Out doing a little snow wheeling this weekend, the snow was a bit deeper than we anticipated. The only guy who didn't get stuck at some point or another was a guy with a EB, FI460, and 44inch boggers. I had my mazda (35's 4.56's, 3"BL, 4"SL) crawling down a certain section of the trail. I still had momentum, but I knew that if I let up I would get stuck. I was in 2nd gear, 4L, sitting around 4,000 rpm's for about 2 minutes, truck was moving maybe 2 mph.

At the end of the run, she was HOT, steam pouring out from under the hood, somebody grabbed a fire extinguisher because you could have sworn it was bellowing smoke, but it turned out alright, just overheated.

My question is, should my stock cooling system held up to this abuse or am I asking too much of it?

Next question, are there any cheap (junkyard) upgrades that I can do, or am I stuck going with an after market solution?

Thanks...


hick

...ur...I think its probably ok...I've beat on several for many years and not had a failure....

check to make sure it has the HD radiator (1 1/2in thick radiator)..and other than adding some coolant additive...thats it man...hammer down!!

I've boiled mine several times doing the same thing. Coolant was actually boiling in the rez.

Still holding up fine.

As long as it's still running with no leaks/knocks and still has good oil pressure you should be fine.

Are you running a mechanical fan or an electric fan? Was airflow to the radiator blocked?

Justin

Hey, I was at the run with ya - rode with the guy in the blue Jeep (Ralph) that was unstoppable. Had a great time. Nice to put a face to a screen name! :smokin:

Do you have the 2 core (Explorer) radiator? If not, that'll definitely help.

Frankly, the other thing I would consider is losing the TTB. You looked like a road grader out there! :laughing: That was really a worst-case scenario unless you like to run in the mud. An EB D44 would just look cool under that rig, too.

That sounds like good advice... I would grab a two core from an exploder and maybe a couple of taurus pusher fans...

My 4.0's have always been very friendly with the rev limiter :flipoff2: and I've never had over-heating issues. :D

Get a radiator from a 4.0 exploder, it's literally twice the size of the ranger radiator! I'd definitely replace that t-stat if you got it that hot and do a coolant flush and change. Long as there is nothing wrong... you should be good to go. I run a real water temp gauge too, the factory one is pretty much worthless.

How much of the steam was actually from being hot and how much was just snow on the motor/radiator etc? Get an actual temperature gauge and see what it's reading. Ford gauges suck balls for real readings.

X2 on the expy rad and a real temp guage. I would do the taurus fans only if you still over heat.

All the above plus if it's an automatic put a ginormous external trans cooler on it.

I have the 4.0 sploder radiator in my rig cooling a 5.0 and did the same kind of snow wheeling a couple of weeks ago. Didn't get warm at all.

My 4.0's have always been very friendly with the rev limiter :flipoff2:

They have rev limiters? I just dog mine until the valves float and it blows smoke. :laughing:


My radiator was clogged on the backside with mud last ride. I got it hot enough that the coolant was boiling in the reservoir and it was puking coolant from the crimps on the side tanks of the radiator.

Cost me a new radiator, but no engine problems.

...ur...I think its probably ok...I've beat on several for many years and not had a failure....

check to make sure it has the HD radiator (1 1/2in thick radiator)..and other than adding some coolant additive...thats it man...hammer down!!

I measured the radiator, it is right around 1 inch thick, definitely will look into a Explorer radiator. Are there different sizes of explorer radiators for different years/engine sizes, or should I just stick with a '94?

I've boiled mine several times doing the same thing. Coolant was actually boiling in the rez.

Still holding up fine.

As long as it's still running with no leaks/knocks and still has good oil pressure you should be fine.

The reservoir looked like a balloon, coolant was trying to escape from the return line, the radiator cap, and any other spot it could.

Are you running a mechanical fan or an electric fan? Was airflow to the radiator blocked?

Justin

Mechanical fan, seems to work fine, my only reservation is the fact that I am running a body lift, the radiator is located 3 inches higher than the fan shroud

Hey, I was at the run with ya - rode with the guy in the blue Jeep (Ralph) that was unstoppable. Had a great time. Nice to put a face to a screen name! :smokin:

Do you have the 2 core (Explorer) radiator? If not, that'll definitely help.

Frankly, the other thing I would consider is losing the TTB. You looked like a road grader out there! :laughing: That was really a worst-case scenario unless you like to run in the mud. An EB D44 would just look cool under that rig, too.

Yeah, the saggy TTB doesn't help much, I have a set of 6 inch coils that I am going to slap on before the next run. Really it is just a temporary fix, I have a set of D60's that I am pulling parts together to swap in, hopefully in another year or two I will be ready to do the swap. I don't do much mud since the clean up is a PITA, mostly I just do trail riding. I realize that how I was driving wasn't what my rig normally sees, I just didn't think that I should have overheated as fast as I did. I am planning on swapping in a 5.0, and if the radiator I have now can't handle my 4.0, it won't handle the V8 either.

It's nice to see some familiar faces on the board, that Jeep was definitely pimp, I was surprised to see how much power he was getting out of a 4.7 stroker.



hick

Just get a 4.0 auto with A/C radiator for your truck. it's the same thing as an Explorer radiator.

You'll need to use the lower radiator hose for an automatic truck.

Just get a 4.0 auto with A/C radiator for your truck. it's the same thing as an Explorer radiator.

You'll need to use the lower radiator hose for an automatic truck.

OK, thanks


hick

Just get a 4.0 auto with A/C radiator for your truck. it's the same thing as an Explorer radiator.

You'll need to use the lower radiator hose for an automatic truck.

Is it aluminum too like the sploder version?

Is it aluminum too like the sploder version?

last one I bought was...

Is it aluminum too like the sploder version?

Pretty sure they're all aluminum, except for the plastic tanks, of course.

Didn't your body lift come with radiator mount extenders? If not, you may wanna fab up something to move it up so you can make use of the entire fan.

I ran 6" springs in a B2 up until the rig self-destructed last year. Never really had any issues with it, but I never ran it through 2' of snow either.

Pretty sure they're all aluminum, except for the plastic tanks, of course.

Didn't your body lift come with radiator mount extenders? If not, you may wanna fab up something to move it up so you can make use of the entire fan.

I ran 6" springs in a B2 up until the rig self-destructed last year. Never really had any issues with it, but I never ran it through 2' of snow either.

The body lift just came with brackets to move the fan shroud down so that it didn't hit the fan. I never paid much attention to it since it was never a problem, but I can definitely see where I should be making use of the entire fan. Regardless, I am looking at getting a thicker radiator as well, time to scour the junk yards...



hick

I don't do much mud since the clean up is a PITA, mostly I just do trail riding.


Same here, but I didn't bother pulling the AC condenser when I converted to OBA. I had the mud from the occasional wet trail ride hidden between the condenser and radiator blocking about 1/2 the air-flow. Couldn't tell it was in there until I pulled the radiator.


Just something to look for if your condenser is still in there.

Same here, but I didn't bother pulling the AC condenser when I converted to OBA. I had the mud from the occasional wet trail ride hidden between the condenser and radiator blocking about 1/2 the air-flow. Couldn't tell it was in there until I pulled the radiator.


Just something to look for if your condenser is still in there.

The condenser it huge, but I like my AC too much, it blows cold enough to make my sun glasses fog up in the summer. Will definitely have a look and clean things out when I change the radiator.



hick