Had my coolant system flushed a little over a week ago and I think it may have lead to a coolant line failure. I could smell coolant, then I lost my heater. By the time I got home the coolant was leaking badly and eventually bled dry.
After cleaning up the messI looked under the engine to see where the leak had sprung. I'm no expert but it looks like it could have leaked from the water pump. A ruptured seal maybe?
Assuming it was the water pump/gasket, what kind of ballpark figure am I looking at if I take it in to the Ford dealership for servicing?
Any advice here would be great.

-Mike

 

I bought one on e-bay for $70 so i assume the dealer wants $150. It took me 2 hours, so i would guess the dealer will charge $150. for aabor.

 

Oh, if only it was the water pump! Guess what? It's a blown head gasket! At least, it probably is. Mechanic says it might be a cracked head as well (or block, I can't remember.....coolant was gushing out, though).

Boo! I am not pleased. it'll be $2500. to fix.

 

If it leaks that bad, i would guess a manifold gasket (o-ring). Hard to believe a head has that kind of a crack.... maybe ?

 

https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/8...d-on-5-4l.html

 

Thanks a lot for the link! Is it possible the leak is caused by something like an "O" ring or something else, other than the head gasket or a compromised block/head? I am rather worried there is a better, quicker fix than my mechanic is aware of.....and he'll charge me accordingly.

What should I tell him? I seems the two options he sees are the head gasket or a crack somewhere in the head.

Advice here would be priceless.

 

I dunno' man....maybe a cracked head if you drove it long enough with no coolent. If it was mine I would fill it back up with coolent and start it up, wait for it to build up pressure, and look for where it leaks. If it is "pouring out" it should be obvious. You said in the area of the water pump? There is a hose under the intake that could have cracked ( from the back of the water pump). My Mustang had a major blowup like that, but that was the coolent crossover from the thermostat. The OEM one is plastic for my year...the replacement is metal now in that area. I don't think that applies to yours, but take a looksee.

 

Yep... no time to guess. Fill it up and LOOK where it runs out. May not even need to start it up if i leaks that bad.

 

Your mechanic should use a proper pressure tester. That way he can pump slightly over rad cap pressure rating and look for leaks through whole system without engine running. Then the fan won't be blowing coolant all over and the engine won't be too hot to touch.

 

Ok, the mystery has been solved. The coolant was leaking out of one of the exhaust manifold studs, which had been replaced by the previous owner (he wasn't careful and punched a hole into the water jacket).

What a relief. I'm back on the road, $500.00 later (beats $2000+ ).

Thanks for your input, lads!

 

Good Deal. How did they fix that? I have heard of guys doing that drilling them out...I assume they just put some RTV Black on the stud and screw it in?

 

Yep, that's exactly how it's done.