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koozy's ST
- Thread starter koozy
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OP
Thread Starter
#302
OP
Thread Starter
#304
Thread Starter
#304
Finally got around to installing the 180 Motorcraft Thermostat. I ran out of time and will have to get back to it hopefully sometime during the weekend. I got through the hardest part, which was just removing the thermostat. Figuring out how to reach and get to things in the tight confines and what tools to use was the challenge. Now that i know how it comes out, going back together should be smooth. I took a bunch of photos as usual, because I like to document my process and procedures for future reference. Here are just a couple that briefly captured the moment.
Once access to the thermostat is available it's not too bad.
Room for activities.
Thermostat housing assembly removed.
Disassembled.
Some visible crud on the thermostat.
The old OE thermostat. I could not locate a stamping on it to indicate what temperature that thermostat was. I was surprised to see that much deposit build up on the thermostat. The ball bearing in the bleeder was no longer able to move as freely as the new thermostat.
Old next to new.
Chasing the gasket surface with fine wet sanding.
Housing ready for the new thermostat and gaskets.
New assembly with 180 thermostat ready to go back on.
I will be doing a chemical coolant flush to help remove any more deposits that may be in the system and especially the water pump.
Once access to the thermostat is available it's not too bad.
Room for activities.
Thermostat housing assembly removed.
Disassembled.
Some visible crud on the thermostat.
The old OE thermostat. I could not locate a stamping on it to indicate what temperature that thermostat was. I was surprised to see that much deposit build up on the thermostat. The ball bearing in the bleeder was no longer able to move as freely as the new thermostat.
Old next to new.
Chasing the gasket surface with fine wet sanding.
Housing ready for the new thermostat and gaskets.
New assembly with 180 thermostat ready to go back on.
I will be doing a chemical coolant flush to help remove any more deposits that may be in the system and especially the water pump.
Last edited:
![[wrenchin]](/images/smilies/icon_smile_wrenchin.gif "Wrenchin [wrenchin]"){kind=icon}
OP
Thread Starter
#306
Thread Starter
#306
~30 minutes to get to the thermostat if knowledge is applied with correct tools ready. It took me longer because I was acquiring knowledge in the process and taking photos, but I like to take my time and clean things as I go while I’m in there, like cleaning the fasteners and applying some anti seize on them.
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Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
![[dunno]](/images/smilies/icon_smile_dunno.gif "Dunno [dunno]"){kind=icon}
OP
Thread Starter
#311
Thread Starter
#311
So I'm in the process of currently chemical flushing out the cooling system in the FiST over several days. Out of curiosity I wanted to see how effective the flush was, so I put a cap full of this stuff into a pot of 1 1/2 cups of water and boiled it with the OE thermostat in it for twenty minutes and let it sit overnight.
Before, the ball bearing in the jiggler did not move freely.
After, the ball bearing in the jiggler now moves freely.
I can see how an OE radiator that may be already at the top of it's performance capacity from the beginning be handicapped if build up of grime, scale, etc. exists in core or causing stuck thermostats affecting cooling performance.
On a side note, the FiST with the 180F thermostat hasn't passed 188F on the Accessport or 4 bars in the cluster after 30 minutes of idling and free revving in the driveway to get the flush to circulate.
Before, the ball bearing in the jiggler did not move freely.
After, the ball bearing in the jiggler now moves freely.
I can see how an OE radiator that may be already at the top of it's performance capacity from the beginning be handicapped if build up of grime, scale, etc. exists in core or causing stuck thermostats affecting cooling performance.
On a side note, the FiST with the 180F thermostat hasn't passed 188F on the Accessport or 4 bars in the cluster after 30 minutes of idling and free revving in the driveway to get the flush to circulate.
OP
Thread Starter
#312
Thread Starter
#312
Finishing up the chemical coolant flush I noticed that the OE coolant reservoir tank had some muck at the bottom. After further investigation it became apparent that this bottle is a pretty nicely designed piece. The bottle itself is basically a filter, yes the whole bottle. Inside the bottle are numerous baffles, there's a top and bottom portion nestled inside partitioned chambers. Pretty awesome. It basically captures all of the scale, sand, etc. and keeps it the bottle preventing it from passing through to the water pump, engine, radiator and potentially accelerating damage or clogging elsewhere.
The downside is that it is nearly impossible to clean out thoroughly. Because of the separate baffles and chambers sticking in a brush or hose are futile attempts. I didn't have enough time, but I got a lot of it out. Unless I can find away to chemically clean out the bottle I consider it an expendable item like an air filter, spark plugs, or oil filter, because the coolant reservoir is a filter by design.
Here's the muck.
Take note of the small orfices of the 2 coolant nipples on the reservoir making it impossible to put anything in like a brush to try to clean out the bottle.
Made some progress getting it clean. Difficult to tell, but those chambers are not accessible at all. Must see if I can find a solution to dilute it.
The downside is that it is nearly impossible to clean out thoroughly. Because of the separate baffles and chambers sticking in a brush or hose are futile attempts. I didn't have enough time, but I got a lot of it out. Unless I can find away to chemically clean out the bottle I consider it an expendable item like an air filter, spark plugs, or oil filter, because the coolant reservoir is a filter by design.
Here's the muck.
Take note of the small orfices of the 2 coolant nipples on the reservoir making it impossible to put anything in like a brush to try to clean out the bottle.
Made some progress getting it clean. Difficult to tell, but those chambers are not accessible at all. Must see if I can find a solution to dilute it.
OP
Thread Starter
#314
Thread Starter
#314
Not sure. I can tell you that my car has 19k miles. When I installed the Mishimoto Radiator ~2yrs. ago I didn't flush the cooling system or bother to check the reservoir because the car had relatively low miles for a long life coolant that supposed to be good for ~100k miles.
When I drained the coolant out of the radiator the fluid was pretty clean in terms of sediment. It wasn't until I pulled the bottle out that the trapped scale/sediment came out when I shook the bottle around. I'm glad it was trapped in the bottle, I'd rather have it all there rather than roaming around the entire system. What really helped to clean it out was finding a hose that I could snake through the holes that I could and shoot a high stream of water through it from the garden hose. Snaking a hose through allowed me to reach areas and shoot a high stream of water into the bottle that was impossible otherwise.
Let me know if you find a better way to clean out the bottle.
BTW, for anyone curious... you can check to see if your bottle has muck at the bottom without removing it. Just bend your head and look beyond the passenger side motor mount and you can see the area that traps contaminants; the lowest part of the bottle.
When I drained the coolant out of the radiator the fluid was pretty clean in terms of sediment. It wasn't until I pulled the bottle out that the trapped scale/sediment came out when I shook the bottle around. I'm glad it was trapped in the bottle, I'd rather have it all there rather than roaming around the entire system. What really helped to clean it out was finding a hose that I could snake through the holes that I could and shoot a high stream of water through it from the garden hose. Snaking a hose through allowed me to reach areas and shoot a high stream of water into the bottle that was impossible otherwise.
Let me know if you find a better way to clean out the bottle.
BTW, for anyone curious... you can check to see if your bottle has muck at the bottom without removing it. Just bend your head and look beyond the passenger side motor mount and you can see the area that traps contaminants; the lowest part of the bottle.
![[wink]](/images/smilies/wink.gif "Wink [wink]")
![[thumb]](/images/smilies/icon_smile_thumb.gif "Thumbs Up [thumb]"){kind=icon}
OP
Thread Starter
#318
Thread Starter
#318
Came across a ding on the FiST recently, not sure how it got there since it's in a peculiar area on the passenger side fender right next to the headlight.
This gave me the opportunity to try and correct it myself.
I masked around the affected area, this was important because once the dent was being repaired it became harder to see where it was.
Tool affixed to the area.
It took several of pulls to correct it.
No more dent.
Paint less dent repair kit has paid for itself. Dents are nothing new to this car. It had a tree limb fall on it and miraculously repaired by the paint less dent repair process. https://www.fiestastforum.com/forum/threads/3074-koozy-s-ST?p=139456&viewfull=1#post139456
This gave me the opportunity to try and correct it myself.
I masked around the affected area, this was important because once the dent was being repaired it became harder to see where it was.
Tool affixed to the area.
It took several of pulls to correct it.
No more dent.
Paint less dent repair kit has paid for itself. Dents are nothing new to this car. It had a tree limb fall on it and miraculously repaired by the paint less dent repair process. https://www.fiestastforum.com/forum/threads/3074-koozy-s-ST?p=139456&viewfull=1#post139456
Came across a ding on the FiST recently, not sure how it got there since it's in a peculiar area on the passenger side fender right next to the headlight.
This gave me the opportunity to try and correct it myself.
I masked around the affected area, this was important because once the dent was being repaired it became harder to see where it was.
Tool affixed to the area.
It took several of pulls to correct it.
No more dent.
Paint less dent repair kit has paid for itself. Dents are nothing new to this car. It had a tree limb fall on it and miraculously repaired by the paint less dent repair process. https://www.fiestastforum.com/forum/threads/3074-koozy-s-ST?p=139456&viewfull=1#post139456
This gave me the opportunity to try and correct it myself.
I masked around the affected area, this was important because once the dent was being repaired it became harder to see where it was.
Tool affixed to the area.
It took several of pulls to correct it.
No more dent.
Paint less dent repair kit has paid for itself. Dents are nothing new to this car. It had a tree limb fall on it and miraculously repaired by the paint less dent repair process. https://www.fiestastforum.com/forum/threads/3074-koozy-s-ST?p=139456&viewfull=1#post139456
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OP
Thread Starter
#320
Thread Starter
#320
Yes, it works great and has paid for itself. I really like the included storage case to keep things tidy. Tip... let the glue gun warm up ~10min. and best to work under a shade so the body panel is cool, the idea is to allow the glue to solidify. If it doesn't solidify it won't bond to the paint well. You want to hear it "pop" when pulling the lever. I haven't used the slide hammer yet, but that "pop" the first few times is knarly until you realize that's a good thing. ![[rockon]](/images/smilies/icon_smile_headbang.gif "Rock On [rockon]")
oh, I didn't have denatured alcohol, but isopropyl worked just fine. It really helps soften the glue for cleaning up the buttons and paint.
oh, I didn't have denatured alcohol, but isopropyl worked just fine. It really helps soften the glue for cleaning up the buttons and paint.
