JD6

hey all, one night my wife was driving my 87 F150 when a clamp on a water hose busted. The truck oveheated and she kept on driving till the power steering and power brakes went out. When I got there, it was still smoking, no water in the engine, but all over the engine. I waited till it cooled down some and put some coolant/water back in it and was able to drive it back home,only 4 miles away, with no problems and no overheating. The next day when I replaced the clamp and went to start the truck, it only clicked once. Now thats all it does. the battery is fairly new and had no starting issues before. I dont get why it ran so well after it overheated and now it wont do nothing but click. What am I missing ??
thanks

ma94xlt

If uou have 12v on battery, sounds like starter. Try tapping on starter case while cranking.. If that still doesnt work, check big wire ar starter with volt meter while cranking, should get battery vlotage. If you got battery voltage, most likely starter.

Welder7018

Relay shorted out, starter shorted, or bad battery.

JD6

Ok, i will look into the starter and relay and post back.....thanks

LobstahClaw

If the power steering went out there's a fair chance it's because the serpentine belt failed in some way while she was driving.

A failed belt would stop the water pump from turning and the truck would overheat.

A failed belt would also stop the alternator from turning and after a few miles it would have drained your battery.

Check your serpentine belt. If it turns out that the belt was the problem check your radiator cap as well. The cap was supposed to relieve the pressure before a hose blew off.

Also: Check to see if your water pump or anything else that's driven by the belt siezed. That could also cause the problems you described.

DuctTape

My truck overheated this week due to the same problem, and also wouldn't start. What happened was...my starter solenoid connection got wet as a result of the broken water hose, and it got touchy. I'd pull the solenoid wire off your starter and clean it with some sandpaper, and then reconnect it. Coolant is very corrosive and fast acting, so that's probably your problem.

Warlockk

Before you start changing anything do some diagnostic. Try cranking the engine by hand to make sure nothing is seized. Check the belt for damage and make sure all the accessories spin freely. Once you know everything can move then start checking your starting system. Check for voltage drop when you crank. Check your ground wires. The heat may have damaged them. Check your alternator, it would have been soaked with coolant.

13Harleyfan

Turn your headlights on, if they work leave them on and try and start it, if voltage is being pulled from the battery the lights should dim, try to turn the engine over by hand to verify that it still spins-make sure the battery is disconnected-if it turns over and all your electrical connections look clean and tight, take the starter to the auto parts store for testing.

13Harleyfan

Not trying to step on any toes, but coolant is not corrosive, it is a lubricant. the radiator cap is designed to pressurize the cooling system, that is why caps are rated in pounds, for each pound of pressure you place on the system it raises the boiling point of the liquid by 7 degrees.

LobstahClaw

The radiator cap doesn't build pressure.

It's simply an over pressure relief valve.

T & P relief valves are very common safety devices. Just look on your boiler or water heater. You also find them on hot water coils.

They're built into the top of every propane tank you use.

They're also used in private & municipal fresh water systems. That way if there's a failure in the pressure switch your pipes don't get blown apart.