Can get new valve and core from www.AutoKrafters or www.Rockauto.com. There are probably more but these are the first to come to mind. I got mine from AK abt yr ago, just got arnd to putting it back together last month. Nice to have heat here in the midwest. If you got AC, might as well replace the exp. valve if u plan on using the ac while u have it out. Also, have the evap. tested - U don't want to pull that box out but once - At least I don't want to do it agn.
Man,that's pretty crummy! I have seen worse,though! I would check your freeze plugs. Poke them with a screwdriver and they might poke right through! It's better to find out now before you put new antifreeze in it. By the way,if they are bad,flush the engine with them out. You'll be able to scrape around in the block and get a lot more crud out! Good Luck on it! I know it's a pain,but your car will be much more reliable when you are done!
Clean water flushing 2x works well to get the big stuff, getting it to operating temp with a flush chemical(designed for cooling systems) will get even more and Ford sells a pH neutralizer and Iron cleaner (Ford motorcraft # VC-9) that works well to stop the oxidation process. (Use this as directed, don't leave it in the system). Like the others have mentioned, the radiator and heater core will collect the particles, so even if they're not leaking, they are probably full of rust, scale, etc. Do all of the flushing you can before you replace the rad/heater core so you don't fill up your new heat exchangers with junk. It may take flushing the thing periodically for a while to get it all, and the key is to get the oxidation process to stop. I personally use 50/50 distilled or purified(with no minerals added) water and green antifreeze and I change the coolant every 2yrs. If the heater core isn't leaking, try flushing it backwards from the original coolant flow. (intake manifold supply line is "in", water pump is "return") Hope this helps
When I did mine, I discovered the heater hose connections on the water pump where rotted through. they wern't leaking but when I took the old hoses off, there was nothing but rust holding them together. Check that before you put it back together. a water pump is pretty cheap and easy to replace when you have that much crud in the system.
Mine's not that bad but I'm sure this is the OEM pump so it couldn't hurt to change it now to try eliminate a promblem in the future.
It will work fine, but it is an acidic product that can seep into the spaces at the head gasket. If the gasket is marginal, then it will eat its way into the area that the gasket was weak or cracked.
