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Melted Radiator Cap

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Around 11:30pm yesterday i grabed an 05 e350 box-amulance for check engine lt. It had eot overtemp code. I see the degas bottle is full but snail trails trickling down from the cap around the bottle. I pull the cap to see it melted on the inside. I tried to place a new cap on but it would'nt thread

on-the bottle got warped. I replaced the bottle and took it for a ride, driving it nice and hard for about 2 miles watching the eot/ect both rise steadilly within 2 degrees of each other to 250; temp gauge at 3/4 and rising. Mil back on, i go back to the shop and check the bottle, it's at the hot-full line but evidence of cololant just starting to vent from the new cap and the eot overtemp code. Also this unit had waterpump, thermostat and a fanclutch last sept. or oct.-i believe. Also there's a high pitched whistle coming from the engine area that some fellow techs could'nt pinpoint, it comes on light, medium and heavy accelerations whether it's in d-n or p. I know eseries are detuned but none the less i wonder if it could be over boosting due to how it starts running hot after a few accelerations and the whistle? Posted Image If i get back on it later i'll check to see if the radiator is externally clogged. Also i did'nt hear the fan clutch running hard when i drove it. Posted Image Also egr test done at around 245 degrees and passed.

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You work 3rd shift or somethin?

 

These things can overboost all day long and it wont cause these high temps or noises you are having troubles with. They usually just have no power like a cat clogged up.

 

How fast does it hit the 200 mark from being stone cold? Will it get that hot just sittin on the fast idle kicker or do you have to beat it up?

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These things can over boost all day long and it wont cause these high temps or noises you are having troubles with.

Though not as common as with an F-Series, a sticking turbo can still lead to breached head gaskets, air in the system and overheating. I want to question the whistling noise as possibly the pressure cap venting. Monitoring system pressure while driving will prove or disprove this theory... a less professional but quicker test would be to leave the cap loose and drive it for a few good accelerations.

 

Also, if the degas bottle is and pressure cap are distorted I would first pull the oil filter and inspect the oil filter stand pipe for melting or distortion. If the e engine gets hot enough to do that Ford insists the engine is junk.

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I work the late shift.

It has alot of power.

After i rnr the bottle and cap and fill the system, i had it on high idle for about 5 minutes and the temp guage went to the middle.

Im going to try driving it with the cap loose when i get in later, also i was thinking about pulling the filter and having a look based on the cap. Two years ago we had a bus that was overfueling. The standpipe in the filter housing with the spring was gone, pretty much all injecter o-rings melted causing premature fueling and glowplug conectors melted into the cavity,

prettymuch all plastic in or around the engine took it.

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I'm with Keith, that whistling noise could very well be the sound of the cap venting.. that's the next hing I'd try to verify.

 

And, of course, visual inspection of the oil filter standpipe as well. I know I've mentioned it before but I had an E-van ambulance with a failed fan clutch once that caused EXTREME overheating (and ultimately, head gasket failure and replacement of the long block due to metal transfer from the piston-to-wall, warped heads, and damage to the EGR/OIL coolers as well as 'potential' injector damage)... I drove the van into the shop and pulled the cap, watched the coolant boil out of the bottle for a good 10 minutes (not safe, by the way).

 

After a solid 10 minutes of this, the coolant stopped burbling out of the bottle and I managed to shoot the coolant with an infrared thermometer and almost fell over when I got consistent readings of over 370 degrees F. God knows how hot it was 10 minutes before that. Somehow, that oil filter standpipe was still in perfect shape, so if one of those things melts then the temperature has to be outrageous.

 

Dave

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I have replaced quite a few popped head gaskets and cleaned/replaced too many turbos to count. All of which never exceeded 210 degrees EOT.

 

All I'm sayin' is even if you suspect the turbo or head gaskets, keep lookin' cause you got somethin' else wrong. What's the temp of the top rad hose compared to the bottom hose? I mean the bottom line is this engine is not exchanging the heat it is creating. They can all make 250 degrees or more, but the ones that have working heat exchangers keep the temps in spec.

 

So what are we talkin' here? Bad radiator? Cooling fan bad, water pump impeller busted, cavitated cover, oil cooler full of crap, t-stat? Given the previous history, I would re-examine those parts that were replaced and see what the concern was before.

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I took it to dinner before and it still whistles-to a high pitced wine-cap on and off. If i get a chance, later in going to first chech all tubing and exaust at the turbo. It will do it in park so i could problobly pinpoint the noise and it happens when the engin reaches operating temp.

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I checked and the noise seems to be from the turbo, also is leaking exaust from the split in the top. Im going to take it out and crack it open sunday eve when i get in. Also, the oilfilter standpipe is fine.

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I've had one doing the same as you're describing, mine ended up being an egr cooler, was hard to iscolate b/c the temp and pressure had to be just right, it ended up taking out the oil cooler as well, it's been5 months now and the vehicle is still running great with almost 80,000 km on repair so far.

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It's good now. Put in a thermostat,combustion leak test passed,egr cooler dry. Reconditioned turbo and noise gone, rnr ficm for ficm iussue. Radiator fins clean.Rnr egr valve-was plugged up with carbon but passed egr test. Rnr ebp sensor. Drove it 60 miles in 2 days and ran at operating temp and no dtc's lots of power.

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