Well originally all I wanted to do was replace the o-ring and stop the thermostat from leaking. But that didn't go to well and I got coolant everywhere.

So I had a read of my Gregorys and decided I'll just flush the whole system. Ofcourse I missed the bit about having to remove the radiator and fans. After the initial shock I decided to go on.

Now I followed my Gregorys and removed the fans and radiator and the radiator is basically ready to be cleaned up.

I did buy a new o-ring, the old one was not looking good. I did not purchase a gasket and the one I have removed (some Made in England) one looks fine, and seems to operate correctly (though I'm not sure how they work, lol). So seeing as I've pulled the whole system apart should I just buy a new one, and from where?

I removed the piping from the top-right of the radiator to the thermostat and the one from the middle-left of raditor to some section under the power steering pump. They seem okay, but look old. Shoud I replace them too? Where from? How much? If they going to cost heaps and they should be right I'll just reuse them.

Finally there is the coolant refill issue. I have a 5lt bottle that I picked up from Repco. The guy pour the whole 5lt bottle in then just fill with water until full. Does that sound right?

I think that's everything. But if there are any things that MUST be done when I put everything back together and fill it up, please let me know. I'm talking the kind of mistake that could cost me an engine or a head gasket.

And here are the pictures:~

One of the pipes: http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v257/till_lind/cf/01.jpg

Both pipes: http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v257/till_lind/cf/10.jpg

Space left by radiator: http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v257/till_lind/cf/02.jpg
Can I remove that big black thing and clean it somehow? Or just leave it?

Thermostat base: http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v257/till_lind/cf/03.jpg

Thermostat top: http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v257/till_lind/cf/04.jpg

Gasket: http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v257/till_lind/cf/05.jpg

Gasket spring: http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v257/till_lind/cf/06.jpg

Gasket top: http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v257/till_lind/cf/07.jpg

Radiator: http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v257/till_lind/cf/08.jpg
Am I right to spray water anywhere on that? I know I'm to be gentle when cleaning it too.

Fans: http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v257/till_lind/cf/09.jpg

Coolant: http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v257/till_lind/cf/11.jpg

Under power steering pump, left-front of engine: http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v257/till_lind/cf/12.jpg
Corrosion and s**t a worry?

Same bit from above link: http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v257/till_lind/cf/13.jpg

Cheers for help guys.

for the coolant just chuck it in and top it up with 10 litres of distilled water as the cooling system capacity is 15 litres. seeing as you have the hoses off just replace them for piece of mind. as for the corrosion, i just sanded it all back but bear in mind that the buildup is blocking leaks so you might need to attack it with silicone

Attack it with silicone? And normal water just won't do eh?

What you've listed sounds right...just follow the gregorys you'll be right...

Oh and I've ALWAYS used normal tap water .. never had any issues...I guess it's more a long term "issue" if anything...

While the radiator is out take it to natrad and get it serviced and flushed they do really good work. he reckons the e serirs radiators always get blocked, mine was 70% blocked. it made a huge difference in engine temp. i think about $60 all up and he threw in two bottles on concentrate for free.

The coolant/corrosion inhibitor has enough chemicals to neutralise anything in tap water, unless you water is 'hard' or its bore water or something, its not going to be a problem.

yeah on my first falc i had mine replaced. the guy at natrad showed me and it was 80 clogged full of this much that was almost like concrete. he said e series ones were normally prone to clogging up but he had never seen anything that bad before

As Kezz said, replace those radiator hoses, particularly that bottom one that looks like its stretched.

If you take your radiator to be serviced make sure they are removing the tanks and replacing the tank seals. A quote I got was $70 to clean radaitor plus $20 for new seals.

The corosion on your water pump should be ok for a while. Bear in mind the pump will need replacing the near future. Brush off all loose corosion before installing the hose.

Most coolant is a concentrate that must be diluted, the instructions should be on the bottle. De-min water is the best, however I have always just used tap water.

I AGREE with you all when looking at the pics.i would replace the pipe near the themsaste it looks a bit dodgy if you are going to get the radeater done replace all hoses even the heater ones .and put in a new thermosat.as well . when you put it back togeather dont for get to bleed it. start car put it on the heater and put it on face .get car upto running temp and chaek leval again .sorry bout spelling writing farst running late for work

Gyah 100% tap water on a gasket blower. noooooo!

Say what now?

I just called Ford. New gasket is cheap, but the top pipe is $39.10 and bottom one is $29.10, do I need to use genuine ones?

UPDATE: Repco has top hose for $14.50 and bottom for $16. Okay to buy these ones?

nar just hit up supercheap or something and they should have the hoses you need.

I use normal tap water with a bottle of good coolant such as that tectaloy 90+ s**t cause i get it free. Also i use a can of the anti rust and corrision just because thats what i learnt to do because im not using de mineralised water. Also when i redo mine im going to put demineralised water in because i can get a teacher at school to accidently leave a 11 goon sack of it out side. LMAO

I should re-phrase that, tap water with coolant! not 100% tap water!

Haha, dw, didn't take that literally.

Well car is back together again and initial reports are good. Everything seems to be A-okay.

EDIT: Initial fluctuations in the temp (just Normal and below) is normal, right?