Stupid coolant ?? But need answer asap!!!

[socalocman03]

All of a sudden I'm loosing coolant, not pukin out of the degas cap but is going SOMEWHERE. Question is: I went and got Zerex G05 and wondering if the Bottle Does Not say 50/50 Premix then I am assuming I need to add water to the mix correct??

Thanks

[SteveBricks]

Yep.

Any leaks, any white smoke?

[F350MudBogger]

Yeah you need distilled water to mix it, And perhaps your EGR Cooler is leaking into your exhaust, It may not puke unless under heavy load like when towing. Pull the valve (get the gaskets b-4 you pull it around $6 at Ford Dealer) see if it has crud build up soot and coolant mixed forms a black paste.vaccum all the crap out of the EGR hole and see if you can see moisture inside, Easier if u park nose down. Just an FYI.

[socalocman03]

Haven't noticed any white smoke. I've been watching the tailpipe via the side mirror since discovering low coolant yesterday and look in the tailpipe today after a 25 mi run returning home from work and no sign of moisture. All Ford Temp Gauges are @ normal operating ranges and shes running fine.

A few weeks back I had a thick black smoke issue with low power when initially pressing the accelerator but it would clear up and run perfect as soon as the turbo spooled up to speed. I pulled the EGR valve when I got home, It was more coked up than the prior times I've pulled to clean and another important note was moisture along with little balls of coke. The EGR was stuck about half open by a hard piece of coke that was wedged between the lower valve and its seat. I attributed the moisture to the valve being stuck open (incorrect I'm thinkin now) so I cleaned it up, stuck it back in and problem solved, that is up until yesterday and this current problem.

I know the 6.0 has an Issue with the EGR cooler clogging/failing due to it being a P.O.S combined with substandard coolant as well as the top notch stretching head bolts (3 words that should not be used together) and what needs to be done to correctly fix them.

What, if anything can I do in order to keep my truck moving without damaging it until I can get $3500.00 to have it fixed FIXED as in Head Studs & Gaskets, EGR Cooler Upgrade or delete, and gettin that coolant out, ELC with filer system in? This truck is my lively hood, it Dies I Die!

Is any portion of the fixes needed covered under warranty? I took possession of the truck from the Up Fitters on 2-20-2005 and it has just under 55,000 on ODO. My warranty was up long ago if the warranty on the power train is 5/6 years or 100,000 miles. Not sure on the limits or any added/extended warranties Ford Might have been so kind to offer to us 6.0 PSD owners?

If anyone can make sense of my ramblings and would like to help a feller out for a spell I'd surely appreciate the gesture.

Thanks,

Les

[SteveBricks]

If you saw moisture and carbon balls your EGR cooler is toast...probably due to a clogged up oil cooler. I hate to say it but driving it around like that you're running the risk of causing even more damage. If the cooler happens to get worse you'll be throwing even more coolant into the cylinders, and running the risk of stretching the bolts and causing head gasket failure.

[socalocman03]

Stupid question I'm sure......Is there any way of cleaning the oil cooler or EGR Cooler to buy sometime?

To Fix my Current Problem I need to:

1. Replace the EGR Cooler. Cheaper/Better to just delete it?
2. Replace Oil Cooler
3. Flush Coolant and replace with ELC. Not necessary but Recommended?
4. Miss anything??


To fix it right I need to:

1. Replace the EGR Cooler (Bullet Proof?) or if out of warranty better to just delete?
2. Replace the Oil Cooler
3. Do the head gaskets (Stock Ford) w/ARP or equivalent Studs
4: Flush the Coolant System/Replace with ELC Rotella or the like
5. Add Filtration to the cooling system or is this not needed after switching to ELC?
6. Anything else?


thanks guys for all the help. Greatly Appreciated............Les

[SteveBricks]

Your EGR cooler is beyond help, and there's no way to clean the coolant side of the oil cooler.

I'd definitely recommend the Bulletproof EGR cooler and a filter set up. As far as a delete, that's up to you...but keep in mind that emissions testing isn't going to get any easier as time goes on.

Yes on the oil cooler.

Yes on the flush. I don't know enough about ELC to comment on it.

Don't be too quick to assume that you need studs/head gaskets, unless it's just for piece of mind. There's plenty of trucks that are out there doing fine on stock head bolts.

[armyenterprise]

Does anyone have a total dollar amount that would cost

[SteveBricks]

I'd call Diesel Tech or OC Diesel Shop and ask them. They're both site sponsors so you can get their numbers by clicking the "sponsors" tab in the control bar at the top of the page.