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Low Coolant & Sweet Smell Outside Vehicle

rutherk1

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The buffing sound between the motor and tranny… you have the 10 speed? There is a documented issue with the Ford/GM 10 speed that may do this. My old truck did it. I haven’t heard yours but may be something to look into.

Good luck

My Bronco smells like burnt hair when turned off and sitting in the sun :)
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cowman

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All of your evidence of a leak could be in the picture. The dried brown splatters. The old orange coolant used to leave the brown residue that looks like dried mud.. I am not sure if the new green coolant does the same thing. It may be the connection at the coolant bottle. It looks like it's dripping from the coolant line.
Old coolant was green new is orange
 
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GrabberBlue

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Always keep a bottle of Mountain Dew in the trunk just in case you're low on coolant.

BTW: It would be good to know which engine your Bronco is equipped with for helping others.

We haven't had this issue with this on our 2019 Ranger (2.3/10AT)
I have the 2.7.

All of your evidence of a leak could be in the picture. The dried brown splatters. The old orange coolant used to leave the brown residue that looks like dried mud.. I am not sure if the new green coolant does the same thing. It may be the connection at the coolant bottle. It looks like it's dripping from the coolant line.
It's definitely slow leaking around those hoses on the overlfow reservoir. You can see the streaks, and stains even on the felt fender liner. It's just very slow and the water evaporates out before it drops anywhere further.
My guess, from the photo, is the reservoir has an issue. Either a seam on the tank is not sealed or there is a crack somewhere above the current level.
I can explain for that...I know I'm a rarity but it's been off-road and it's first bath off the lot wasn't with a hose. You should have seen the engine bay afterwards before I cleaned it. I will wipe the mud and muddy water off the reservoir as a precaution if there is a leak.












The buffing sound between the motor and tranny… you have the 10 speed? There is a documented issue with the Ford/GM 10 speed that may do this. My old truck did it. I haven’t heard yours but may be something to look into.

Good luck

My Bronco smells like burnt hair when turned off and sitting in the sun :)
Yes, it's the 10 Speed. I just checked out some videos and lots of techs saying how noisey they are with examples. So I'll just chalk it up as normal.
 
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94Bravo

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Old coolant was green new is orange
Material: Motorcraft® Yellow Concentrated Antifreeze/Coolant / VC-13-G
Sorry, I should have said yellow. It has a green tint to it. Green coolant was very old 2003ish back. prior to the yellow(current color) the coolant was orange.
 

cowman

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Material: Motorcraft® Yellow Concentrated Antifreeze/Coolant / VC-13-G
Sorry, I should have said yellow. It has a green tint to it. Green coolant was very old 2003ish back. prior to the yellow(current color) the coolant was orange.
Ford Bronco Low Coolant & Sweet Smell Outside Vehicle 1631134030109
 

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94Bravo

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Bwaggs83

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I have been smelling a faint but distinct sweet smell of coolant lately.

Decided to pop the hood this morning before driving and found this:

Ford Bronco Low Coolant & Sweet Smell Outside Vehicle 1631134030109


Haven't found any signs of leaking, I ordered up a bottle of Ford yellow to top it off and keep on hand. Will take it in once the hard top replacement comes in.

Issues so far:
  • Low coolant level & smell.
  • Oil capacity doesn't match materials (Takes 6, calls for 7).
  • Buffing noise in/around back of engine/transmission area.
  • Bad MIC top.
If it's anything like my VW Atlas that thing smells like coolant all the time but no leak found under pressure testing. I hope the 2.7 doesn't have the same issue.
 

rdass623

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trace all of your hoses for the cooling system. there may be a chafed hose which is leaking when under pressure (hot). also you bring it to your local mechanic who can pressure check it and look for leaks..
 

The Pope

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Bottom Line - It's Still Under Warrantee.... If you find an issue, take it to your dealer... they should top off the coolant for free as well.....
 
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GrabberBlue

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Bottom Line - It's Still Under Warrantee.... If you find an issue, take it to your dealer... they should top off the coolant for free as well.....
(Most) Service Departments are about as capable as a Jiffy Lube. The newness of the Bronco makes repairs even harder thanks to parts unavailability, unfamiliarity and service manual errors.
 

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Hopeless Diamond

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Always keep a bottle of Mountain Dew in the trunk just in case you're low on coolant.
Actually just keep taking a lot of vitamin B12, then you can make your own...
 

AZMikeL

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With us making runs at 110 degrees here this week, it could be just expansion of the coolant due to the high temps.

My '15 superduty really needs 2 min lines - "min summer" and "min winter" on the coolant bottle. When I check this time of year, if it's within an inch below the min, I don't even bother as it will just end up on the 101 somewhere if I top it off. Once thanksgiving hits, then I stand a pretty good chance of keeping it up to the 'min' line for a few months!
 

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Check all of your hose clamps. Early Raptors had an issue with the spring tension clamps not gripping the hose. Similar symptoms.
 
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GrabberBlue

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Just got back from the Moab Off-Roadeo, ALL of the Broncos there reeked of coolant like ours. So not sure what's going on but it's definitely a larger issue.
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