[Robertw]

There is really too much to list in the topic line.

My brother bought this kinda beat up and at some point wrecked stang.

Its got a 5.0 Fi engine with a 4 speed tranie , Generaly it runs well but has cooling problems.
My brother is a total novice who thinks he knows all and knows nothing. If I talk to him about problems he tells me im a negitive thinker.... hehe

The car has been over heating.... and though my brother diddnt tell me until just a few days ago... It was losing fluid , I changed the thermostat thinking it was just an overheating problem... Never having been advised that the car was losing coolant.... I couldnt address this issue at that point.

Of course it seems that when ever it ran low on coolant it would overheat...
Or so it seemed.

He invited me over last night to help him change the water pump.. no problem it an easyone to change.... figured at the very least it would be a learning expirence for him.
Not too bad... about 2 hours..... The old pump showed indications that it may have been leaking from the gasket on the passenger side of the pump and that the last owner did a poor job taking off an old gasket... the bearing in the pump showed some slight looseness but it diddnt seem as if the coolant had been leaking out the escape holes... still it seemed a good call to replace this pump. I cleaned off the old gasket real good and found that the Aluminum timing cover was broken at the top driverside... but above the water passage on that side... seemed it wouldnt be a major problem.

We got the car running and filled it with water and performed a leak test... after a while water seemed to leak out from where the timing cover meets the front of the engine block , we tightened the bolts a bit more... but diddnt really stop the flow totaly. I explained to my brother what changing the timing cover gasket set entailed and he opted to try "Bars" leak sealer first.... In short it seems to have stopped the timing cover leak , but while the cooling system seems to hold fluid now... he still claims that from time to time the temp gage will ping to its highest level and the heat goes cold... This condfounds me since it dose seem that he isnt losing any coolant... He wont let me go near it long enough to really diagnose it because he is afraid il find a real problem..... while he is looking for a single quick fix to what might be more then one problem.

Quick Status :

Thermostat new (195)
Waterpump new
Hoses -Examined from inside - look ok
Fan - looks ok.... clutch is a bit above maginal.. Can spin it by hand.. but needs some force.
Radiator.... well he says he flushed it.... I pulled out the leaves... put a new cap on it...
The old cap was bleeding by into the overflow tank.
Its a manual tranie... so this shouldnt be an issue.

The hoses seem to pressureize ok.... Not to the point where they might explode.

I could really use some help here.... Im no expert... But at least I know it

I think this could be a combination of several problems... my brother is looking for one problem to fix everything.... isnt gonna happen.

[GhostDog 5.0]

Sounds like you should do it right. Replace the timing cover and reinstall all the hardware again. It is just a matter of time before that leak stuff wears off.

I'd watch out for that overheating all of the sudden. That could warp your heads and you could possibly have a head gasket problem.

If you have the cash I'd also replace that cap and fan clutch. Try throwing the fan clutch by hand when the car has warmed up and is off. It should not go more than 1/2 turn with decent strength applied.1/4 turn is ideal.

[Robertw]

Thanks for getting back to me so quickly.

QUOTE=GhostDog 5.0]>> Sounds like you should do it right. Replace the timing cover and reinstall all the hardware again. It is just a matter of time before that leak stuff wears off.

I agree , this is what I would do if I owned it... All we need is some big sockets and a pully puller... The Job isnt so bad....

QUOTE=GhostDog 5.0]>> I'd watch out for that overheating all of the sudden. That could warp your heads and you could possibly have a head gasket problem.

So far it feels like its purely a cooling problem.. I have seen what happens when you get engine compression in the cooling system.. it isnt pretty

QUOTE=GhostDog 5.0]>> If you have the cash I'd also replace that cap and fan clutch. Try throwing the fan clutch by hand when the car has warmed up and is off. It should not go more than 1/2 turn with decent strength applied.1/4 turn is ideal.[/quote]
Did replace the cap... Fan goes about 1/2 a turn warm.... marginal

I dont know how the Heater Temp is controled on a mustang.. is it a cable or vacume?
I was thinking maybe the vavle that controls the flow to the heater core may be adrift or otherwise disconnected... Cant understand why the heat will suddenly blow cold.. and the coolant is normal at this point.

Thanks

Robert

[5.0_joe_ca]

If the temp sometimes gets pegged at hot and the heat is cold it sounds like the damage has allready been done. Head gasket is probably gone. If the car is not blowing white smoke check the oil to see if it looks milky.

[pzwestside]

I had the exact same problem as you... it ended up being my head gasket, but just to make sure you should have a compression test completed.. if it's a head gasket problem then you will know Just remove the cap from the radiator while completing the test.. apart from that I honestly think 99.9% that it is your head gasket, it is EXACTLY what was wrong with my 5.0... if it is the gasket, don't forget to get the heads machined as they may be warped..

[privatejoker]

Head gaskets can be hard to diag, some people look there too quickly. A compression test may not indicate any problems, a 5 gas analyzer may not pick it up, sometimes all you can do is process of elimination starting with the easier stuff like you are doing.

[STINGREY]

dude;you are describing what i would say is a blown head gasket.depending on exactly where the gasket failed determines if the coolant mixes with the oil.you may not have any coolant in the crankcase at all and still have a head gasket problem.

[Robertw]

Thanks for all your replies.

We got lucky... I guess the radiator must have been pretty badly clogged. My brother went an got a new one.... 97$ not too bad... swapped that baby out and now its running and staying at about 195. No bubbles in the overfill bottle , no coolant in the oil or oil in the cooland.... and he now has consistant hit.

MY brother is going to try and locate a timing cover for this 5.0... hope it wont be too hard , but as long as it isnt leaking.. i guess it wont be urgent.

Thanks
Robert

[GhostDog 5.0]

When I first got my current mustang I had the radiator flushed out. The guy said that I was lucky that I brought it in for a flushing because it had mud, corrosion and leaves in there.

Good to hear it looks like the radiator was the only problem.