Giving this a bump

I hope you get this figured out. There are certain places the coolant can enter the oil. You have addressed one of those places by replacing the head gaskets. Since you have replaced the head gaskets, are you back at square one? I am thinking maybe oil cooler? Someone might chime in on possible places coolant can enter into the oil and narrow it down from there.

I do not know if you are doing this already but make sure you start your truck in the stock setting when it is down near freezing temps. It is a good habit to get into for longevity reasons. Then switch into your performance tunes down the road after the engine is up to operating temps. This is something to keep in mind when you do figure this out.

 

Can someone explain to me where the CCV on a stock engine dumps to ?? I've read that some just turn the dog house and use extra hose to route the dump to the rear of the truck.. But where was the orig dump port ?? And if it did dump somewhere don't you have to close that port ?? Maybe I'm just not understanding or something..
Thanks

 

Do a search for the CCV mod in the search box. Or go to www.7point3.com. You can find the mod there. Most who have run the hose the length of the truck have had it either freeze or become clogged with oil. The general consensus around here is to have it dump at the bottom of the front axle. This is how international vents the CCV gases into the atmosphere on 7.3 PSD's that are installed in buses and heavier vehicles. Also the stock configuration of the CCV vents the gases into the air intake tubing that is just after the air filter. If you get a flashlight under there you can see a rubber 90 degree tube coming off the doghouse and connecting to the air intake tube. It then gets recycled into the engine. Do not be suprised if you see oil on the inside of the air intake tube. This is normal.

Tim

 

That's kind of what I was thinking too, especially since the heads have been gone through, pressure tested ok, and head gaskets replaced. If it's not the oil cooler, you might have some internal issues in the block, like a pinhole in one of the cylinders that goes through to a water jacket.

 

Oh crap, cavitation. Forgot about that one. Cavititation is not real common on our trucks like it was in the IDIs. A hole in the jacket is a possibility but what I just remembered below sounds like the culprit.

******Right behind the water pump is an aluminum front engine plate cover. A feller was going through the same thing with his truck. It would run fine but when the engine is shut down, his coolant would drain into the oil. I think that this may be a possibility. I will search for the thread. Cavitation had occured in the area just behind the waterpump as it would have in the cylinder walls. I (think) this may be your problem. Its a start anyway.********

Do not rule out the oil cooler though- Yet.

 

sloppy joe, I found it. Click on this link= https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/4...coolant+in+oil.

Pics of this type of cavitation are in post 19. Make sure you rad the whole thread though. Hope this helps.

 

Thanks for the help guys. I will definitely check those items. Honestly I am almost hoping for something like that cavitation in the water pump, and am really hoping it is not a cracked block, or cracked/pinholed cylinder. Nonetheless the truck is going back to the mechanic tomorrow. Thanks again for all the help, and if there are any more ideas post em' up. Thanks

 

I pulled the water pump off and found the erosion on the plate behind the water pump that matched this pic...


I am going to go ahead and just replace the entire plate. My main question now is, which coolant do I use/switch to? The truck has had green in it since I got it. It is a 2003 so doesn't that mean I should be using yellow coolant ie. "2002 model year trucks use any of the above if your truck came filled with green coolant. If it came from the factory with yellow coolant, only use Motorcraft Premium Gold Antifreeze, Zerex G05 (gold bottle), Peak Global Lifetime (gold bottle) or Peak Extended Life CF-EXL (silver bottle). These coolants do not require SCA/DCA. Do not use "universal" products that claim to be replacement for any color antifreeze." I assume this same rule applies to the newer year models? I have told the mechanic to completely flush the system and switch to one of these coolant which I will supply. I will propbably choose the Motorcraft product unless convinced to do otherwise. If what I am doing is not the right direction, Please Guide Me In The Right Direction!!! Thanks

 

Please Help!

 

If it were me, I would do a full system flush and go with the newer style coolants that do not require any SCA additives. I think this is especially true since you say there was green in it, but the book says it should be yellow. As long as you flush out all of the old stuff, it won't matter what was in there and you can use whatever you want. I plan to do that to mine this spring. I will go with Rotella ELC. It's a red color, so there is no way anyone could confuse it with another type of coolant.

 

Ok, you found it, this is good. Now why do you have green coolant in your 03 truck? If you have owned this truck since new, you need to recall where you had your coolant flushes done at. Now, you have to be careful that someone before you did not blow up the 03 motor and thus instal an 02 or older motor. Verify this by checking the manufacturing date on the top of the pass side valve cover. If this were an replacement junk yard engine in your truck, this would explain ahy you have the green coolant in an 03 truck. Bottom line, someone did not pay attention to the right color of coolant that goes in your 03 truck, or reinstalled and older engine that requires the green coolant. Let us know how you make out with the front cover plate install.

 

I sure hope I found it, $3,000 later. Is there any chance that there may also be pinholes in or around the cylinders or would that be pretty apparent. I did buy this truck used and it has had green in it since I bought it. What will the vin code read if it is a 2003 motor? and if it is a 2002 or older motor.

 

Your best bet is to check the passenger side valve cover and see what the manufacturing date of the motor is. No matter what the engine date is, do like JTHarvey says and switch to the red extended life coolant that is good for 300,000 miles. I only want you to check the manufacturing date on the truck to see what year motor is in it, so you know what you are working with. There is that possibility that someone swaped motors for an older one. Either way, run the red coolant. As far as the pin holes in the steel cylinder liner, Its hard to say that they both would cavitate at the same time. I am guessing that they would not. The cheapest way to go about it is to replace the front engine plate with the engine in the truck. If it leaks after that, you will have to pull the motor, which is not necesary right now. It sounds like you are doing the plate yourself so you are already saving money there. Get the right coolant in after the fix and run it. You will probably be fine. Oh, by the way, get a pic on here with the cavitation behind the water pump. when you post the pic, You might want to start a new thread so people with experience on this can chime in. Not many people are going to check the CCV threads because they are so common. Give it a shot.


Tim

 

Dont forget to flush the oil now in between driving to get that antifreeze out of the system. It could get expensive but maybe someone has an idea onn if there is a procedure to flush the coolant out of the oil. I can see changing it a couple of times within the first hundred or so miles. Also, After you get the new plate put on and put a couple of miles on her, pressure test the cooling system over night. Not only will it ease your mind but it will be the for sure test that will determine if you have any other cavitation problems. As long as you run the proper coolant from here on out, you should not see any other cavitation problems. I would just concentrate on fixing the plate and go from there. This is the best way I can answer your question about pin holes in the cylinders. Man I know the feeling about someone not treating the truck right before you get it. No one had been adding coolant to my system before I got it at 100,000 miles. I just drained and refilled with new and check Ph every 15,000 miles. Ina a year when I flush the coolant again, I will be putting in the extended life.