Connect 1.6 Ecoboost coolant loss

[SCar24]

Hi all, new to forum her.

Have a 2015 Transit connect 1.6 Ecoboost that seems to be having some problems.
During start form cold there is a fair bit of what I presume is steam coming from the exhaust. There is some coolant loss, so no doubt something is going on with the coolant.

Question is if this fault is "always" the head gasket, or can it be something else? Reason I ask is that there is a hissing whoosh sound from the turbo and was wondering if the leak can somehow be related to this and thus the coolant been drawn in via the turbo?

Cheers,
Sean

[metalworker0]

First off ...if its anything below 12 degrees c or over 2000 feet where you live, the clouds of steam is normal, on start up for a few minutes, if below 5c ..it will be constant.

The boost is the petrol one, think head gaskets are thing on them, ford modified the block, so that the coolant passages did not have a slit between cylinders at the block face. you could find out if its got the modified block or the old style one.
Then a list to do . (note I'm not quite familiar with this engine ..only the rumours
1. bypass the cooling to the EGR.by connecting the coolant lines together. if coolant loss stops its the egr cooler.
2. look at the colour of your engine oil ..if its like mayonnaise ..its the head gasket

3. buy a coolant system pressure tester and pump it up to 15 psi ...watch the gauge it should hold that 15 psi ..if it does not, pressure its going somewhere .

You really need a boroscope for the next step, take each spark plug out..whilst its pressurised with the tester and see if coolant is leaking into the cylinders.

if condition of steam , is down to as in the first paragraph, and .. then you are looking for leaks whilst pressurised...hoses , heater core , thermostat housing , radiator, water pump,

ive also seen people put a rubber glove in the header tank instead of pressure cap ..if it inflates in seconds on a cold engine its the head gasket.

or buy one of those coolant combustion gasses tester kits

INSTRUCTIONS from description


100ml Bottle ( 50ml for Tests + 50ml Free for Flushing )

- easy, fast and inexpensive way of detecting combustion leaks in cars and motorbikes.

- works with PETROL/DIESEL/LPG engines (blue fluid for PETROL, red fluid for DIESEL)

- compatible with radiators and expansion tanks

- rubber bung (bottom diameter: 31mm , 45mm - top diameter)

HOW DOES IT WORK?

When combustion leak is present, a small amount of combustion gas goes into the cooling system which can be easily detected by this simple device. In presence of these gases, the test fluid will change colour to yellow.

TEST RESULT:

If the test fluid changes the colour to:

- YELLOW, the combustion leak is present.

- STAYS BLUE, combustion leak IS NOT PRESENT during the test.

- GREEN , unclear, combustion leak could be present (50/50)

HOW TO PERFORM THE TEST:

(Before each use, flush the tester with fresh fluid )

1. Unscrew the coolant cap to release the pressure but leave it on. To avoid splashes and burns during the task, make sure the engine is cold!

2. Start the engine and leave it on for a few minutes to warm it up. (the coolant must be warm and circulating)

3. Fill the tester with supplied test fluid (2ml per test)

4. Insert the tester into the radiator's or expansion's tank inlet and observe bubbles in the chambers. You can increase the number of bubbles by accelerating the engine. Be aware that the tester is without a filter; accelerating could induce coolant droplets or fog into the device and falsify the test result. In this case, the test fluid will stay blue.

5. Don't perform the test for longer than 5 minutes. Heat is harmful to test fluid and can change the colour to green.

NOTE: Dispose of the used test fluid (even if not changed the colour), never mix it with a fresh one as it could affect the sensitivity of the whole batch.

There are other things you can spend money on ..or just wait until, one day it will fail "good style" that failure date may be days , months or years away, but if it has it in the oil ..Head gasket must be changed, if you have the faulty block, then that must be changed.

there is plenty on youtube about this engine.

all the best..mark

[SCar24]

First off ...if its anything below 12 degrees c or over 2000 feet where you live, the clouds of steam is normal, on start up for a few minutes, if below 5c ..it will be constant.

The boost is the petrol one, think head gaskets are thing on them, ford modified the block, so that the coolant passages did not have a slit between cylinders at the block face. you could find out if its got the modified block or the old style one.
Then a list to do . (note I'm not quite familiar with this engine ..only the rumours
1. bypass the cooling to the EGR.by connecting the coolant lines together. if coolant loss stops its the egr cooler.
2. look at the colour of your engine oil ..if its like mayonnaise ..its the head gasket

3. buy a coolant system pressure tester and pump it up to 15 psi ...watch the gauge it should hold that 15 psi ..if it does not, pressure its going somewhere .

You really need a boroscope for the next step, take each spark plug out..whilst its pressurised with the tester and see if coolant is leaking into the cylinders.

if condition of steam , is down to as in the first paragraph, and .. then you are looking for leaks whilst pressurised...hoses , heater core , thermostat housing , radiator, water pump,

ive also seen people put a rubber glove in the header tank instead of pressure cap ..if it inflates in seconds on a cold engine its the head gasket.

or buy one of those coolant combustion gasses tester kits

INSTRUCTIONS from description


100ml Bottle ( 50ml for Tests + 50ml Free for Flushing )

- easy, fast and inexpensive way of detecting combustion leaks in cars and motorbikes.

- works with PETROL/DIESEL/LPG engines (blue fluid for PETROL, red fluid for DIESEL)

- compatible with radiators and expansion tanks

- rubber bung (bottom diameter: 31mm , 45mm - top diameter)

HOW DOES IT WORK?

When combustion leak is present, a small amount of combustion gas goes into the cooling system which can be easily detected by this simple device. In presence of these gases, the test fluid will change colour to yellow.

TEST RESULT:

If the test fluid changes the colour to:

- YELLOW, the combustion leak is present.

- STAYS BLUE, combustion leak IS NOT PRESENT during the test.

- GREEN , unclear, combustion leak could be present (50/50)

HOW TO PERFORM THE TEST:

(Before each use, flush the tester with fresh fluid )

1. Unscrew the coolant cap to release the pressure but leave it on. To avoid splashes and burns during the task, make sure the engine is cold!

2. Start the engine and leave it on for a few minutes to warm it up. (the coolant must be warm and circulating)

3. Fill the tester with supplied test fluid (2ml per test)

4. Insert the tester into the radiator's or expansion's tank inlet and observe bubbles in the chambers. You can increase the number of bubbles by accelerating the engine. Be aware that the tester is without a filter; accelerating could induce coolant droplets or fog into the device and falsify the test result. In this case, the test fluid will stay blue.

5. Don't perform the test for longer than 5 minutes. Heat is harmful to test fluid and can change the colour to green.

NOTE: Dispose of the used test fluid (even if not changed the colour), never mix it with a fresh one as it could affect the sensitivity of the whole batch.

There are other things you can spend money on ..or just wait until, one day it will fail "good style" that failure date may be days , months or years away, but if it has it in the oil ..Head gasket must be changed, if you have the faulty block, then that must be changed.

there is plenty on youtube about this engine.

all the best..mark

This has got to be the most comprehensive answer I have ever received on one of these forums, much appreciated

So far nothing in the oil, and engine runs good. Have also read as you say that the head gaskets are a problem on these, especially if they should overheat, but as is runs completely normal I was hoping it might be a leak some other place.
I have tried to smell(and taste), the steam from the exhaust, but can't really tell if it is coolant. Usually the sweet taste is very easy to detect, but not there.

As there is an anomaly with the boost/turbo, I was thinking that there might be a leak there, sort of seeping into the turbo air and from there pumped into the cylinders, but that not sure if that is even possible?

Here are two different pressure kits, are they both equally good?

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Tbest-Pressure ... 34&sr=8-32

https://www.amazon.co.uk/KATSU-18-Piece ... 34&sr=8-28

I will try your suggestions and see what I can find out.

Thanks again,
Sean

[metalworker0]

I left the turbo out ..as i did not know it had cooling ..if so, that should not be ruled out.

The first link you put in , shows a pressure tester that is also a vacuum fill gizmo...OF which - I'm sure you have to have compressed air for it to work .. it will need it for the vac operation, ..don't know how this effects the pressurisation test operation.. so caution there ..if you don't have an air compressor

The second link you put in shows a conventional pressure tester. that's ok ..but bit pricey ..I'M sure they can be found cheaper than that.!

The one i left instructions to, in my first answer, is the very cheap sniff tester ..with chemical that changes colour ..i don't have amazon, so i cant search very well on it.

So USA ebay ...ive searched and cant find it ......6 months ago there were hundreds/ maybe thousands on ebay, now almost gone ..perhaps banned because of the chemical ..i don't know?

So here is a UK ebay link to what im talking about...there are only a couple of sellers left selling them... so not competitive with price anymore ..you could get them for £5.99 maybe 6 months ago, when ebay was flooded with them.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/284097851985?

I don't know where you are ..what country you are in .


Here is the USA chemical version of the cheap uk/ china version - BUT - At a really high price!
... I'm sure its better as you pull the gasses into it rather than the uk/china version which relies on time and bubbling.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/156371266463?

all the best.mark

[SCar24]

So.., I have received the kit to test the coolant system for leaks, but so far it seems I can't build any pressure in it.. Have tried a few time to build up pressure, but there must be a leak so severe that no matter how much I pump, the needle won't move off the mark..
Will have to take it for a long drive and see it there is any build-up of pressure then.

Regarding the turbo, I don't really know if it is at all possible for a coolant leak into it, just have the whoosh sounds from what I assume is the turbo and trying to connect the dots.

I am from Watford, but currently located in Norway, so UK Amazon/ebay links work fine.

Cheers

[metalworker0]

All i can suggest at this moment, is to use the pressure tester on another vehicle to see if its working properly.

if it is , you have big problems.

The next test

The best tool to buy is the Sykes Pickavant Compression tester.

There are no fully equipped ones on ebay at the moment.. not at the right price

Only the old ones, last made over ten years ago have everything for all spark plug threads,

This is the exact one you want ..unfortunately sold

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/296653428527?

This is my actual description of such a set that i sold in the past on ebay ..so you know whats; contained within it.

You are buying a high quality professional tool made by Sykes Pickavant, this tool is durable and built to last a lifetime, it has the capability to be used to test compression and retain its reading after being unscrewed from the sparkplug hole. After reading - there is a little knurled knob on the side by which the retained pressure can be discharged.

Note: Generally all plugs have to be taken out to allow engine to spin over fast enough to record a maximum result on one cylinder.

This compression tester has many diagnostic uses:

General test to establish that compression is down
Wet test to differentiate; if valve wear or ring wear
Diagnose a faulty head gasket blowing between cylinders
Diagnose a holed piston
Note: for cylinder heads with deep set plug holes (as found in most DOHC 16 valve engines) - the maximum this tester will reach is: 160mm WITH NO EXTENSIONS FITTED - you also have to consider the cam cover height and space between covers and ability to get a spanner on top hexagon! max length with extensions is 300mm

Sparkplug thread sizes - look in your service manual and look up the manufacturers recommended sparkplug, then if its not written down as NGK, look up the equivalent NGK plug for your car on the net :

If your NGK PLUG BEGINS WITH "B" - it's 14mm and this tester will fit your engine (providing the depth of plug hole isn't too deep)

If your NGK PLUG BEGINS WITH "AP" - it's 18mm and this tester will fit your engine

If your NGK PLUG BEGINS WITH "D" - it's 12mm and this tester will fit your engine (providing the depth of plug hole isn't too deep)

If your NGK PLUG BEGINS WITH "C" - it's 10mm and this tester will fit your engine

Note: 18mm fits all Ford "Pinto" OHC engines - 1600, 2000 - Cortina, Escort, Capri, Transit etc

12mm is common to some Japanese motorcycles,

14mm to most classic cars and most modern cars and some Japanese motorcycles

Note: This gauge has two scales and reads in PSI OR BAR
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You can also give it a compression test ,..this will tell you if two cylinders are linked up, by a fail; at the gasket , by a low reading
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Here's a page explaining the block differences. between the first failing ones and the newer ones

https://www.ford-trucks.com/articles/ec ... gn-defect/

all the best.mark

[mrtn]

The coolant line quick connectors may leak during cooling down after a drive. If you have a engine underside felt plate installed it may drip there and just dry out without leaving a sign.