks like it has the original still.

[url=https://www.classicgoldwings.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=175846#p175846:2aphip63 said:

Ansimp » Mon Jun 27, 2016 5:38 pm[/url]":2aphip63]

[url=https://www.classicgoldwings.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=175836#p175836:2aphip63 said:

zman » Tue Jun 28, 2016 7:58 am[/url]":2aphip63]
Another thing to look at if it does it again under load is an internally clogged radiator or debris on the front cooling fins.

Click to expand...

+1. I like to fit a new radiator as soon as possible to any secondhand vehicle that we purchase that has done a bit of work and still looks like it has the original still.

Click to expand...

Based on my luck with thermostats and plastic radiators, probably a very good idea..
I can go to the nearby place who did the Jeep radiator with very good price.

I did run across this lil tidbit that might help out...or not... :hihihi:


I've worked on many late Ferds that have had cyl head overtemp codes....none have ever had any actual damage that required major work....it's usually a coolant loss somewhere causing it, or air in the system. Refresh my memory on what year model this thing is...I'm assuming it's a 5.4?

[url=https://classicgoldwings.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=175853#p175853:2zhtq74n said:

AApple » Mon Jun 27, 2016 7:36 pm[/url]":2zhtq74n]
I did run across this lil tidbit that might help out...or not... :hihihi:

coolingtip

• AApple
• Jun 27, 2016
• 1

I've worked on many late Ferds that have had cyl head overtemp codes....none have ever had any actual damage that required major work....it's usually a coolant loss somewhere causing it, or air in the system. Refresh my memory on what year model this thing is...I'm assuming it's a 5.4?

Click to expand...

It's 2011 4.6L engine. 290K miles on it.

So you don't think it's stuck closed themostat?

I still have the old one so I can test it in hot water...

It could certainly have been a bad thermostat, no doubt. If it has been running ok since replacing it so far, you might try to test it in a similar condition to when it got hot before....a little "spirited" driving might just do the trick.
I'll dig up the purge info, if there is anything specific for that engine, and post it up for ya. It'll be in the mornin...it's nappy time for Bonzo now... :lazy: :mrgreen: