Quick question for those that have swapped it out, how much coolant do I need to get? I guess you just have to drain the radiator? I got the new thermostat and gasket on the way, I’ll just need to stop by the dealership to pick up some coolant.
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What is the Donaldson part number for our trucks? Their site doesn’t list the 3.5, only a couple v8s.These 2 statements are just plain wrong.
a - The Spark Plugs - The Motorcraft Sparkplugs currently being offered by ford are complete and total junk. PERIOD. NGK is the goto recommended by anybody that actually works on these EcoBoost Motors.
c - The Air Filter - Yes the stock paper filter, filters fine, but airflow through it is terrible. It also gets plugged VERY easily, and it VERY susceptible to moisture. Ford has redesigned the airbox in recent years to help with the water saturation issue, but still can be a problem. I don't recommend the oiled filters, because people over oil them when they clean them, and that causes issues. AFE, AEM, and I am sure other make dry cleanable cotton based filters that filter as good as stock, but allow more flow due to greater surface area, are less likely to get clogged again due to greater surface area. Then if we want to talk to the best filter out there, that would be Donaldson's powerCore. Amazing flow and filter.
Sadly, you have to go to an aftermarket housing to use one on the Ford 3.5TT. It is a cylindrical shaped filter, and HUGE!What is the Donaldson part number for our trucks? Their site doesn’t list the 3.5, only a couple v8s.
Nice, great data!Got the thermostat swapped out this morning. Took a little longer than I expected, got hung up on the bolt on the drivers side. Would have been easier if I would have taken all the intake piping out of the way and the hoses off the thermostat housing, but I didn’t feel like taking all that apart. I did end up taking the top hose off the housing. Then I had an issue with the vacuum coolant filler I have. It wouldn’t seal off the little vent chamber on the coolant bottle. But once I figured that out I got it filled back up with no problems. Used a little more than a gallon and a half of coolant.
So before with the cruise control set at 60mph I was reading 228 degrees and now it’s at 199 and only gets to about 205 when letting off. At idle it’s at 195. A damn near 30 degree drop should make the whole truck much more efficient I would think. It’s nice not to hear the fans screaming all the time.
I would not recommend it. It is not an issue on these.swapped my tstat out to the updated one on my 2019, temps are staying around 195-200 like it should now. if you're trying to do this job cleanly its a pain to use the rad drain, it is very slow and leaks out of the valve. takes a long time to drain 1-2 gallons so the level is below the thermostat. made a mess but glad to have it done.
I noticed that the degas bottle cap is a 21 psi. has anyone had issues with switching this to a 16 psi cap? i know on the 4th gen explorers, a common problem of leaky radiators can be prevented by going from 21 to 16 psi system. haven't heard of any radiator issues on expeditions but am considering it....