I have a 1992 Aero 3.0 l with 233k on it. I have replaced everything related to the cooling system except the heater cores. It has a slight leak (a few drops a day) that may be the timing chain gasket or a freeze plug.

Here is the question. Is using Bars Stop Leak a good idea or bad?

I have done a lot of research on this topic and the results are confusing at best. Most auto manufacturers do in fact put this stuff in their new cars for some reason and many people swear by it to seal very minor leaks from gaskets or bolts that thread into the water jacket. Most say it works fine and causes no problems, but some say it plugs everything up and causes over heating while plugging up the heater core to make the van cold to drive. A call to a few repair shops including two dealers also gave mixed results. The Dealers say that due to the age of the van, it is the best solution as it isn’t worth repairing and yes they do put it in new vans, besides, it shouldn't plug anything up if the cooling system is in good shape as the fibers in stop leak are small enough to pass through any opening in the cooling system. One rad shop said it is a temporary fix that would only last a few months and then may come back with a vengeance.

Does anyone have an opinion with this stuff? Any advice? I am only going to add a third of a bottle at a time until the leak stops.

 

I've had no luck with that stuff, and I don't know anyone that has.

 

I have had it work best on radiators. On cracked heads in my Bronco II it did not work but stopped up the heater. On my 4.0 Aerostar it worked for a short time on a head gasket leak to the outside of the block & than the gasket blew on the inside.On my 92 F-150 it did not work on an intake leak. My son a few years ago had a radiator leak in an 89 Bronco II in which he added stop leak. He than after adding drove 1500 miles with no leaks or problems. If you do add the stuff drive the car or run it for as long as you possible can before stopping . That does seem to make a difference. Also add it to a clean cooling system.

 

It is a good temporary fix. I would MAYBE use it if I was strapped for cash or it was too cold to do the proper repair. It can plug up a heater core or a rad if the system is not clean in the first place.

-Matt

 

I have heard from several automotive technicians that they have had success with some sort of GM (yes General Motors) pellets.
Dont know the official product name, but my buddy used them to stop a head gasket leak on an S10 2.2 4 cyl. motor over a year ago and it has'nt leaked since.
I have also been told that they wont clog heater cores, but since I have never used the product, I cant say for sure.
Any body know if Ford sells a simillar product?

 

they also make a liquid plastic sealer stuff. i heard it works well.

but you have to totally flush out the system and make certain there is no remnant of the coolant left, just pure water. then get it hot, then add the product to the hot radiator water, and drive for a while. then once its in there for a few days i think you can drain it and add coolant back.

that sounded harder than fixing my leak, so i just fixed it rather than go through all that.
but ive heard its a great fixer

 

Well, I gave it a try, I decided to just put in 1/3 of a bottle, I used the small bottle which is for 4 cylinder engines. As funny as this sounds, after two days of driving, about 160 kms. The leak has stopped. everything seems to be drying out and I am still getting plenty of heat inside.

I don't know if the stop leak worked or tightening all the hose clamps did the trick or maybe it was both. For now, there are no leaks. Which is good. Here in Winnipeg, it can be hard to fix things like this when it is -20 or colder outside.

One strange thing though, I have noticed that when ever the temp. drops below -20 I will usually see a few drops of anti-freeze. This clears up when the temp gets warmer. I noticed this now for about 5 years.

 

rpokorny
Aeros have this little problem in the cold the rad, heatercores,shrink in the cold and seep coolant out hope your stop leak worked though. If I leave mine in heated building it dont leak but out side they leak some.Not bad, but enough to make you think some thing is wrong.

 

I have used stop leaks of various brands for over 23 years. I never had it stop up a system yet. It is great for small leaks. It will not save a shot radiator, after 233K it may be time for a new heater core but Im lazy and would try it before replacing a heater core.

 

I have never had any luck with the Barrs stuff. I have had real good luck with the kinds that you have to get the antifreeze out with. K&N block seal is real good and there is some blue stuff that costs $30 from auto supply stores. I have sealed head leaks with both. When a plastic or regular radiator or heater core goes you can seal it for only a short time. I found the best stuff for this is called something like "Green Leak Repair" or something like that. It is cheap, like three bucks a bottle. Use two. It will last no more than a month at best. Happy holidays all.

 

My 90 3.0l aero has always leaked coolant when the temp is below 0F (-18C). I was told this is a ford problem and can be only corrected with a new rad which will then start to leak a few years later. It will leak out quite a bit on a cold night and leave a few inches of green snow underneath. This is one of the seasonal issues that I have and forget about each summer. The other issue is the speedometer will not work in cold weather. It reads about 50mph when I am still in the alley. Luckily this only happens a few times a year and adding a half liter of antifreeze a year is quite inexpensive.

 

Just a thought, my 1991 Aero with original radiator, did not leak any coolant, even at -36c. Something is not sealing somewhere, which can mean that coolant does not get sucked back into the rad from the bottle, resulting in a coolantless radiator, and a full up overflow bottle.

Rad shops can recore those rads for about $100 - $160 bucks in less than a day, which can be cheaper than mucking around.

 

One thing I want to point out.. I replaced my radiator with a new one in June. The rad isn't leaking, it was something around the ac bracket. It could have even been the upper rad hose as the clamp appeared loose. I put in a small about of stop leak, and tightened everything again, and the leak has been gone for several days.

 

I've tried various methods before to pull me through cold weather (procrastination) and wait for a nice day. I used pepper before and it worked for over a year. It's hit or miss. Remember though, if it's a freeze plug, it will only get worse despite the best stop leak product you can find.

 

the trick to patching a freeze plug is some steel epoxy putty, which is something like a thick "play-doh" version of JB weld. I was not going to rplace the front freezeplug on my 91 3.0, no way!. so i basicly covered the plugs recess with the putty. it got rock hard within minutes, and i was carefull not to get any in the seams around the freeze plug so it could be removed some day.

it still dripped a few drops here and there, so i added some aluma-seal and it stopped all together.

but my freeze-plug had a pin point hole in it, and man, it looked like a little kid "relieving himself" ya know? so no way was stop-leak gonna fix it.