Thermostat Leaking

lpfan4life85

Registered User
I put a 180 degree thermostat in the other day and i put some red high temp rtv on the gasket and the neck that the upper radiator hose connects to and it didnt leak. Now after about 3 days of driving it i noticed tonight after i got home its starting to leak now. I did scrape all the old sealant and gasket off so it wouldnt leak. What can i use to keep it from leaking? Can i use a different gasket or sealent?

Thanks
 
Check the TS Housing for Dimpled Holes

My 90 XR7 SC had a leak at the TS housing that 2 gaskets would not seal. When I took the TS housing off I discovered the mounting holes were dimpled by the previous owner. Ya know, it won't stop leaking so I'll just keep tightening it until it stops! So when I tried to tighten the TS housing, the dimpled holes would bottom on the intake mainfold, spliting the TS gasket at the mounting holes and the leak goes on. Solutions: buy a new TS housing or take the old one, get a socket that is just a little larger then the holes and TAP GENTLY with a hammer the dimple(s) back down until the gasket surface is straight and smooth all the way across. I would suggest you get a FELPRO TS gasket and apply a very small amount of RTV gasket sealer to it prior to install. Also, I would suggest you apply a small amount of RTV gasket sealer between the TS and the housing to hold the TS in place when you install it. Takes about 20 minutes for it to hold. Torque the two bolts to, I think, 15 lbs ft. Better confirm the torque.

Ed Springer

90 Black XR7 5-speed: 70mm TB, Fresh Air Intake, '94 Supercharger, 5% SC Pulley, Raised SC Top, I/C Fan, UD Pulleys, 190 l/h Fuel Pump, 36 lbs Injectors, Headers, Magnaflow Muffler (no cats) with stock resonators, 3:27 Gears, Ripper Shifter, 73mm CL MAF (Blue Tube), Magnacore Wires, NGK Iridium Plugs, Royal Purple Lubricants and Rear Spring Air Bags.

94 Red SC Auto Piece of CRAP: 70mm TB, Fresh Air Intake, Stock 90 SC Pulley, Raised SC Top, I/C Fan, 190 l/h Fuel Pump, Headers, Raven Muffler (no cats) with stock resonators, 3:73 Gears, 76mm CL MAF (Gold Tube), Magnacore Wires, NGK Iridium Plugs, Royal Purple Lubricants, TRANSGO Shift Kit, Pro-Torque 2500 Stall TC, Haydon Auxiliary Transmission Cooler, Tokico Struts & Shocks, American Racing 17” Sniper Wheels, Michelin Pilot Sport A/S Tires and 235 RWHP with 315 LB-FT Torque.
 
Also helps to get the right gasket.. chain stores have the wrong gasket listing for the SC. Best I could do was to have them match what they had in stock against the thermostat housing that I took in and handed to them. Got something close, but it still wasn't perfect... had to file the bolt holes just a bit and then seal with permatex.. for that matter, the thermostat itself wouldn't fit perfectly either. :confused:
 
Yeah the first gasket cracked because it wasnt the right one then i found a motorcraft one in the trunk and it stopped the leak for a little bit but now its back.....grr i hate dumb people that tighten crap like that where it messes up the part. I suppose the only place i can get a new TS housing is from ford?
 
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