300 straight 6 1993 f150 xlt, It's me again, wanting to cry this time. I have this truck and the other day it was overheating, I have no thermostat so no temp gauge I just noticed the steam coming from the radiator cap, I had lost a crap load of coolant, so I put some water and drove it just fine, well now I am piecing together the oil leak from the pan and it seems like it isnt the pan but from above, and now when I went to watch it idle it was leaking in the exhaust, but all I have is a glass pack back there because whatever dipstick had this truck put one on. All I have is $230 and I am sure that wont replace the gasket. I am losing my mind because I just turned 18 and realizing what I just dropped $1300 was a waste of time and money.

 

Hey there! I am guessing there must have been some sort of overheating problem prior to you buying this truck, if the thermostat had been removed! More than likely the engine suffered a overheating issue and thats usually the first part that gets changed. if you have accsess to a cooling system pressure tester, try filling radiator to about an inch lower than top of radiator, then put tester on radiator, and pump up tester to say 10 lbs. then observe gauge and take a looksee over engine/radiator etc. and check for any leaks. I gauge stays at 10 lbs. or whatever pressure you set it to, then start engine, let it idle and watch is the needle on pressure gauge rising or staying at 10 lbs., also while its idling, watch the exhaust for any signs of steam or water vapor, which either one would be good indicators of a head gasket, or a crack in the cylinder head. I can remember when I was your age and had similar issues with my beat up old Ford. I learned from my Dad that, in a pinch, use can use common old black ground pepper to stop water leaks, either on your radiator or heater core, or even a headgasket possibly a cracked head. Other parts that can contribute to overheating issues are, the pressure cap on radiator, the fan clutch , a loose drive belt and restricted air flow through the radiator fins! Hope this helps you, remember there are no such things as stupid questions, only not asking is stupid. Good luck and have a nice Thanksgiving Holiday! Dale

 

The oil leak you mentioned coming from above the oil pan could possibly be a rear main seal leak. It's pretty common in these old trucks. In fact my 97 does the same thing, I need to add about 1/2 quart of oil every month. If it's only a slow leak, just check it regularly and add oil as needed.

 

You drove it around with the head gasket blown?

 

Slow down a bit!

You seem to have at least 3 problems here;

Your truck overheats.
Your truck has an oil leak.
Your truck has some sort of exhaust leak.

Yes, it is very frustrating to have these sorts of problems with limited funds, but tackle them one at a time. $1300 is not going to buy a problem free truck, well, at least most times. $230 can go a long ways towards fixing problems if you do the work yourself and resist the urge to throw parts at it.

I would say the most pressing issue is overheating and, if I read your post correctly, you do not have a functioning temperature gauge. Fix this first. Simple check, ground the wire at the sender and see if the gauge moves in the cab. Make sure the connection is good. If you need parts, try the wreckers. Once you have a working gauge, you can see if your cooling system repairs work. Is it leaking coolant? Have you checked the thermostat? Overheating can be, but does not have to be a head gasket.

 

If there is no thermostat in the truck,the coolant may be circulating too fast for the rad. to cool it. Try a 180 degree t/s and burp the system good and see if that cures it.....JB.

 

I flushed the radiator with tap water like 3 times, rust, or hopefully rust and not oil keeps coming up. I'm really thinking it's a headgasket problem because if I have it idling, with the cap off the fluid just bubbles can that be the compression or whatever sending the air up?

 

May be trapped air in a pocket in the engine. Does the water level go down after a period of time? Try the pressure test in an earlier post and go from there. if that is good, put a 180 t/s in and anti-freeze and burp it good and see what happens.......JB.

 

I can agree with this, even if its a colder than stock thermostat you gotta have something to regulate the flow of the coolant or else its just gonna overheat on you, heck just a thermostat could fix its overheat right there and you'd be fine but a pressure test should be the first step on this truck before you start putting parts into it.

 

Sadly don't have access to a pressure test, any idea where to get one? It's been idling pretty warm, the bottom hoses get hot. but the top rad hose never fills up, has some pressure, but not enough for it to be solid, really hot to touch for maybe a 2 or 3 mile drive to work. Drained the whole cooling system with blue devil. When I was flushing it, I took the pressure cap off and it basically was having air come up and sometimes even a little tornado swirl was forming. I eventually got it to the point to where it was topped off and air just kept coming up.

 

Most parts houses loan them out for next to nothing.

 

you are getting some mis-information here ...

running an engine with NO thermostat , or with a cooler thermostat, will NOT result in overheating ... only overcooling.

follow the instructions given you by NotEnoughTrucks and report your results.

 

Hi I have a 1999 f250 with a 5.4 and after replacing everything possible I took it to a heating and cooling shop and they said it needs a head gasket. I have no sign of a blown hG oil is fine no over heating no whT smoke no water out of the tail pipe and the truck runs perfect. They said I have gasses in the anti. They don't do that work so iam looking for a shop and wondering what that job should coast. Any help would be great thanku

 

Pretty sure it's a leak in the gasket, for now from what it looks like there is no coolant in the oil or oil in the coolant. Hasn't overheated too much but there is still bubbles coming up and losing coolant, do you think this truck can withstand 2 weeks of like a 3 mile drive to work everyday? or could it be that there is no thermostat and constant air in the top hose?

 

Tester you can get at autozone, you pay thrm some money for it and you take it and do what you need to get done and you take it back after you are done and get a refund and you have 90 days to take it back. Use that tool and see if it leaks down and if it does try and fine where it is coming from. Could you drive it like that? Most likely yes but will it do this truck any good? Nope not a bit if it is having gasket issues.