Can you weld the water inlet to the thermostat housing

[Luzvel]

I got in a bad motorcycle accident & broke my whole lower body so I been in a wheelchair & my girl tried to replace the thermostat on the car because it overheated on us but when she was bolting it back together she broke the bolt off & we have a 1 year old daughter that really needs the ac since my Jeep doesn’t have ac she’s always fuzzy. I was wondering if the thermostat housing can be welded onto the water inlet. Everyone I’ve asked has asked me what’s the engine made out of but I don’t know & also I already bought another hose that allows you to put the thermostat in it itself so in case if the thermostat ever goes out again we don’t have to sell the car for like $60. It’s a 2002 v6

 

[6 Shooter]

Think that the thermostat housing is made of aluminum. Not sure if you broke a bolt or broke the flange, or cracked the housing. If you can remove both bolts and pull the housing off, think you can purchase one at Rockauto 2002 FORD MUSTANG 3.8L V6 Thermostat Housing / Water Outlet | RockAuto or maybe even Autozone.

Or did you break that black Steel tubing that goes into the water pump housing and continues down the driver's side of the motor?

 

[Sam36]

Ouch. Best bet is to get an ez-out or bolt extractor. Start with a really small drill bit, like 3/32". You're drilling steel and the bit is also made of steel, so go slow. No more than 1000rpms. If the broken bolt is too jagged and the bit keeps "walking" on you, the next tip is to use a tiny rotary ball file to put a "dimple" on the bolt. That will help the bit to not walk and stay straight.

Not sure what size those bolts are, I am assuming 1/4". So get the biggest ez-out that will fit and drill it to something between 3/16" and 1/4", I guess 7/32". Get the most expensive "made in america" ez-out you can find. Any cheap chinese junk will just break off and you're really screwed then.

Oh and get a really small 1/4" drive ratchet set. That will make breaking bolts off much harder Pawn shop would have plenty for cheap.

 

[Luzvel]

Think that the thermostat housing is made of aluminum. Not sure if you broke a bolt or broke the flange, or cracked the housing. If you can remove both bolts and pull the housing off, think you can purchase one at Rockauto 2002 FORD MUSTANG 3.8L V6 Thermostat Housing / Water Outlet | RockAuto or maybe even Autozone. View attachment 167027

Or did you break that black Steel tubing that goes into the water pump housing and continues down the driver's side of the motor?

I think it’s done for. I tried using extracting tools but it didn’t work so I think it now needs a lower intake. I broke a bolt off onto where the housing attaches to. Thank you guys a lot !

 

[Sam36]

If you are going to take the lower intake off, might as well take it to a machine shop and see what they'd charge to get the bolt out. I'd assume it would be in the $20-$50 range. A used intake will probably be over $100...

Lots of small bolts on the intake too, so get a small ratchet or torque wrench and don't break any more bolts

 

[6 Shooter]

The bolt is steel. The lower intake housing is aluminum. Thus, you could have a shop weld a nut onto the broken bolt without affecting the aluminum housing which would be a huge heat sink. The welding of the nut causes the broken bolt to get real hot which also loosens the corrosion after being cooled with water after welding. The nut welded to the threaded broken bolt will now unscrew.

Yes, the lower intake removal is a PITA and probably best done by a shop instead of your GF. The upper has to come off, then the lower. If you called a welding shop and got the thermostat housing off and out of the way, the welding could probably be done without removal of the upper or the lower. But, you would have to pull the steel tubing sunk into the water pump to gain access for welding. Will say not every shop would accept an attempt at this project with the lower intake still on the motor. Just first call around and ask. If you go this route, be sure to disconnect the PCM from the car and the battery cables as well. Welding on a motor could destroy some sensors and fry the PCM if the welding is not grounded very well to the motor.

In any case, once the bolt is removed, be sure to use a 6mm tap to clean the threads and lube the new bolt with some grease before the install.