How hot does your Mach get?

[badappl]

115 is too hot? Anyway, I forgot to mention that like P machy, I got a new cap for my overflow reservior because I was getting some fluid blowout. While I have an 04, apparently this is a known issue because the new cap is a different part number than the original 04 part #. While this is covered under warranty, I purchased from the Ford parts department @ the dealer...rather than taking it in and letting it sit for a couple of days.

[gotmymach1]

Well my car is back. Supposedly the prior mechanic did not correctly burp the car and therefore it did not have enough coolant in it the last time I picked it up. They have just run it 40 miles without any problem. (Don't worry, the tires are already bald). So the temp is staying at 83 to 85 C cruising and only gets to 102 after a long idle (then the fan brings the temp down). I am still worried that I may have a head gasket leak and I'm slowly losing coolant. I'll be watching the temp and any coolant spill from the cap. Then I'm going to "burp" it myself to see if I'm losing any. Engine seems to be running good but now I've got a squeak/rattle from the shaker to take care of.

[3150Mach1]

Originally Posted by P Machy

You may want to BURP the coolent system. Air Pockets will cause it to over heat...even with a good working T-stat.

The fill hole is under the Shaker Hood as some have stated...you can keep the car running for 15 minutes if not longer and see bubbles appearing as it sits and idles.

I had 2 overheating issues and thankfully i was just going around the block to test a few things. The scent of coolent is very distinctive and has a very sweet smell to it.

So far it has worked, but i may have to just change my radiator cap & get a new O-ring to fix my issues permently.

If u do not have any way in setting ur fan speeds lower. A: either get a Manual Fan Switch rigged up, or B: u will more or less have to deal with it since the PCM only turns on ur High Speed Fans after 210F.

Good Luck.
*edit...im a bit drunk

I almost hate to ask this but what is the proper proceedure to burp our cars??

[C-dub]

Originally Posted by machths

This is taken directly from his post...

"2) Installed a Meziere electric water pump. Talked to some of the powertrain boys at Ford, and supposedly an electric water pump was on the engine's original build sheet, but was thrifted out by Job One. The OEM pump does not move much water at idle - if you guys get all over the car and then get stuck in stop-and-go, the heat soak is nasty. Going to an electric pump moves the cooling system from a batch process to a continuous process - the cooling system has full capacity to move heat from the engine to the radiator, even at idle. From a speed phreak's perspective, the electric pump also frees up about 15 RWHP in parasitic losses - no small potatoes."


As I already stated, I am stuck at idle a lot in traffic and this guy seemed to have done his research on the subject. As I slowly turn my Mach into a track car I plan on adding a performance radiator in the future, however if the stock water pump isn't moving as much coolant as it really should be anyway, then the "problem" is still there, isn't it? I've been toying with the idea of an electric pump for some time now, and I think this is the best reason for me to go ahead and do it. I do agree that a better radiator would help, but I think I'll go with the pump first.

yup i read chuckies thred.

[ruggersmach]

Originally Posted by 2k4mk1

Stock gage has never gone beyond basically the min the normal range which is more or less a vertical needle. Even in the heat of a S Tx summer.

My gauge never goes past a little left of top dead center with the a/c blowing in traffic in the San Antonio 110 degree summer heat.

[gotmymach1]

Update. On the 28th I washed the car and took it for a spin (I was on it hard to check engine performance), all seemed fine, running nice and cool etc. I almost started to relax. Then in the evening I checked under the car just to be safe and.....you guessed it, a big coolant puddle. I had cleaned down the engine bay when I cleaned the outside so I quickly checked the recovery tank and in looked spotless so that's not where it was coming from. Grabbed a flashlight and shoved my head under the spoiler for a look-see. I saw a slow drip of coolant coming from the oil filter where it joins the housing. I figured it must be comming from the lower coolant hose inlet just above the oil filter. The dripping actually stopped while I was watching it (engine is cool at this point). From the puddle on the ground it looked like I had just lost 12 -16 oz of coolant on this slow leak. Next day I drove it to the dealer and the temp spiked to 115 C before resuming normal temp of 85 C. This heat was enough to cause some spillage from the cap. Finally, I have found the real problem. So, I drop it off for the 5th time and explain everything. They confirmed the leak and ordered a new gasket for the oil filter housing. The car was finished today but with new years holidays, the weekend etc, it's doesnt' look like I'll be back in the saddle until Monday. I just hope this solves the problem once and for all.

[machths]

Please keep us posted.

[machowner]

lets us know how it turns out I am sure they got it now that you had to show them what to fix.

[C-dub]

thats some good news, i hope. i just droped mine off for some work including the cobra oil cooler, 160 deg stat, and a navigator water pump. i have no issues yet, but i'm gonna keep it that way. gotta love nyc traffic

c-dub

[gotmymach1]

Here is the update. Car now has the "oil filter housing gasket" replaced.

The Bad
I picked up the car Monday morning and drove home, temp got up to 100 briefly but settled down. Later, went to pick up my kid in the afternoon and goosed it a little on the way home (this is less than a 1 mile round trip). Pulled into the garage and coolant is spilling from the recovery tank. At this point my wife is almost crying for me. I let it cool down and pop the hood...

The Ugly
...got the shaker off and pull out my 1/4 rachet and I see none other than a piece of tool (rachet end) sheared off inside the "burp cap". Well, I managed to tap it out of there with a screwdriver and was able to get the cap off. It took 1/2 gallons of water to top it off.

The Good
After the fillup I let the car idle up to operating temp and it stayed between 93 102 C. After it cooled down I had to add another cup of water to top it off. Drove the car yesterday to and from work, no problems. With A/C on (fan on) the temp never went over 88 and got as low as 83. (I never took the car much over 2k rpm just to be safe). Today, drove the car without A/C, temp never got over 93 C. No, leakage, no spillage.....yet.

Questions. I added about 1/2 gal of bottled water, no coolant. I know this will affect the required 50/50 mix. Is this something I need to correct ASAP? I'm in FL so freezing temps are not a problem.

[pdog2000]

mine sometimes hits 220, i have a mechanical gauge installed...it is very rare when it hits 220 but i've seen it...i am running too hot? the factory gauge is slightly below half way at 220

[gotmymach1]

Originally Posted by pdog2000

mine sometimes hits 220, i have a mechanical gauge installed...it is very rare when it hits 220 but i've seen it...i am running too hot? the factory gauge is slightly below half way at 220

Depends on if it's been idling for a while. If you are getting 220 while cruising, you probably have an air bubble or something else going on.

Now that my car seems to be cooling the engine correctly, here is what I've observed.

Idle with A/C off : Temp will slowly climb to 216 F (102 C) which will kick on the fan. The fan will take it down to 199 F (93 C). Temp will cycle between these temps during idle.

Idle with A/C on: Since the fan is always running, the temp does not climb over 190 F (88 C).

Cruising with A/C off: Temp will settle around 180-185 F (83-85 C) at a steady 60 mph cruise.

Note that the “analog” will only start moving past vertical if you are already starting to overheat. It doesn’t start moving until your temp is 240 F (115 C). At that point you may be losing coolant out of the recovery tank.

[P Machy]

The Dummy Gauge is good for nothing.

As for running more water then coolent, water cools better then coolent. too much coolent has been blamed for pinging issues in the past. a 50/50 mix is NOT required but some anti rust / corrosion additive would be recommended tho.

I believe im running 75% water & 25% coolent.

[machowner]

hey gotmymach1 so from what you have seen it is better to idle with the ac on than enjoying the breeze with the windows down? I've seen my "analog" gage move once but no other time. Not good to see that thing move apparently, mine move just past vertical and then went back down to just left of vertical, I thought it wasn't a big deal but I believe know I will deffently keep an eye for any movement, thanks for the info on the crap analog gauge.

[pdog2000]

how do i get rid of air bubbles...i have a mehcnical guage in addition to the factory that does get up to 220 every now and then....i am in miami so it is pretty hot when it does...as far the factory, it is crap, not as bad as the factory oil gauge which does squat...i did see my factory temp gauge move sometimes when it is really cold, like when i take my mach up north...

[badappl]

I had the same problem w/the "burp cap" only I managed to completely strip out the 1/4" square hole to create a circle . I probably should have heated it w/a torch first .
Anyway, we welded a 1/2" nut on top of the cap and then repainted it. It is a lot easier to get the dang thing off now.

[Blackpony04]

Sounds like it's time to find another mechanic! That really sucks.

[badappl]

oh, I dont know about getting another mechanic..it is a whole lot easier to remove the cap now with the nut welded onto it rather than messing around with that little square hole

[gotmymach1]

pdog, to check for air you have to take of the "burp cap" (located under front right of shaker, black round thing with 1/4" square hole). Add coolant until it's topped off then screw back on. As an FYI, the recovery tank WILL NOT tell you if you are low on coolant.

I think blackpony was talking about my mechanic. Yeah. 5 trips before they stopped the leak and I still had to break out the socket set to get it right. Funny thing, the survey company called to ask me how was the service. I'm like well...it sucked!

BTW no more engine cooling problems now.

[machths]

Originally Posted by gotmymach1

I think blackpony was talking about my mechanic. Yeah. 5 trips before they stopped the leak and I still had to break out the socket set to get it right.

Where was the leak?

[gotmymach1]

Originally Posted by machths

Where was the leak?

The coolant was leaking from around the oil filter (dripping off of it). A slow leak, that only dripped when the engine cooled down. The dealer replaced a gasket that they said was for the oil filter housing. Not exactly sure what gasket was replaced to fix the coolant leak. There is a coolant line right above the oil filter that I thought was the culprit. In any case, it did not start leaking in the first place until I took it in for service to fix an oil leak (at the oil filter as well) so it appears they fixed one leak and caused another IMO.