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Thermostat replacement       #: 2164
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 Posted: Fri Jun 12th, 2020 11:26 am
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cmfrdcun
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 Check engine light came on my 2011 Ranger V6 and dealer diagnosed the problem as the thermostat being stuck in the \"open\" position.  I can drive it for now but it will have to get fixed before the next emissions test.  Dealers quoting me over $300 to fix and this does NOT include flushing / replacing the coolant.  The thermostat is sandwiched between two plastic housings.  I am being told by one dealer that I should replace the plastic housings because they warp but another said this was only a problem on the early Rangers.  Ford dealer repairs come with a 2 year warranty.  Rockauto has the entire unit Motorad 2062S including housing, thermostat and sensors preassembled for less than $40 with 12 month warranty on parts only obviously.   Has any one replaced their thermostat themselves?  I have the Hayes / Chilton manuals and the photos are wrong and the instructions not real detailed.  Its not like the thermostat on the intake manifold of the old V8 engines which were super easy.  It appears that I will have to remove air ducting to get access.  How much of a pain is it?  Anyone have any experience with Motorad parts (good or bad)?  Thanks in advance for your help!  I am leaning towards having the dealer do it because I am guessing that the coolant is probably due to be replaced anyway and I know that you are not supposed to just pour it down the drain.  





MOTORAD TA2062S

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 Posted: Fri Jun 12th, 2020 01:09 pm
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JAMMAN

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 Hi and welcome to F-R!

I believe that MOST of us have replaced thermostats, radiators, entire engines.... :-) 

If you have some old gallon jugs put the old coolant in it and contact local garages/auto parts stores someone is bound to know where you can off it at.

Flushing can be a bit intense but anything you have done at a "dealership" will cost you at least double of any small repair garage.

Being you said plastic housing I'm imagining you have a 2001 or later 4.0 SOHC engine?



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 Posted: Fri Jun 12th, 2020 02:49 pm
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Eddie Money
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 Different problem but similar fix. 

My thermostat housing cracked and leaked. I had read several threads that confirmed this was a common issue. I researched what others had done. Most looked for a metal housing but it was hit and miss on quality. I contacted my local dealer because I only wanted to pay for this once. I can change the housing myself but it could still crack. 

I opted for the dealer to replace it. The housing came with a 2 year warranty and a new thermostat and they topped off the coolant. The cost was between $200-250. I had this done about a year or less.

This gave me piece of mind I wouldnt ruin my engine till I delivered it to 410customs shop. I cant say how well this worked because I had the V6 swapped for a V8 a few months later. 

If the cost to do the housing is the same as the thermostat I'd do the housing.

Last edited on Fri Jun 12th, 2020 02:51 pm by Eddie Money



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 Posted: Fri Jun 12th, 2020 03:00 pm
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cmfrdcun
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 2011 Ranger V6 so yes I believe that would be the 4.0 L SOHC engine.
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 Posted: Fri Jun 12th, 2020 03:07 pm
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cmfrdcun
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 My thinking is leaning to having the dealer fix due to the 2 year warranty.  I was wondering if it was possible to replace the thermostat without removing the housings halfs from the hoses.  Just a bit concerned about the old hoses re-sealing on new housing.   Was really a bit disappointed in the Hayes / Chilton manuals (they are almost identical) in terms of lacking detail.
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 Posted: Fri Jun 12th, 2020 06:39 pm
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 It would be a good time to replace all of the hoses as well.



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 Posted: Fri Jun 12th, 2020 07:55 pm
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VelociRanger
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 cmfrdcun wrote:
Was really a bit disappointed in the Hayes / Chilton manuals (they are almost identical) in terms of lacking detail.
Yeah, I too have a Haynes manual for my 2008 but it's not really helpful. It's almost like they used the older 2.3 to get information from. 
cmfrdcun wrote:
2011 Ranger V6 so yes I believe that would be the 4.0 L SOHC engine.
I found a video online of someone doing a detailed step by step of this process. The replacement parts could come with a warranty, so if it fails you may have to change it again. If you felt comfortable enough with your mechanical skills I would say try it. I watched the video and it's a tedious job, but not impossible. This video is really well put together, and the guy has a rockin mustache so you can bet he knows what he's doing! Lol.



Edit: also just noticed that if you go to that video on YouTube he has parts links to the parts he used

Last edited on Fri Jun 12th, 2020 07:58 pm by VelociRanger



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 Posted: Fri Jun 12th, 2020 08:46 pm
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 VelociRanger wrote:

I found a video online of someone doing a detailed step by step of this process. The replacement parts could come with a warranty, so if it fails you may have to change it again. If you felt comfortable enough with your mechanical skills I would say try it. I watched the video and it's a tedious job, but not impossible. This video is really well put together, and the guy has a rockin mustache so you can bet he knows what he's doing! Lol.
The dealer is charging the same to change his thermostat as they charged me for the thermostat housing which comes with a new thermostat. Both repairs come with a 2 year warranty.

If he replaces the thermostat himself there is a good chance the housing could crack and cause a coolant leak. The parts warranty only covers defects in workmanship and ends once its installed

If he pays the dealer to do the install , it's on them if it cracks during installation and hes covered for 2 years....

This is a no brainer for me. 

Last edited on Fri Jun 12th, 2020 08:46 pm by Eddie Money



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 Posted: Fri Jun 12th, 2020 08:52 pm
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 Didn't know the housing came with a thermostat, I figured everything was separate. I have a 2.3, not a 4.0 and I've never worked on one so idk what that engine's parts are like. I just saw the video and it didn't seem too difficult. Plus, any part that I've ever had a problem with from autozone I've been able to take back and get replaced no questions asked



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knowing when to quit is wisdom, being able to quit is courage.

1983 Ranger, reluctantly taking apart. Donor/project vehicle.

1997 Ranger Ex Cab Manual 4.0 2wd, dead on arrival. Hopefully reviving for a daily driver.

1984 Ranger, currently in ≈861 pieces. She’s donating what’s salvageable.
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 Posted: Fri Jun 12th, 2020 08:53 pm
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 Wow.

No dealers for me. Ever. I took my wife's car to the dealer for service while it was under warranty because we bought it new. Out of warranty now, I'll fix it thank you.

I guess I just view this differently. I trust my skills and judgement more than a dealer, I know people that work at dealers and they are not rocket scientist.



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 Posted: Fri Jun 12th, 2020 09:01 pm
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VelociRanger
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 JAMMAN wrote:
Wow.

No dealers for me. Ever. I took my wife's car to the dealer for service while it was under warranty because we bought it new. Out of warranty now, I'll fix it thank you.

I guess I just view this differently. I trust my skills and judgement more than a dealer, I know people that work at dealers and they are not rocket scientist.
I agree. Back when my truck was down and the anti theft light was blinking the ford dealer quoted me I believe 1,200 for the pcm, plus 100 for a new key. I was able to order (and return) a new, preprogrammed pcm WITH a programmed key for ~$400. I returned it because it turns out that one of the wires in the cab was loose (the harness sits above the clutch and I'm sure I accidentally hit it while driving) and when I pushed it back into the harness the anti theft light went away and the truck ran like it did before. That experience alone has shied me away from dealers. If it were me working in a shop, I would've instantly checked for loose wires instead of jumping to a $1,300 repair



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knowing when to quit is wisdom, being able to quit is courage.

1983 Ranger, reluctantly taking apart. Donor/project vehicle.

1997 Ranger Ex Cab Manual 4.0 2wd, dead on arrival. Hopefully reviving for a daily driver.

1984 Ranger, currently in ≈861 pieces. She’s donating what’s salvageable.
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 Posted: Fri Jun 12th, 2020 11:07 pm
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 I get DIY but if the part is notorious for cracking how many times do you want to do it yourself? I like warranties. I only pay for the part once and I'm covered if it fails for 2 years.

For people who have less time to work on their trucks, dealership rates and parts have become competitive with other shops, at least in my area. Dealership service records are a good paper trail of the maintenance history.

Last edited on Fri Jun 12th, 2020 11:15 pm by Eddie Money



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 Posted: Sat Jun 13th, 2020 09:13 am
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 And as with every other 2 sided dart in the world, we both are convinced we are right.

My evidence.

Case 1
I got a transmission repaired with a warranty one time, I was far enough away from home I just did it.

2 weeks later the transmission failed again. Was an automatic in a 91 escort GT.

Took it back to them (a long way away), they tore it apart and charged me, said something different had failed than last time. Over 1600 total invested, just shy of a brand new transmission.

Case 2
RECENTLY on wifes CRV. During one of the dealer inspections while it was on bumper to bumper warranty we told them the AC didn't seem to be keeping up. They put a thermometer on it and said it was fine, that it couldn't be serviced without emptying the entire system, flushing and re filling. The refrigerant alone was going to be 250 and the entire service would be about 750.

?

Under bumper to bumper warranty.

This spring, AC would not come on at all. Did the natural yelling "I told you there was something wrong".

Then I bought a set of gauges and adapters for the "new" R1234YF they put in cars since 2016. Total investment, 80 bucks. I bought a can of the R1234YF refrigerant, 40 bucks. Came with a filler thingy, a normal human can't buy a large can of R1234YF because they need some sort of "certification" so the plumbing with my guages wouldn't have worked. I can get a large cab of R134A for under 100 bucks.

Hooked up the gauges, hmmm plenty of pressure to kick the pump in.

Had to download an electrical diagram from a 3rd world country because the electrical diagrams for this 2017 have not been released except to the DEALER networks.

Found a broken wire on the pressure switch at the condenser, snapped by being cinched too tight at the factory. Really should have been covered by the bumper to bumper but now I own a set of gauges and fittings for 2 different systems and my wife is not complaining.

I have more warranty horror stories but not on cars.

Now I want to hear the stories about the 2 year warranty that the item went out 3 days before the 2 years were up and they replaced it for absolutely free.



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 Posted: Mon Jun 15th, 2020 01:52 pm
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 I bought a set of tires for my ranger at discount tires. Part of the warranty included rotating and balancing every 5k miles to maintain warranty compliance. After my 5 or 6th rotation the service tech had a sad face, he said there is a factory recall on these tires. Because I was in compliance with the warranty I could either keep the tires or get a new set. Well of course I opted for the new set as mine only had about 10k miles left before they would need replacing. The new set also had a 50k warranty which was 10k more than the original.

I think that's pretty close to what you asked for...

I'm also the guy that bought an 87ranger with 60k original miles for $600, drove it for 2 years and when it was totaled out by insurance after being hit by a drunk driver I was paid $2,850 for the truck....

Last edited on Mon Jun 15th, 2020 01:58 pm by Eddie Money



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 Posted: Mon Jun 15th, 2020 02:38 pm
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VelociRanger
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 Its exactly like JAMMAN said, both sides think they're right and in a way they are. It really comes down to each personal experience with warranties. You'll always have people on both sides. The question really has no definitive answer on a “do it yourself” or “have the shop do it” because there IS two sides to this coin. It really comes down to - 
can he afford the dealer install?

Do you trust the dealer?


If not, does he feel comfortable enough working on it?



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knowing when to quit is wisdom, being able to quit is courage.

1983 Ranger, reluctantly taking apart. Donor/project vehicle.

1997 Ranger Ex Cab Manual 4.0 2wd, dead on arrival. Hopefully reviving for a daily driver.

1984 Ranger, currently in ≈861 pieces. She’s donating what’s salvageable.
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 Posted: Mon Jun 15th, 2020 03:19 pm
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 In this instance the OP already stated he was paying the dealer to install the thermostat. I recommend he have the dealer replace the housing because it's the same price and the same warranty he just gets the housing and thermostat for the same price.

The housing can crack when its removed, re installed, or overtime but it's been documented as a problem part and if hes already paying $200 for just the thermostat, I think $200 for the housing, thermostat, and peice of mind for 2 years is a good deal.

First thing I do when I acquire a new vehicle is change fluids, hoses, belts, plugs, and the thermostat. My housing probably cracked when I changed the thermostat originally. During that period I worked 7 days a week and worked on my house in the evenings. So another thing to consider is what your time is worth... my free time is very expensive...

I dont let just anybody work on my vehicles. I have one mechanic I let do brakes and oil changes because he is also a ranger guy. The dealership I use was run by my grandfather on my mothers side so I know all the service people who work on my truck when it's there. And then theres 410customs who we all know has demonstrated superior knowledge and workmanship when it comes to just about anything......

Last edited on Mon Jun 15th, 2020 03:52 pm by Eddie Money



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 Posted: Mon Jun 15th, 2020 05:15 pm
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 Good points all around, sir. 

And 410s place doesn't count as a shop lol....it's the place where all the cool trucks go to hangout and get some wicked surgery



ps. Surgery = awesome stuff



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knowing when to quit is wisdom, being able to quit is courage.

1983 Ranger, reluctantly taking apart. Donor/project vehicle.

1997 Ranger Ex Cab Manual 4.0 2wd, dead on arrival. Hopefully reviving for a daily driver.

1984 Ranger, currently in ≈861 pieces. She’s donating what’s salvageable.
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 Posted: Wed Dec 23rd, 2020 02:34 pm
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 Click link below for everything to know about
replacing the junk Plastic ThermoStat Housing
& upgrading to an Aluminum ThermoStat Housing
on the 1997 to 2012 Ford V6~4.0L~SOHC engine.
http://2001fordexplorersporttrac.fandom.com/Engine_Coolant_ThermoStat

Last edited on Wed Dec 23rd, 2020 02:37 pm by DILLARD000



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 The thermostat was easy to replace - it was easy enough I forgot I had even done it until seeing this. You'll take the airbox off and the housing is right there. 30 minute job. Check this video out and don't strip the housing (it's plastic)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=93aOMZ8om4g



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 Posted: Sat May 15th, 2021 12:35 pm
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 AM2Racing wrote: The thermostat was easy to replace - it was easy enough I forgot I had even done it until seeing this. You'll take the airbox off and the housing is right there. 30 minute job. Check this video out and don't strip the housing (it's plastic)


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=93aOMZ8om4gBest replace junk Plastic ThermoStat Housing
with an Aluminum ThermoStat Housing, & solve
that cracked+leaky plastic problem for good!
More info at
https://2001fordexplorersporttrac.fandom.com/Engine_Coolant_ThermoStat

Attachment: 2001.Ford.ExST_Engi.Cool_Stat.Hous_0500_NewPart.GIF (Downloaded 11 times)

Last edited on Sat May 15th, 2021 12:36 pm by DILLARD000



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