6.0L in cab coolant smell

[TorqueDiesel60]

When I am driving my 2003 F-250 Super Duty 6.0L PSD I sometimes get a coolant smell when I get on the throttle hard. The truck has been properly warmed up before each drive and all the gauges show normal operationg tempuratures. The smell only last a few seconds and smells kinda of fishy. The truck was owned by three people previously to me and has 100K on it. So I dont know how it was driven or used before, but the history shows it has had not major problems in the past. I havent seen any leaks either. Is this a regular accurance? A known problem? Why do you think this is happening?

-Thanks

 

[snicklas]

This would not be a regular occurence.... I do not smell coolant when I throttle hard. It could be a few things.....

How full is the degas bottle... there is a TSB or recall that has a decal that changes the Full / Add marks on the bottle.... Normal marks it is to full and will puke out coolant.....

Has it been modded in any way? I would say that looking at you avatar pic that is has some type of chip or tuner.

What does the coolant look like.... color, odor..... etc.

Could be an EGR Cooler Leak or Head Gaskets as a worst case. Check all the coolant hoses, Upper, Lower, Bypass, heater and the 2 or 3 hoses that connect to the degas bottle. Could just be a leaky hose....

I know the EGR Cooler puts alot of strain on the cooling system, and have heard that a modded trucks can boil the coolant and turn it black........

I hope that it is something simple..... Most times that something happens to a truck with a 6.0L that it is Catostrophic.... It could be just a bad degas bottle cap......

 

[TorqueDiesel60]

I wish that truck in my avatar pic was my truck, but its a truck from one of Diesel Power Mag's "Diesel Power Challenges". Its not over filled with coolant. The truck is stock right now. The color is yellowish to orangish and smells fine when I open the cap and sniff it. I sent the question to William Hewitt at Powerstokehelp.com and he said it might be a head gasket problem and told me how to check it. Im going to do that tommorow. I'll get back to you and thanks for sharing your knowledge, I really appreciate it!

-Thanks, Garrett

 

[TorqueDiesel60]

This would not be a regular occurence.... I do not smell coolant when I throttle hard. It could be a few things.....

How full is the degas bottle... there is a TSB or recall that has a decal that changes the Full / Add marks on the bottle.... Normal marks it is to full and will puke out coolant.....

Has it been modded in any way? I would say that looking at you avatar pic that is has some type of chip or tuner.

What does the coolant look like.... color, odor..... etc.

Could be an EGR Cooler Leak or Head Gaskets as a worst case. Check all the coolant hoses, Upper, Lower, Bypass, heater and the 2 or 3 hoses that connect to the degas bottle. Could just be a leaky hose....

I know the EGR Cooler puts alot of strain on the cooling system, and have heard that a modded trucks can boil the coolant and turn it black........

I hope that it is something simple..... Most times that something happens to a truck with a 6.0L that it is Catostrophic.... It could be just a bad degas bottle cap......

I checked all the hoses and they seem to be fine. When I started my truck I did notice a hissing noise on the passanger side (only passanger side), I turned the truck off and it continued to hiss for 30 seconds. I started the truck again and turned the AC of thinking that might make a hissing noise (I dont have any experience on AC systems so I dont know if that makes sense or not). It continued to hiss. I then revved the engine at full throttle threw the rpm range for about a minute. Got back out and listened. I couldnt hear any hissing nosie after that. I shut the truck off and listened again and heared no hissing noise like before. Does this mean anything to you or further diagnose the possible problem?

Thanks for the help!

 

[TorqueDiesel60]

I checked all the hoses and they seem to be fine. When I started my truck I did notice a hissing noise on the passanger side (only passanger side), I turned the truck off and it continued to hiss for 30 seconds. I started the truck again and turned the AC of thinking that might make a hissing noise (I dont have any experience on AC systems so I dont know if that makes sense or not). It continued to hiss. I then revved the engine at full throttle threw the rpm range for about a minute. Got back out and listened. I couldnt hear any hissing nosie after that. I shut the truck off and listened again and heared no hissing noise like before. Does this mean anything to you or further diagnose the possible problem?

Thanks for the help!

Also the coolant is at the minimium level when cold, which were its suppose to be right? That was ive heard and the dealer I bought it from left it at. Bought it used.

 

[snicklas]

I think the AC in mine will hiss after I shut down.... also the Electric Vacuume Pump is mounted on top of the passenger side fender well. You could have a leak in that..... if you do, you should here the pump run all the time, and the first sign is the AC blend doors wont work well, ore at all.

I run mine at the minimum level and have not had a problem... I actually read on SDD (I think) the new decal actually has full BELOW the factory min level.

Let us know the result of the head gasket leak test. I hope it is not that, but it could be. I ran my truck all weekend in the 90+ heat in the hills of SE Ky.... With the AC Cranked.. (had to attend a funeral an was in "dress clothes"). It did not run hot, and I never smelled coolant. While I was on the Interstate I was running 70-80 MPH..... So it got a workout........

 

[TorqueDiesel60]

Thats good news about the AC hiss which is normal from what I gather (it has been in the high 80's temp wise lately in MI). I ran the head gasket leak test and it came back negative from what the Powerstrokehelp.com guy said. Trucks been running fine and I havent smelled the coolant smell lately. Could it be the wrap (ratty old wrap that was on the truck when I bought it. Its falling apart) around the pipe from the turbo to the intercooler that gets hot and burns a little when I get on the throttle hard? I dont see the wrap on any other 6.0L engines ive seen in person or on ebay. Does that wrap even belong their or serve any major purpose besides heat containment? Hopefully their never was any problem, but I really wanted to get peoples opinions and makes sure. Didnt want a smallish problem turning into a catastrophic engine failure! Thanks for helping me and sharing your knowledge, I REALLY appreciate it!!!

 

[snicklas]

I don't think the wrap is stock. There is no wrap on the intercooler plumbing that I remember. I know the long tube that runs along the passenger side of the engine up behind the alternator is bare metal on mine. If it is fallng apart I would just rememove it... since it was probally added by the PO.

Had you been doing anything "different" than usual with the truck when you smelled the coolant?

Just out of curiosity, what was / how was the head gasket test done? Could be a handy trick for the rest of us.

 

[TorqueDiesel60]

Ya, I'll probably just remove the wrap (its nasty). I havent been doing anything different then usually with the truck. I did just buy it used from a dealer, about a month ago. They did a 150 point inspection and said it was okay. I did get a three month or 3000 mile warranty on the drivetrain (which I wasnt suppose to get since the truck already had 100k on it when I bought it, but got thrown into the deal). I always warm the truck up properly and drive normally ( it dont hammer the throttle all the time, just once in a while when traffic demands it or I feel like putting the power down). The smell only lasts 3-5 seconds when I smell it then it imidiatley goes away.

The test procedure I got from Powerstrokehelp.com was simple, but effective. They said warm the truck up to operating temp. like usual then go drive for a mile or so (really ******* the throttle the whole time), stop somewhere safe and hop out. Open the coolant cap SLOWLY with a glove or towel to protect yourself and see what happens. If it at anytime gurgles or bubbles out you probably have a head gasket leak. If it just hisses and releases steam your fine. Mine just released steam and hissed Hope this is useful.

Also, my truck seems to think a door is open and beaps at me with the key in it unless the engine is on. It shows the door ajar symbol on the dashboard all the time. I check all the doors and their tight. The auto door lock doesnt happen anymore and when I press the lock button the doors lock, but the drivers side door lock pops back up right away. Is this a common problem? Is it a shorted wire most likely or something?

Thanks~

 

[snicklas]

Cool, and thanks for the procedure.

On the door locks. The truck thinks the door is still open. If you lock the doors and the keys are in it (while it dings), the drivers door unlocks itself so you lock yourself out. There is something wrong with the plunger in the latch mechanism. The switch that controlls the lights is intergrated into each door latch. I have read the you need to soak the latch down with WD40 (and I have heard use a whole can kinda soak it down). This should free up the plunger in the latch. The switch in the back "liftgate" section of my Ex doors does this once in a while......

 

[TorqueDiesel60]

Okay, cool. Thanks for the help and info man!

 

[TorqueDiesel60]

Cool, and thanks for the procedure.

On the door locks. The truck thinks the door is still open. If you lock the doors and the keys are in it (while it dings), the drivers door unlocks itself so you lock yourself out. There is something wrong with the plunger in the latch mechanism. The switch that controlls the lights is intergrated into each door latch. I have read the you need to soak the latch down with WD40 (and I have heard use a whole can kinda soak it down). This should free up the plunger in the latch. The switch in the back "liftgate" section of my Ex doors does this once in a while......

Hey, I did what you said for the doors locks and everything is working just fine now. I also took most of the black wrap off the turbo to intercooler pipe (some I couldnt get off due to some type of glue and space constrants). I took the truck for a drive for about a 30mins and hammered it a little, NO weird smell!!!!

Thanks for the info!

-Garrett

 

[snicklas]

Your Welcome.

I am glad they were both something simple.