nasty looking coolant??
Thread Starter
|
Elder User
Joined: Feb 2009
Posts: 967
Likes: 0
From: effort,pa
nasty looking coolant??
ok i got my 1988 4wd here wich has a 7.3 5spd, the truck has 180k on it but the coolant looks like new in it. odviusly it was taken care of and changed regularly.
now i also have a 2wd with a 7.3 that has 136k on it and i was thinking of swapping the lower miles engine into my 4x4 but the coolant in that engine is nasty bad, and ive heard that these have head gasket problems where they will start to leak coolant into the combustion chambers. does anyone now if the shot old coolant may chew up the headgaskets or was that just a fish story.
now i also have a 2wd with a 7.3 that has 136k on it and i was thinking of swapping the lower miles engine into my 4x4 but the coolant in that engine is nasty bad, and ive heard that these have head gasket problems where they will start to leak coolant into the combustion chambers. does anyone now if the shot old coolant may chew up the headgaskets or was that just a fish story.
Postmaster
Joined: Jan 2010
Posts: 4,319
Likes: 4
From: Elk City, OK
they dont have head gasket problems...... they have cavitation problems. if the engine has cavitation that means that the coolant has eaten its way though the cylinder wall and gotten into the combustion chamber. depending on where the holes are it will ruin your oil, but my guess its none of those issues. if i were you, id remove the oil cooler on the drivers side under the exhaust manifold..... then replace the 4 O rings inside it. they are a ford/international item only! that is usualy the reason you get oil in the coolant and/or coolant in the oil. easy fix, just takes a little time to do. $50 in O rings and 2 new gaskets and your good to go.
Thread Starter
|
Elder User
Joined: Feb 2009
Posts: 967
Likes: 0
From: effort,pa
no i have no coolant in the oil, i was just woried that maybe the coolant has checwed up the block since it is so nasty in the lower miles engine. is there a way to prevent cavitation, id hate to swap the engines and have it cavitate 6 months later... thanks
Thread Starter
|
Elder User
Joined: Feb 2009
Posts: 967
Likes: 0
From: effort,pa
ok, im new to the sca thing, did a quick search and got confused. this is my first diesal and ive never delt with sca levels before.. what is the sca's and where do i get the aditive to keep them in chack. also should i run both elc coolanat plus the sca additive or just one or the other.. thanks
Trending Topics
Thread Starter
|
Elder User
Joined: Feb 2009
Posts: 967
Likes: 0
From: effort,pa
ya i'll keep lookin for the info then.. this ones got me confused, think i'll go smash my head off the door of the truck for buying it..lol
FTE Stories
Ford Trucks for Ford Truck Enthusiasts
Top 6 Best Deals Available on New Fords & Lincolns Right Now
Brett Foote
This Hennessey Takes the Expedition Tremor's Off-Roading Capability to the Next Level
Verdad Gallardo
Top 10 Fords at 2026 Carlisle Ford Nationals
Joe Kucinski
3 Best / 3 Worst Parts of Modern Ford Ownership
Brett Foote
10 Amazing Upgrades That Solve Common Ford Truck Owner Headaches
Pouria Savadkouei
Every 2026 Ford Engine Explained
Brett Foote
10 Ugly Ford Trucks That We Still Kinda Love
Joe Kucinski
10 Things Every Truck Owner NEEDS (2026 Edition)
Michael S. Palmer
Rezvani's Latest Post-Apocalyptic Monster Is a Ford F-150 Raptor Underneath
Verdad Gallardo
Posting Guru
Joined: Feb 2011
Posts: 2,216
Likes: 0
From: Princeton MN
In a nut shell flush the cooling system. And get fleetcharge coolant and mix with distilled water. The fleet charge should have the sca's in it. The sca protects the cylinder walls from the little coolant bubbles that form as the cylinder wall flexes slightly, by creating a thin film between the coolant and the lock. If you can't find fleetcharge get low silicate coolant and get some fleetguard DCA-4 additive. Napa should sell the coolant test strips,at every oil change pop the cap off the rad dip the strip and read it. the bottle they are in has all the charts to read it. If that doesn't help i will go slam my haed in my door and see if that makes you feel better
Thread Starter
|
Elder User
Joined: Feb 2009
Posts: 967
Likes: 0
From: effort,pa
well after reading thru a bunch of old treads i'm geussing i'll do exactly that and change out the coolant in the truck and probly leave the higher miles engine in it. one thing that worries me now thou is the nice clean green coolant in my 4wd.. i wonder if they were running sca additive or not, i geuss it's just a crap shoot. but i wish i had a good idea since im going to drop a mess of money in it soon replacing the IP, feul lines and glow plug controller..
Thread Starter
|
Elder User
Joined: Feb 2009
Posts: 967
Likes: 0
From: effort,pa
ok, glad to here that. woulda never thought that cavitaion was such a big problem. do the psd's have the same problem, cause my altimate plan for the truck was to either build a rurbo idi or swap in a psd..