greetings .

i have an 04 3.0 x type, it started to over heat, and then started to leak from the T pipe that connects to the termostat housing,(PICTURE) i took it out to get it replaced, but it is hard to get the part so it will take a week or so, here are my questions :

how bad is it to take out the thermostat and reconnect the system ? i did it on my explorer 2005 and have had it runnung for a year now without the thermostat, it is very hot where i am and it reached 50 degrees C not too long ago, i have not had over heat problems with my ford since. but the jag is different, so,, can I do that ?

Next question is, when taking out the setup, the gasket for the water pump housing was broken,

again, getting spare parts is a big issue, so should I use the instant gasket maker, the red stuff and spread it around , will that be sufficient ?

lastly, i had to do this without the helpful youtube videos since i could not find one, if anyone has a video showing how to take out the radiator fan out of the way, that would be very helpful...

Thank you.

 

I replaced my thermostat a few months ago. Pretty simple, just drain the coolant from the drain plug, then get under the car. The thermostat is secured by 3 hex bolts, and a clamp. The picture here shows the thermostat location (on the left). If I remember correctly you will need a driver extension to get to the bolts. I also added an extra clamp and zip tie as you can see (i think it was not firmly secured with the original clamp).

 

fofodaman, atleast from my experience, running without the thermostat will actually cause the car to run too cool and lead to horrible gas mileage (I went from 24 mpg to around 15). My temp gauge would only come up to about the 1/4 mark vice half way like normal. I didn't do this on purpose. My thermostat came apart on its own and caused it to essentially not be there.