Slow Coolant Burn

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rusty904

New member
Hey all, truck has been running very well despite some ticking valves that may need a bit of adjustment. I have had a new problem come up recently. It's been Obscenely hot here the last few weeks (mid 90's to low 100's just about every day) and I noticed my temp gauge was running a little high. Usually it's in the bottom 1/4 of the gauge at standard operating temp but it was running about 1/3rd of the way up.

I checked the coolant and it took about 3/4 of a gallon to top it off. I've been checking it every so often ever since and it seems to be slowly going through coolant, it takes about a 1/4 gallon to top it off every 2-3 weeks. Have not come close to overheating, no steam, no burning coolant smell, etc. Just eventually the temp gauge runs slightly higher and the coolant is low when I check it, then I top it off and it goes back to normal for a few weeks.

I put cardboard down to check for leaks and got nothing, don't see or smell any coolant residue down there either.

Any ideas?
 
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rusty904 said:
Hey all, truck has been running very well despite some ticking valves that may need a bit of adjustment. I have had a new problem come up recently. It's been Obscenely hot here the last few weeks (mid 90's to low 100's just about every day) and I noticed my temp gauge was running a little high. Usually it's in the bottom 1/4 of the gauge at standard operating temp but it was running about 1/3rd of the way up.

I checked the coolant and it took about 3/4 of a gallon to top it off. I've been checking it every so often ever since and it seems to be slowly going through coolant, it takes about a 1/4 gallon to top it off every 2-3 weeks. Have not come close to overheating, no steam, no burning coolant smell, etc. Just eventually the temp gauge runs slightly higher and the coolant is low when I check it, then I top it off and it goes back to normal for a few weeks.

I put cardboard down to check for leaks and got nothing, don't see or smell any coolant residue down there either.

Any ideas?
Click to expand...

Is your oil "milky" at all when you check it?
 
Check two places for stuff:

1. radiator cap, see if its oily in the center part.
2. Oil cap, see if its milky white inside the cap.

Okay, maybe three:

3. does the exhaust smell sweet and/or blow whitish smoke out the tailpipe when you start her up in the mornings?

Any of these will tell you that you have a blown head gasket (or it had one that was repaired recently). Wipe all the crap off the caps and see if it returns within a few days/a week.

Let's all hope its not what we are thinking it is! Although, if you're losing that much water, and its not dripping anywhere, chances are...
 
Is this the V6? If so... Under the intake manifold lives a housing that recieves several small coolant lines, they can become brittle and leak, and they instantly burn off. I am not sure what this part is called - but worth checking out.
 
It's the 22re and I think I might have a bad thermostat. Not getting any of the symptoms described above but I was on the highway on friday and my engine temp started slowly rising. Wen it got to the top third of the gauge, I pulled over at a gas station and let it cool off, coolant level was fine. After about 20-30min I got back on the highway and the engine temp remained normal for the next 1.5hrs of driving.

For the rest of the weekend the engine temp fluctuated between normal (bottom quarter of the gauge) and a bit high (not quite 1/2 way up the gauge). It only ran a little hot when it had to idle in heavy traffic and a couple times when I had to parallel park on a steep slope and even then it wasn't consistently hot.

It made the 3hr return journey from the mountains just fine but I ran the heat most of the way just to be safe.

Sooo, need some solutions. I really wanted to take it back home to Florida for the 4th of July (6.5hr trip) but now I'm not so sure.
 
If you're having to add coolant every 2 weeks, it's going somewhere, you definitely have a problem.

--check all the hose connections and radiator cap for evidence of leakage
--check the oil for a chocolate milk appearance instead of black
--check the overflow container, is it filling up and overflowing?
--check the plugs and see if any of them are wet
-if they're wet, is it oil or coolant

I just replaced my head gasket (22RE),I was loosing coolant through the #3 cylinder area. No obvious leak on the outside of the engine, and was having to add coolant. The oil was dark brown instead of black on the dipstick. The truck was overheating like yours, but it went south quicker and I had to park it.

When we removed the head, one of the hold-down bolts between #3 & 4 cylinders was not torqued correctly (it was little better than snug). I suspect this was the cause of my head gasket failure. After fixing it, I noticed an increase in power and gas mileage.

If it were just overheating, I'd vote for the thermostat or radiator cap. Since you're losing coolant and it doesn't sound like you're leaking it out, I'd lean towards close evaluation of head gasket failure. If it's a head gasket you should also consider replacing the water pump, thermostat and hoses. Additionally, since you're down there anyway, consider replacing the belts. Is your clutch fan working correctly? If it's suspect, you might consider replacing it too. All this can get expensive, but replacing these items is waaaay cheaper than a full overhaul if you seriously overheat the motor.

Good Luck,
Mike
 
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Well, if its the thermostat, you can pull it out, cut the basket with wire cutters and throw it back in. You will never overheat again if you do that, but you won't have any heat in the cab if you do.

Of course, if you're gonna pull the thermostat, it's easier to just get a thermostat for 5 or 10 bucks from the parts store and swap it out! Problem solved without any further issues!

Make sure to "burp" the system if you replace the thermostat, you will have air in the system and that can cause a blown head gasket if its a big pocket.

Open the rad cap and turn heater on high, start the truck on a steep hill facing uphill, let it come up to temp, close cap when you don't get any more air bubbles or bubbling.

Here's a quick link to someone who's posted on how to modify a thermostat:

http://tigeravonbuilddiary.blogspot.com/2011/06/thermostat-modification.html
 
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Hmmm, yeah may try to swap the thermostat this week and see if it helps the problem. Coolant has remained steady for three weeks now. I check it every time I fill up and before and after any trip more than an hour.
 
Well I've been trying to deny it but I think I may have a blown head gasket.

Surprisingly the coolant burn/leak has nearly stopped or slowed down enough that I don't notice it. I haven't had any overheating issues of late either and I still don't see any oil in the coolant.

When I open the hood after a drive, I do get a faint coolant smell. Also, today at a stop light, I saw white smoke coming out of my exhaust although it did stop and not return.

When I do a cold start, on occasion I get what sounds like a misfire. It goes away after 30 seconds or so. I also get a low/rough idle fairly often.

At this point, I need to do a definitive test (like the one mentioned above) to determine for sure whether I have a blown headgasket, pretty sure I do though.

The engine has 248k on it with timing chain, guides, and radiator replaced within the last 10k. I was also told the engine was "rebuilt" at 190k but I don't have any proof of that.

I've been trying to learn how to work on this thing and I've done a valve cover gasket, manifold replacement, and some smaller wiring and electrical work but a head gasket is probably beyond my skills and equipment.

If it is a headgasket, what can I expect cost wise to get it fixed? What are my other options?
 
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