Head gasket leaking coolant

This kind of thing is like shooting craps.... all depends on how the dice land. If it is indeed the head gasket that is leaking, there is no way to tell if the leak is going to go internal or not. Glycol in the crankcase can kill a bottom end in short order.

Sorry man..... broken is broken and I can't conscientiously tell you it's OK to keep driving.....

Keep the radiator topped up and check the oil level daily paying close attention to the colour and consistency of the motor oil. Even then, there is no real way of guarranteeing that something isn't going to go terribly wrong.

The early Explorers were notorious for leaking head gaskets. I tell you this because this clouds the hurried technician's thinking. I was quoted $1,400 for a new head-gasket job until I made the shop change the thermostat and refund me the $270 already paid for a clutch fan This was a Ford dealership of course and I expect to have that sort of problem...........

So. First what are the symptoms? Does it overheat? Is it loosing coolant? Do you park it inside where you can see drips on the floor? Have you taken it to another shop for a second opinion? What does the oil look like on the dip stick? Do you do your own oil change? Try to do it yourself and look at the oil that you drain out.... does it contain water droplets?

Let us know more and maybe money can be saved.

Jethro

My 70k Ford explorer's problem begins with the noise from ahead and just happen when it is put in gear. I noticed this happened almost a month and it is not getting worse. Yesterday I took it to Ford dealer services for a diagnosis and found the noise came from water pump and fan clutch. Then they have been replaced along with thermostat. Total charge: $678.20. The noise is gone, but it is not over yet! Mechanic also found "head gasket leaking coolant" that located beneath the exhaust that is unable to see from outside due to view blocking. He found it during working on water pump/fan clutch replacement.

I bought the car almost a year. I always check to see if it has anything wrong. I have never noticed any symptoms such as loosing coolant, seeing drips on the floor, overheat or leaking trace. I have oil change every 5000 miles at Ford dealer and I have never added coolant since I bought it (no loss of coolant).

Any suggestion would greatly appreciate it. __________________________________________________________________

"David" for a new head-gasket job until I made the shop change the thermostat and

This sounds like a very suspicious diagnosis to me. The mechanic claims that he can see the leak? But you do not have any coolant on the ground or lose any coolant from the system? Sounds like a scam to me. Since he claims that he can see the leak, it would have to be external. Run the engine fully up to temperature (in park) and then leave it over clean pavement and double check for coolant drips. Otherwise, just be very aware of the coolant level in the overflow tank and watch for any decrease. If you are uneasy, you should get a second opinion from a trusted mechanic. I would not pay the guy for a job that big just on his "say so".

There are tests that can be performed such as exhaust gas analysis and oil testing to see if the coolant is leaking internally. But then if that were the case the dealer's mechanic would certainly not be able to see it from the outside...

Another thing, why did he replace the (expensive) fan clutch? You didn't have symptoms of a bad fan clutch. Bad fan clutches cause overheating at a stand-still, not noises. It sounds like he may have already padded his bill once with you. You probably only needed a waterpump, and it was agood idea to do the thermostat at the same time, but fan clutch? That's not a Preventive Maintenance item...

-Fred W