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Overheating 2005 Ford Ranger 2.3L

Discussion in 'General' started by Boman Forklift, Jul 6, 2022.

  1. Boman Forklift

    Boman Forklift Well-Known Member

    So my truck was missing initially and then as I worked on that it was starting to overheat. The coolant level was down a bit, but I never really paid attention after one of my mechanics replaced the radiator back in Feb 22. I noticed the coolant was at the low mark and I just assumed it was using water? I put it up to full to test.

    So I’m thinking blown head gasket.

    After fiddling around I determined the bad running was a cracked coil. I replaced the coil this past weekend and everything was good, or so I thought. I incorrectly concluded the constant missing between cylinder 2/3 must have somehow made it overheat?

    Drove it home Monday night fine and then Tuesday morning on the way to work, it starts to overheat again. I have a scanner plugged in and if I turn off the ignition while still going down the highway and wait 10-20 second to fire back up it goes right back to middle of the dash display, but the scanner shows temps from 220-275.

    So last night I buy a new thermostat, blue devil head sealer, in case I need it, my pressure tester, etc. It overheats a few times in the drive home but keeps going.

    I presure test the radiator and it holds pressure for 3-4 minutes and per online research 2 minutes is good? So then I think either thermostat, water pump, or head expands when hot?

    This morning I get up at 4 am pressure test again, all good, still no coolant loss. Drain the coolant and pull the thermostat, it looks new and I test it in a pan of boiling water opened between 185-195.

    Since there is no radiator cap I can’t open that to see flow, to check if water pump is working? The cap is on the overflow bottle and when cracking open that cap I hear pressure release so it isn’t acting like a blown head gasket.

    Failed water pump is the only thing I can think would cause this?

    Any idea how to best check that, or do any of you real mechanics have any ideas?
     
  2. Big T

    Big T Well-Known Member

    First thing I would check is the oil.
    Does it have water in the oil?

    Then, I'd check the top radiator hose. When the motor reaches temperature, the thermostat will open and the upper hose will fill with hot water. Give it a squeeze.

    Does the weep hole on the water pump show signs of leaking?
     
  3. Boman Forklift

    Boman Forklift Well-Known Member

    Nope it didn’t yesterday, will look again. For sure, for the last 2-3 days with 100 mile round trips to work, no water was used.

    Edit: just checked no water in oil.
     
  4. TWF2

    TWF2 2 heads are better than 1

    Check radiator hose if getting hot as it warms up. If not pump may not be working.
    Also check weep hole on pump.
     
    Boman Forklift likes this.
  5. CB186

    CB186 go f@ck yourself

    Air locked in the cooling system?
     
    notbostrom, Britt and 10-15 like this.
  6. G 97

    G 97 Garth

    Trade it in to an unsuspecting dealer. :D
     
    Boman Forklift likes this.
  7. ChemGuy

    ChemGuy Harden The F%@# Up!

    for $30-40 at harbor freight you can get a color change kit to be sure the head isnt moving when hot. Warm the truck up, open the pressure cap and you suck some vapor thru a tube and if the color changes from blue to brown combustion gasses are present. Just to be sure.
     
    Boman Forklift likes this.
  8. Tristan

    Tristan Well-Known Member

    Trying to wrap my head around this... you're the same Bowman Forklift that's shopping for 60-100K "play" cars and you spend 100 miles a day suffering in this shitbox? Just checking...
     
  9. Tristan

    Tristan Well-Known Member

    This is probably the best advice... these days a broken Ranger is probably worth $8900 on trade
     
    Boman Forklift and TurboBlew like this.
  10. TurboBlew

    TurboBlew Registers Abusers

    Lemon Law that bitch!! :)
     
    Boman Forklift and G 97 like this.
  11. motion

    motion Nihilistic Member

    Its even worse.... he really drives a new AMG. He also tells people his garage is full, when in fact, he has like a 6 car garage.
     
    Boman Forklift likes this.
  12. pickled egg

    pickled egg Tell me more

    User error. :Poke:
     
    Boman Forklift likes this.
  13. YamahaRick

    YamahaRick Yamaha Two Stroke Czar

    I know there is some sort of test kit that gets placed on the coolant overflow tank opening to test for potential leaky head gasket. Might be worth a try before chasing more possibilities.
     
    Boman Forklift likes this.
  14. Boman Forklift

    Boman Forklift Well-Known Member

    Yep that’s how I justify getting something fun. My civic blew up so I started driving the parts truck. My wife thinks I should buy a nice car to go back and forth to work with too.

    But putting all those miles on a nice car, going in and out of the shop area with oil on my boots, transporting parts, forks, carriages, etc , just wastes a nice vehicle.

    I guess I’m weird, I care what my friends and family think of my actions, or friends on here, customers, etc. but I could care less what somebody driving next to me on the freeway thinks.

    The sports car is because I really enjoy going for a curvy road drive, it is my motorcycle replacement since I haven’t ridden on the street in a fee years.
     
    Gino230, BigBird, beac83 and 2 others like this.
  15. Tristan

    Tristan Well-Known Member

    For that commute you should buy a Camry/Avalon/ES hybrid... economy and some level of comfort
     
  16. RRP

    RRP Kinda Superbikey

    Translation…

    “I’m a cheap German from Central Illinois”.:D

    Ausgezeichnet.:beer:
     
  17. Boman Forklift

    Boman Forklift Well-Known Member

    My wife drives a AMG and I’ve told that story on here.
     
  18. notbostrom

    notbostrom DaveK broke the interwebs

    Belt good?
    Does it have ac and a secondary electric fan that kicks in? Ie condenser fan

    Older thermostats can act normal when testing but stick occasionally causing an overheat
     
  19. notbostrom

    notbostrom DaveK broke the interwebs

    Start the truck with AC off. Then turn on the AC and tell me if the electric fan starts running. Having owned older range rovers all I can say is if something is overheating... Hold my beer
     
    Boman Forklift likes this.
  20. cav115

    cav115 Well-Known Member

    If you have access to a thermal imager or infrared thermometer; drive vehicle to op temperature ,stop,, and look for a temperature drop at the radiator. while running. If pump is working, should be a drop. Also pull lower hose and check radiator flow. Water should flow through quickly. Checking with a C02 tester as others have said is a good idea also. If you do, have someone brake load vehicle while testing.

    If both check ok, pull waterpump and check for deteriorated fins or slipping on shaft.

    If it`s overheating while driving down road, it`s not the fan.
     
    Last edited: Jul 6, 2022
    Boman Forklift likes this.

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