CEL after Morimoto T-Stat Install?

[Ellison3]

Dumb question… did you install it in the proper orientation? I had a Taurus a while back that would give me random cooling system readings on the dash; high temp, low temp, and normal temp all while driving down the road. It could be a 3-5mi stretch, and I might’ve seen all of the above. Decided to change out the thermostat, water pump, etc.

Whoever owned the vehicle before me installed the thermostat backwards. In my case it would get a little warmer before finally opening. Just a random thought without really thinking it completely through. SMH

 

[OEMPlus Raptor]

Sorry to see your having trouble, I have no solution but every time I see these kinda of post. I just think....leave them stock. We are just asking for unnecessary headaches. It's hard enough diagnose these trucks in stock form sometimes. Now throw some aftermarket stuff and it just makes things that much harder. Not saying this is the case with yours but I hope you get it resolved.

 

[Ellison3]

Sorry to see your having trouble, I have no solution but every time I see these kinda of post. I just think....leave them stock. We are just asking for unnecessary headaches. It's hard enough diagnose these trucks in stock form sometimes. Now throw some aftermarket stuff and it just makes things that much harder. Not saying this is the case with yours but I hope you get it resolved.

Rick Luna, I wonder why I do some of the crap I do sometimes. Those mods I want/ get sometimes result in some type of failure with the stock system. Since the truck’s parameters are so tight there is not much room for computing errors outside of restraints. If you mess with those restraints it may come back on you. HOPEFULLY I don’t have that issue.

If I could do it all over again I’d have a diesel; F-250 of course. Would have to leave it alone. Couldn’t afford a mistake with the prices these things are going for now.

My suggestion is maybe go backwards with the mod. Un-do what you did to see if the issue goes away. Had to do that recently with a few Glock mods I did. Shot fine before I started messing with it. Ended up being too heavy of a recoil spring (I ordered a 15lbs they sent an 18lbs). Definitely not a good idea to have a weapon that shoots some of the time. All good now.

You’ll get it all figured out. Just frustrating to get where you want to be sometimes.

 

[Ellison3]

Hey… another thought: are you certain the system is free of air pockets?

 

[WillieFlo]

Had the CEL come on 1 more time, then went away on its own after about 45 minutes of driving and has not come back since. Seems like it's running just fine for the last 250 miles without the CEL coming on. I did notice before I installed it that the Morimoto build quality was not as good as OEM. The OEM stat seemed to be made of a slightly thicker gauge material, and the valve seemed to actuate a little smoother than the Mori.
If I continue to have CEL come on, I'll swap back to the OEM until I get my Goosetuned COBB. However, I'm planning on getting that before EOY, and really don't want to get back into taking that apart again.

 

[Ellison3]

So, just had some services completed by FordTechMakuloco this past week. Timing chain & associated components, rear differential fluid exchange, cooling system flush, spark plugs, and valve walnut blasting.

For the flush I had a few components on hand already. One being the OEM thermostat. When I checked on maintenance progression a day before pickup I asked if they saw the thermostat I had in the back where the plugs were. Was informed that the OEM thermostat is one of the better makes that doesn’t need to be replaced like others.

Typically, during a flush, or a water pump replacement I’ll do the thermostat & gasket, and all hoses for a few reasons… one, your already there with the system open; why not? Two, that stuff isn’t as expensive as the damage it could potentially cause.

Moral of the story is it didn’t get changed because it’s supposed to be fair superior. Obviously, there comes a point in time when it absolutely has to be done. Maybe, just maybe this might help you make a decision.

How many 3.5 liter owners have had an issue with their OEM thermostats? I also have an ‘04 Expedition with the 5.4 liter with approximately 304k-305k miles on it. I’ve replaced the water pump, all hoses, and thermostat once. Now, there was an incident she had with it, but she’s not able to tell me the specifics. What I do know is I found the underside of the plastic manifold where the water crossover pipe seats had a blowout at the channel where the rubber gasket seats. Since the plastic housing lost pieces of the channel the gasket couldn’t hold it’s seal. Antifreeze leaked out on top in the pocketed area of the cylinder block; under the manifold. When investigating I could never find a leak. Nothing made itself obvious. Loosing antifreeze, but no signs as to where it was coming from.

Decided to get under it. Put the truck on ramps, then antifreeze started dropping on the ground. Hmmm… I was confused. Followed the stream up as far as I could from under the backside of the engine. Got out to look under the hood. I could barely see it but, I thought something was vibrating. Got a light… low and behold, it was a pool of antifreeze just hanging out. This lead me to the water crossover pipe under the manifold.

Replaced all hoses, thermostat, water pump, and a new manifold. Oh, flushed the system out, and cleaned the crud out of the degas bottle while I was at it.

That extra info was more support to the original moral of that OEM thermostat lasting to at least 150k miles; that last thermostat was second one I installed.

Got a little long winded… just wanted to share my personal experience with Motorcraft components. I’ve found that other manufacturers aren’t necessarily better. JMO.

Good luck on your issue. Hopefully you get it resolved the least painful way possible, Sir!!!

 

[ColoradoBoss]

Question. Did you even need the T-stat? I was going to put one on mine, because everyone else seemed to be installing them. But, after reaching out to SPD about it (I was gonna buy theirs) they told me I didn't need one. I've been tuned by 3 different tuners now and none of them requested a different T-stat. If I stayed with BCB I may have needed one because the truck always overheated WOT, but because of this I ditched their tune ASAP. So this may be an unnecessary headache for you. Something to think about.

 

[Ellison3]

Question. Did you even need the T-stat? I was going to put one on mine, because everyone else seemed to be installing them. But, after reaching out to SPD about it (I was gonna buy theirs) they told me I didn't need one. I've been tuned by 3 different tuners now and none of them requested a different T-stat. If I stayed with BCB I may have needed one because the truck always overheated WOT, but because of this I ditched their tune ASAP. So this may be an unnecessary headache for you. Something to think about.

Interesting…

 

[Jkysh]

I threw the SPD 180 tstat in my truck and had goosetuned re tune my truck on 93oct. Truck is stage 2. The difference in temperatures across the board is astonishing and gives me if anything more peace of mind when cruising for hours driving the truck hard. I live in north east Ohio and have not had a single CEL since the install around 2500 miles ago, we are now in 20 degree mornings and my heat is nice and hot shortly after start up. Well worth the tiny bit of effort to do this in my opinion.