PLEASE HELP ME

[barrett86]

Nothing in the oil, no white smoke after it warms up (which is a min or 2), no visible leaks on motor, or block except the tiny leaks ive had since ive owned which i just think i need to replace my oil pan gasket. guys i honestly think my truck was just low on coolant, i drove maybe all of 6 miles in the 4 days ive been off work, everything you guys are describing has not happened to me, the noise goes away quickly after the motor comes to a normal idle, and i believe that being the avg temp of 30 degrees that it just takes the oil a lil bit longer to get to where it needs to be, ill keep a close eye out on any issues arising if any. but until then i still think i had little to no coolant. thanks guys for your help though

 

[barrett86]

about how long does it take to change head gaskets.

 

[Shadow_D]

Well that depends... it could take a day or it could take a weekend or more.

If you have a nice warm dry place to work on it with all the right tools and everything comes apart easily it could take a day, but if you don't have the above mentioned it will most likely take longer. If you have no experience working on engines I would advise having a friend that does know what they are doing help you.

FIRST thing I would highly suggest buying before you start working on the motor is a good set of shop manuals.

The ones you get at the auto parts store are ok for basic stuff. Haynes (I think) has a good wiring diagram set in the back, but you want the ones that the dealers use. You can usually find them on eBay. These usually cost in the neighborhood of about $50 and up. I spent over $100 for mine but I went to the dealer for them.

 

[Shadow_D]

Also it would be a good idea to put your truck info in your signature line so we can give you more specific info rather than just the general stuff that covers all Broncos

 

[barrett86]

there is that better, and ive had it torn down to the block before, so i think ill do ok. like my signature says ive replaced about 80% of my ENTIRE truck. well i see how she acts with full coolant, and im ordering my ball joints thursday so i dont dart all over the road in 4x4, and so i stop tearing through tires.

 

[bidibronco]

A full day to change a head gasket? I guess if you can't get your exhaust off or something but hey, it took me two weeks to "trow on a set of cherry bombs" so... Like BroncoBill said, get the right tools and it's pretty smooth, half ass tools make for a half ass job and long times too!

 

[4X4RedNeck]

Well, I'm not so sure there's a cracked block involved. Granted it IS a cold climate & if his coolant was too watered down it may have frozen up, but every block I've ever seen crack leaked either oil or coolant (or both) directly from the block & it was fairly noticable. Same thing when you pop a freeze-plug. There hasn't been any comment about coolant or oil leaking from the engine. It runs but it raps & billows out clouds of white smoke. That's textbook for a blown head gasket. Chances are the coolant has contaminated the oil & the bearings don't much like the new mix. If the oil is a sort of milky color then you know for sure (that & the level is all screwed up) now a *small* coolant leak into the oil will usually show up as small greenish bubbles on the dipstick when you check the oil.

He didn't comment anything about with smoke coming out. If he did then you're right. But obviously he does have some pressure in his coolant system. A head gasket doesn't seem like the problem right now.

 

[Broncobill78]

, the smoke was white and it was thick if i applied the gas pedal.

Well, I guess I misunderstood what you wrote. If what you're seeing is just you're average winter condensation until it's warm then My Man you've dodged a bullet. As I mentioned before, afer a dozen or so years it's not at all uncommon for that spring in the hose to rot away & disappear (especially if the coolant isn't changed regularly) and it sounds like that's what happened. The coolant got low, the pump started making noises & since the spring had rusted to nothing it sucked the hose flat. Get yourself a new upper hose w/the spring, refill the collant & take SeaBronc's advise to add the pump **** to the coolant and hopefully you're good to go. If nothing else take it as a good lesson on what CAN happen and keep a closer watch on your fluid levels. Glad it worked out for the best.

 

[barrett86]

thanks man, as for this pump ***** any brands in particular or what.

 

[Broncobill78]

Nah, I think Gunk makes the one I've seen most commonly. You should be able to get some at Wal-mart. If you have a local speed shop chances are they'll have some also but it's lubricant, brand names don't mean a whole lot. Gunk may be a silly brand name but they make a wide range of products and generally seem to know what they're doing. If you find another brand then grab it but I doubt there will be much of a difference.

 

[barrett86]

****UPDATE****

truck runs awesome, no noises or anything, smooth,no white smoke, i have 24/7 heat so i got constant heat back,and she took about a bottle and a half of coolant. /emoticons/[email protected] 2x" width="20" height="20" /> i wont let it get like that again.thanks for your help everyone

 

[Shadow_D]

Glad to see everything is ok.

 

[4X4RedNeck]

****UPDATE****truck runs awesome, no noises or anything, smooth,no white smoke, i have 24/7 heat so i got constant heat back,and she took about a bottle and a half of coolant. /emoticons/[email protected] 2x" width="20" height="20" /> i wont let it get like that again.thanks for your help everyone

What did you do to make it run smooth now?

 

[barrett86]

Just filled it with coolant. thats all it needed.

 

[Seabronc]

OK, that's better. The sound may have been the coolant blowing over the side.
You need to not just add a bottle. If you are adding premix 50/50 then keep adding until it is full. A seriously low system would explain the collapsed hose but as Bill said, you probably should replace it. Once you get it filled, run the engine and add more as there is space for it. Turn your heat fully on to make sure you clear any air trapped. Don't stop adding fluid until it over flows and then put the cap on. After you have run the engine a while, wait till it cools down and check the level again, you may have to add a little more.

Now after you have done all that, keep an eye on it on a daily basis for a while. Check it in the morning before you start the engine. If you are losing fluid, find out why, check for leaks, smoke in the exhaust, a Carmel smell inside the truck (heater core leak), etc.

Good luck,

>-

PS. A new radiator cap wouldn't hurt

4X4RedNeck

What did you do to make it run smooth now?

barrett86

Posted Today, 05:32 AM

Just filled it with coolant. thats all it needed.

4X4RedNeck Posted Yesterday, 06:41 PM

Hmmmm h34r: /emoticons/[email protected] 2x" width="20" height="20" />

Glad you finally filled it up / . Your inaccurate responses to questions lead to a lot of false conclusions

Good luck,

>-

 

[barrett86]

LOL sorry, they no longer make the radiator hoses with the coils in them, or they are not carried in WA,FL,VA,ID,and MT.

 

[Broncobill78]

You're kidding me, right ? Now that's just plain crazy. The coil is a fairly important part of the hose (as you've seen firsthand). Now unless the hoses have some sort of internal reinforcement built into the hose-wall itself that's just stupid. Could it maybe be the parts house that you're using ? Believe it or not I have actually SEEN a kid at autozone yank the spring out & throw it away before handing the hose to the customer. I questioned him (because I just HAD to) when I saw this & he told me & the guy buying it that it was "just something the put in there to ship it with". The guy buying it figured the kid behind the counter wearing the *AutoZone* shirt knew more than the clown in line behind him & took his hose and left. I just shook my head & laughed all the way home.

I would *definately* spend the hour or two it will take to call your local parts suppliers and ask around. I'll grant that perhaps materials technology has bypassed me on this one but I somehow doubt it. Might be something like the hose mfg's have decided that the wall strength of a new hose is good enuf for 3-5 yrs without the spring instead of the 10+ yrs you had WITH the spring and that they're willing to sell us new hoses every 5yrs instead of every 10. Also ck with Ford about THEIR hoses & see what they have to say. If nothing else you can easily wrap a coat-hanger around a piece of pipe to get the same spring-coil shape and use that. The rust inhibitor in your anti-freeze will keep it from rusting away anytime soon.

 

[Broncobill78]

they are not carried in WA,FL,VA,ID,and MT.

Sorry man, but I just can't HELP but to notice that those states are all *over* the freaking map. What'd you do, throw darts at it and call ?

 

[Seabronc]

You're kidding me, right ? Now that's just plain crazy. The coil is a fairly important part of the hose (as you've seen firsthand). Now unless the hoses have some sort of internal reinforcement built into the hose-wall itself that's just stupid. Could it maybe be the parts house that you're using ?

I use hoses out of my local friendly professional parts store on mine and they don't have the spring either. They are fairly heavy walled though and it would be pretty hard to collapse them unless one lets them get old and soft before doing anything about it. I guess it is a matter of doing some simple preventive maintenance now and then. A a weekly look under the hood might be a good idea for you, barrett86. In fact maybe a daily look for a while would be in order.

Glad you are happily back on the road /

Good luck,

>-

 

[Broncobill78]

Well that's great, just freaking great. Thanks a lot. Now I'm *really* starting to feel old. My kids turning into teenagers & wanting cars isn't bad enuf.

"Well, I can remember back when radiator hoses had reinforcing springs in them"

"Spings in the hoses ? Whatever for ? Why would they do that when we have super space-age materials ? Tell us another one grandpa. How did the dinasours die ? Did they have airplanes when YOU were a little boy ? Did your horses get scared when they first saw cars ?"

Yeah, thanks a lot Fred.