mystery

[Rigs]

About two months ago, I started smelling fuel real bad in the cab of my 95 ford bronco the power died down significantly and then all of a sudden, after about a week of that...it stopped, was back to running fine. Now for two weeks now it happened again. The smell of gas like it isn't burning off the way it should and on my way home from work no power at all. A lot of pinging and knocking! I popped the hood and heard hissing. There's no water in the radiator. It's a brand new radiator, water pump, thermostat, thermostat housing and upper and lower hoses. It has been flushed 3 times since the weather has been nice now and we still have orange-brownish muck coming out when we flush. We still have it all over the radiator cap when I take it off. We filled the system back up and started it later and it still smells of fuel and idles irratic. What could this be? Intake manifold? Cracked head? Head gasket? I looked at the oil and there's no water mixed in with it. I'm out of ideas. Please help!

 

[Rons beast]

The pinging and knocking is from overheating, that will rob the power too. It will also cause some real damage if left unrepaired.

Do you get a CEL and codes?

Take the plugs out and look at them. Keep them in order with the cylinder they came from. If one is more white and/or has electrode damage, that cylinder has overheated greatly. If there are 2 next to each other like that, expect a headgasket problem. If the plugs look ok reinstall them and Fix the overeating problem.

Sounds like the first problem is alot of gunk in the block. First take out the tstat, and test it in some hot water. Even if it is new it could be bad. Then get a good engine flush and use it according to the instructions. You may have to do it twice to clean the gunk out. If you are running all water, and not a 50/50 mix with coolent, that is contributing to your problem.

Check your fan clutch. If it is too worn it wll not draw enough air through the rad when your stopped and idling. It can be real bad in hot summer weather. Here's a hint...when the engine is cool and you first start it you should hear a good roar from the fan that tapers off after driving a little. Don't hear the roar?...get a new fan clutch.

When that is taken care of, Run the engine and see if it still overheats, and how it runs. If there are still problems, and you have all the new parts, (rad., waterpump, tstat, etc.) then the block may be too clogged and it's time for a rebuild. If there is a running/power problem, clear any codes and start again. Let the codes tell you what areas to look in. (suspect vacuum leaks, bad temp.sensors

Good Luck

Let Us know what you find.