Pumplead14

Hey follow Mustang lovers!! :-) Please do beat me over the head if I've posted in the wrong place...I'm new to the whole forum thing.

ANYWAY. Weirdest thing happened yesterday and I thought I really needed to get some advice before I do anything else. So, I was pulling into the gas station after about an hour on the road (it was about 90F+ outside) and I'm making a turn and this white smoke came from the engine on the driver side and I had the window down and it smelt like something was burning.

This had happened once a few months ago back in Winter and I ended up taking it in and the shop said the thermostat housing was busted and engine coolant was leaking onto something causing the smoke so they replaced it and I never had another problem.

So, being worried, I pulled into a parking spot and popped the hood and I could smell the burning smell (the source of the smoke) on the driver's side close to where the engine compartment meets the windshield. I checked the fluid level of the engine coolant and it was near completely empty ! I almost never use the AC and thought it was pretty weird that it was almost all gone...is that normal? I couldn't find a leak anywhere in the engine compartment or on the ground (there wasn't a leak in the garage either). So I got back in the car, started in engine and tapped the gas pedal and a little more smoke came out and I stopped the car again. I'm not sure if this is related but I pulled up the parking brake and it was like something had broken lose because the parking brake handle went flying up instead of the usual tension it had since I bought the car...I thought that was even more weird so I legged it over to the nearest AutoZone and bought some engine coolant and poured it in to the cold fill mark. I thought I would try getting the car home so I started it up, no smoke the whole way home (about 5 miles) engine temp was normal, oil level was normal, battery level normal (gas level pretty low since I didn't bother to get gas haha). I popped the hood in the garage and the coolant level had only lowered a little bit (since the car was running I guess). I thought I might as well take it for another spin around town and see if the level changed dramatically and or if there was any more smoke. After that it seemed to work just fine, no smoke or anything. As of today I've taken it on over a little more than 50 miles since the smoke at the station and it seemed to be completely normal. The parking brake still feels loose though, not sure if that's related at all!

I guess my question is, do you guys just think it was a coincidence that something just happened to get stuck in the engine compartment and burned making the smoke and at that time because I checked the coolant level it just happened to be almost empty? And the parking brake also randomly decides to snap/go loose at the same time? The parking still pulls all the way back and stays but there is almost no tension to pull it back like there use to be...not sure what happened there! Does anyone have any thoughts?

stupidgenius36

Doesn't sounds like related issues to me, but I'd be very concerned about the coolant loss especially heading into summer. You shouldn't be losing coolant at all.

Pumplead14

That was pretty weird..do you think I should take it to Ford to have a look, or just keep an eye on it? Thanks for the reply

stupidgenius36

I would definitely keep an eye on the coolant level pretty frequently. Is the smoke only coming from the engine bay, or from the exhaust also?

As far as the brake handle goes...does it feel like it's stuck in the engaged position (up)? Or is it just loose? Have you tried adjusting it in the center console?

Pumplead14

I found the coolant leak



I'm a noob and not sure what part that is? It's a pretty slow though. Is there something I could put on it as a temporary patch until I can get it to the shop?

As for the parking brake I found that the passenger side cable is busted, driver side is fine though! I don't think that will pass inspection haha

stupidgenius36

Ummm, it's hard to tell...maybe if you zoom out, I can figure it out. V6 or V8?

It's somewhat common to have the thermostat housing crack and leak on the V6...dunno if that's your issue though.

Pumplead14

V6 ~ they replaced the thermostat housing about 6 months ago so I would hope that wasn't it haha! I had someone else look at it and they thought it could be the water pump, it looked as if the seal was busted, I don't suppose tightening a few bolts would get me out of that one? :-)

08mustang

Just a heads up if it happens to be the thermostat , there is a metal replacement available on ebay and amazon "search for 2005-2010 mustang metal thermostat housing". Ive been using it for 6 months without a problem. If you think its the water pump the best way to find your leak would be to rent the coolant pressure pump from autozone and pump up your system to about 13-15 psi and look for the leak, make sure you fill the overflow bottle all the way to the top. Its the best way to find a leak and you won't have to deal with a hot engine. Let me know if you need more info on the pump.

Pumplead14

I got a test kit, but I must be really dumb because I can't figure out how to get it to lock onto the radiator DX



Any ideas?

Red Gt

Wrong cap,will not fit.


RedGT

Pumplead14

Found it, thermostat housing is shot

I guess I'm just going to go ahead and make the investment to get the metal one because apparently this piece of plastic doesn't last very long In the Texas heat and definitely won't last the road trip I want to go on soon. Any advice for install? Should I order new O rings for the metal one? Anything else Is might need? Thanks for all the help guys.

Dang piece of plastic didn't even make it 6 months!

stupidgenius36

Advice...don't over-tighten. That housing should've lasted much longer.

Pumplead14

The shop that installed it had it way too tight, they didn't even seem like they knew what they were doing...never going back to them!

Should I use some kind of gasket sealant? Would over tightening still be a bad thing even if the housing is metal? :-)

Lime GT

Using an O-ring you shouldn't need sealant. Some Vaseline on the O-ring wouldn't hurt. I haven't changed a thermostat on my 05 yet but on some cars where the housing bolts on from the side not the top you have to be sure the thermostat doesn't drop slightly and get caught between the engine and the thermostat housing. That's how the housing gets cracked when the bolts are tightened. Do not over tighten the bolts.


If you have an older Mustang 05-? the park brake cables may seize from the water boot seals tearing and allowing moisture into the cable. There was a tsb for this issue requiring cable change.

stupidgenius36

I think it'll be less of an issue with it being metal, but there's no reason to over-tighten anything.

This too. Mine was never easy to begin with. But it froze up last winter, and hasn't been the same since. I've gotta put some serious effort into it just to get it up 2 clicks.

Pumplead14

I suppose I should probably invest in a torque wrench haha. Any recommendations for one that would fit in small spaces? I had one hell of a time getting that plastic housing out with my mini socket wrench X_X

Pumplead14

Ain't that one hell of a mess? I don't suppose I could just take the hose and spray It all out?

Pumplead14

Isn't it beautiful? For anyone else reading this thread I definitely recommend getting the metal thermostat housing, fixed the problem! Now I can worry less when I take the car on road trips

stupidgenius36

Lime GT

Why not just use a garden hose? No high pressure there.Engines get road splash on them all the time. Just rinse till no more antifreeze is visible and the engine heat will evaporate the water.