Went out this morning to check the fluid levels on the motorhome before take off, and what do I behold, this!!! What is this you say, well, it's the radiator coolant tank under the hood.
Upon closer inspection, the cracks run pretty deep through the plastic. Although it hasn't really started leaking yet, you can feel the dampness on the outside from the antifreeze seeping through. I'm glad I caught this, as we are headed for a pretty remote part of Florida and the last thing we needed was to be stranded on the side of the road in the middle of nowhere. Well after I got done cussing and kicking the tire, I made a call to the local parts store and low and behold they said they could have one in just after noon.
Just after noon came and they gave me a call letting me know my part was in. I zipped on down, picking up the part and a container of coolant and headed back for the install. The install took about an hour and was pretty strait forward, I think the hardest part was filling the new tank with coolant, as they don't give you much room for pouring. Funny thing was, as I was right in the middle of putting it in, the park manager stopped by, telling me he had just done the same thing to his motorhome, tank cracked in the same place. Checked a couple of the RV forums and this seems to be a popular problem with the Ford chassis. The good new is, I was able to get the part and install it myself, ahhhhhh nothing like the RV lifestyle, to keep you on your toes.....lol.
So, we'll try taking off in the morning again and hope for smoother sailing, so until next time.....................
Nice job! I shudder to think the fun I might have someday on my Freightliner DP coolant tank. I've read on several forums the fail the same way, but the cost a couple of hundred bucks and are really difficult to replace. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that mine lasts and lasts.
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