I drive an f550 daily and put a lot of hard towing miles on it doing hot shot work (sometimes 12 or 13 ton trailers). The engine light will come on when I'm driving it too hard, but goes off after 10 minutes when i tone it down. it overheated on me on the highway but i was only pulling a 9k lb trailer. I pulled over and turned the heater on full blast to help it cool off and then it rode normal for the next 30 miles until i dropped off the load. I was cruising at about 70 and it was about 95 degrees when it happened. When it was in the shop getting an estimate on the turbo(2 weeks ago) the ford dealership told me that i needed a new water pump also, but there are no leaks or wobbles in the pulley. also the coolant levels are normal. Is this just from me driving it too hard? Or should i replace the water pump? Or should i just do the thermostat since its cheap, and easy just to check.

 

Have you tested for the code that was set? My truck started doing the same thing under load and with the hot tunes. Got the dreaded 1211 (hpop) but it went away. Pump can't maintain the demand. It runs ok lightly loaded but I am installing a new pump. I believe it held the cel on for 7mins, I think that's how long it holds the light on if pressure returns to the demand parameters.

 

First: These things can overheat? Ya really gotta try.

Second: I'm not there, I can't see it, and I don't know the backstory... but you mentioned disregarding the dealership's recommendation to replace the water pump - then go on to talk about overheating. I just raised an eyebrow, that's all.

I just lost a pump (they are reputed to last about 130K to 150K) and I replaced the thermostat, thermostat housing, water pump, and oil cooler O-rings... all in one hit (275K on truck).

If you just do the thermostat, order the housing with it - they go bad.

 

Over time the radiators on these trucks can become clogged. The folks with pickups hardly ever realize it but those of us with F-450/550 trucks can easily find the limits of the cooling system when the radiator is not 100%. It's pretty easy to pull the radiator and take it to a shop for testing. A good cleaning and new o-rings for the tanks can run about $100.

Which light was coming on? The Check Gauges light or the Service Engine Soon light? (or whatever symbol is used in the '02-'03 models...)

I am curious what led to the bad water pump diagnosis from the repair shop. Usually they get replaced when the front seal and/or bearing fails.

Was your fan clutch coming on? A bad fan clutch can cause your symptoms as well.

Worn injectors can cause overheating also. My F450 was overheating last summer while pulling our camper up steep mountain grades. I pulled my radiator and had it cleaned (the shop said it was 25-30% clogged) and that helped quite a bit but didn't solve the problem. I then pulled the injectors and had them rebuilt with new nozzles. No more overheating issues.

 

I would have never thought the injectors causing an overheating issue but it makes sense thinking about it.

 

Yeah... if the injectors are slow to get the fuel out, or if they have poor atomization, things would warm up - particularly the EGTs.

 

The fan clutch was bad. It didn't make sense to me because it seemed like it was always engaged (I thought that would just keep it cooler) but i guess when it gets hot it starts slipping.
The reason I stayed away from changing the water pump is because i felt the ford shop was just trying to get as much money as they could out of me (Cogswell ford ar stay away). I still don't think its that, Ive heard its either working or its not.
Hope fully its not the injectors just yet, what kind of radiator fluid do you use shake n bake? Ive heard it makes a difference in these.

 

What radiator fluid do you use?

 

I think you might be right. I've seen a fan clutch fail in a few different ways. Sometimes they lock up completely which is kind of a bummer because they suck about 25 hp when fully engaged. Usually when they fail that way the fan ends up in the bottom of the radiator shroud because they spin themselves off the water pump when the engine shuts off. Depending on your climate, you may not realize the fan has fallen off until summer arrives.

I've seen them fail where all the fluid leaks out and they don't lock up at all. When you turn the engine off....the fan keeps spinning. Sometimes a dozen or more times. A test for this is to use a thick rag and grab a hold of the fan while someone starts the engine. If you can hold the fan still with the engine running then the fan clutch is bad. (Be smart though...just apply pressure on one side of the fan blade so if it does pull away then your fingers won't be caught by the next blade)

Probably the most common is where the fan clutch remains partially applied most all of the time. They never fully unlock or fully lock up, or it seems that way to me. This might have been your situation.

I now use Zerex ELC. I made the switch when I replaced my radiator because I was a little concerned about SCA drop out over time that might clog my new radiator. I still have one more truck to change over but eventually all my trucks will be running ELC. My personal opinion is that a coolant filter is not necessary when running ELC but might be a good idea when using the green or gold coolant. I don't have any data or solid information to back up my opinion so it's only a theory at this point.

 

(Cogswell Ford) I hear ya. Been here 23 years have only visited them one time. When they told me the cost to scan my truck I said Bye Bye.Never been back.

 

It is my personal experience that a plugged fuel pickup or fuel filter will fuel starve the injectors causing your symptoms including the overheating. F550's normally have a steel tank similar to the vans. If you haven't done it already why don't you drop your steel fuel tank and take a look? Also pull your oem fuel filter on top of the engine and take a look.

https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/1...fuel-tank.html

https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/1...fuel-tank.html