Ford Vulcan 3.0 OHV Timing Chain cover

[Scout1]

Anybody know how tough it is to remove the timing chain cover on a 2002 Ford Taurus with the 3.0 OHV Vulcan engine? Can you do it with the engine in the car?

My son's 2002 Taurus is losing a small amount of antifreeze and at first we thought it was the water pump (the car has 103k miles on it) but come to see coolant bubbling out from the plate behind the water pump. On this engine it looks like the water pump bolts into a housing that doubles as the timing chain cover. Where this housing meets the engine block is where the coolant is leaking. But the housing goes all the way down around the crankshaft pulley so it doesn't look easy to remove to put a new gasket behind it.

Other options? I guess I could throw in a can of Bars Leak... any advice?

 

[Danno]

http://harrythecargeek.blogspot.ca/2012/04/2002-ford-taurus-30l-vin-u-coolant-leak.html#!/2012/04/2002-ford-taurus-30l-vin-u-coolant-leak.html

Looks possible. Writeup here.

 

[larryinnewyork]

I had the exact same problem.
2002 Ford Ranger / 98,439 miles.

A small shop could not find the leak.
The Ford Dealer did.

I then tried doing it myself, even if it took me 4 days to do.
But, my experience (or lack of) would not allow that.
With my truck, the engine would stay in.

I ended up paying the Dealer $1,600. to change a $5.00 gasket.
That price also included (My decision - while they were in there);
* Water Pump
* Upper Radiator Hose
* Lower Radiator Hose
* Front Crankshaft Seal
* Oil Change (coolant spills into oil pan)

I have since found a better mechanic.
Out of curiosity, I asked him for a price to change the gasket only.
If I recall, he said $850.00

If I had more experience, it would have been doable.
If it starts leaking again, I would go back to the second independent garage.
I hate to pay other people, but I save money doing PM & other repairs on the truck.

For more info. do internet searches and Ford Ranger Forums.
Good luck.

 

[larryinnewyork]

I just read the link provided by Danno.
I'm curious what condition 'my' Timing Cover was in.
The Dealer only changed the gasket.

Question: What's in Coolant that causes it to corrode aluminum ? ? ?

Question: What can be done to prevent this from happening again ? ? ?

 

[Scout1]

Thanks. Yeah, that's what I need to do. Interesting they seem to indicate the aluminum cover needs to be replaced, not just the gasket. Corrosion being the culprit. My leak is very slow at this point. I tightened up the two bolts on the end where it is leaking but could not stop the seepage. The leak is about 1/2 gallon over a few months period. Wonder how quickly it will get worse?

 

[salv]

Originally Posted By: larryinnewyork
I just read the link provided by Danno.
I'm curious what condition 'my' Timing Cover was in.
The Dealer only changed the gasket.

Question: What's in Coolant that causes it to corrode aluminum ? ? ?

Question: What can be done to prevent this from happening again ? ? ?


The organic acids that prevent corrosion, can cause corrosion when the coolant breaks down. In the case of Motorcraft coolant, it is carboxylate, Dexcool is 2-ethylhexanoate, Toyota is sebacate, etc...
The best way to prevent it, is to flush it at proper intervals, like 60k (follow severe service intervals). Also, don't mix coolants with different chemistries even if it claims to be a "mix with anything" coolant.

 

[77GrandPrix]

I replaced the timing chain cover gasket on my 2001 Taurus with the same engine as yours. You can definitley leave the engine in the car. The hardest part of the job is removing the exhaust Y-pipe so that you can drop the oil pan. You have to remove the oil pan because it bolts to the bottom of the timing chain cover. There are some YouTube videos available that will give you a good idea of the scope of the job. It's about an 8 hour job for an experienced mechanic.

 

[artificialist]

The Ford 3.0 OHV isn't the only engine that has this problem. Some 5.0 engines had it too.

This can easily happen to any engine that has iron and aluminum parts close together and antifreeze that is not maintained correctly.

 

[Chris142]

This happens to many engines. I've done many 460's and 318/360 dodge trucks but those are easy. Id throw a couple of those stop leak pellets at it first.