Damn pipe!

AUIIForte · 09-07-2008, 11:15 AM

Hey fellas, after spending almost 2 grand on getting a reco'd and warranted auto trans refitted, I thought that was it. Smooth running from there!

I thought wrong.

This one is a little hard to describe, but this I will over come with some photos.

My car has been reaching the 'normal running temp' area of the gauge very quickly recently. So this morning at 5:30am, just before going to work, I topped up my coolant box. I started up the car and let it idle for a moment while I left to get a bucket of water to wash all the frost off my windows.

After washing all the frost, I hopped into my car and noticed that only after about 2 mins of idling, it was already in the 'normal running temp', which I thought was strange. Ah well, I left to work.

Then after getting back from work, I turned the car off and heard a hissing noise, so I opened up the bonnet and saw steam coming out from a pipe. So I thought that this was what was causing my car to heat up so much, water was escaping through a little tiny hole in one of the pipes.

My coolant box under the bonnet has turned a rusty orange colour (and I am hoping that is normal). And the steam/water spraying out of the pipe was the exact same colour. But the pipe it was coming out of was a metal pipe. Which I was really depressed about. I was hoping it would be one of the rubber ones so that I can just change it cheaply and quickly and problem solved.

But I have no idea how to go about getting this particular pipe changed. Here is what I am talking about. (Pictures are from google).

The crack is so small, but its enough to spit all the water out of my cooling system. Can anybody help me out here? I noticed the pipe goes all the way back, almost under the engine, and I am just hoping it is repairable and not too expensive!

Any help would be great, sorry for the long post (I just noticed).

EDIT: It may be hard to see from those small pictures, but its the small thin pipe just under the thick rubber one.

Foggy · 09-07-2008, 12:13 PM

Are you sure it is the pipe that is cracked? With where your arrow is pointing I would say it is more likely to be the O ring seal for the pipe to the housing which has failed.
If so its a quick and cheap fix.
Hope this helps

AUIIForte · 09-07-2008, 12:19 PM

Yeah, the pipe is definitely cracked. There is a little hole which I can visibly see right on the edge of it, just before it goes in. It was spraying the water and steam all over my engine.

I'll take it to a mechanic in the next few days, but because I am running low on cash, I was hoping somebody could tell me, or lead me in the right direction to getting this pipe either replaced or patched up.

I wish I had some welding equipment because this hole is so small that I am sure I could have just welded some foreign metal onto it and sealed it back up.

irdonn · 09-07-2008, 12:21 PM

Mines weeping from there at the moment mate as well. Like Foggy said, it's probably just the o ring. Cheap from Ford and an easy fix.

Cheers

JMO · 09-07-2008, 02:35 PM

That's the lower thermostat. I helped my brother change the o ring in his as it was weeping. It was a pain in the butt finding the right sized o ring from Repco. If the pipe is cracked it just means you'll have to drop the coolant and undo the bolts holding the pipe in place and swap over for another.

sly · 09-07-2008, 11:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AUIIForte

My coolant box under the bonnet has turned a rusty orange colour

Sounds like you need to drop the coolant no matter what. IF it is the pipe not the O-ring (and the O-ring perishing is a common problem) then any other metal parts in the cooling system will be suspect as well due to the coolant getting too old. Welsh plugs, water pump etc are likely to fail with monotonous regularity, unfortunately :togo:

AUIIForte · 10-07-2008, 09:54 AM

Thanks for all the info guys. I'll be taking my ford to a mechanic to get it fixed, because after closer inspection, it seems like I would have to remove a lot of things that I have no idea about to replace the pipe.

I am also 100% sure it is a crack in the pipe and not the O-ring, which really, for me. is a shame, hehe.

One more quick thing though, are there any sorts of tapes that I could wrap around the part of the pipe with the hole, or materials I could use to cover up the hole temporarily while I make the drive to the mechanic. I just don't want any extra damage done to anything else that I would have to fork extra cash for!

sly · 10-07-2008, 08:28 PM

When the engine overheats the ECU cuts out different cylinders in turn to prevent serious damage. Theoretically you can drive an AU (or later) I6 without coolant, as long as you're running on petrol.

**Mechan1k** · 10-07-2008, 10:11 PM

But going on that picture above it may be an EGAS engine ... and it does not have cylinder shutdown enabled in the ECU ... for ummmmm .. obvious ... expolsive reasons .. what the EGAS does do is that the auto goes into limp-home mode (3rd gear) until it cools back down again ... and that's about it.

bodes-sh · 10-07-2008, 10:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mechan1k

But going on that picture above it may be an EGAS engine ... and it does not have cylinder shutdown enabled in the ECU ... for ummmmm .. obvious ... expolsive reasons .. what the EGAS does do is that the auto goes into limp-home mode (3rd gear) until it cools back down again ... and that's about it.

i doubt it to be honest, i think they are just general pics, the second one looks like it has intercooler piping running where the normal intake pipe goes and it also has a fuel rail and polished rocker cover

AUIIForte · 10-07-2008, 10:46 PM

I never knew the AU could shut down cylinders, thats helpful, thanks! And those photos aren't of my car, they where taken from google because I can't seem to find my camera connection cable for the PC!

Thanks for the info, you guys are always damn helpful!