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How-to

1992 Ford Bronco Thermostat Replacement

1992 Ford Bronco · Repair · Moderate

Documented by SuperMotors from Bill Crozier’s photos

The thermostat and its housing gasket were replaced on a 1992 Ford Bronco. The old thermostat was pried out, both sealing faces were scraped and sanded clean, and a new thermostat was installed with silicone and a fresh gasket before the cooling system was refilled.

  1. Step 1

    Gather a 12MM long socket or a shorty with a small extension, pliers for the pinch style hose clamp on the thermostat, a screwdriver for the heater hose clamps, WD-40, and a stepladder for reaching into the engine bay.

    Here are the tools you will need. 12MM long socket or a shorty with a small extension Plyers to take off the "pinch style" hose clamp on th… (1992 Ford Bronco)

  2. Step 2

    Remove the air intake hoses and soak the housing bolts with WD-40 well ahead of the job; Bill Crozier soaked them for three days. Pull the upper radiator hose off the housing and push it aside, and take the small heater hose off the housing first and then off the water pump completely to get it out of the way, which Bill Crozier found easier.

    Here we can see what we are dealing with. I removed the air intake hoses already and I have been soaking the housing bolts for three days w… (1992 Ford Bronco) The upper radiator hose was simply removed from the housing and shoved to the side. I found it easier to take the heater hose off of the ho… (1992 Ford Bronco)

  3. Step 3

    Remove the housing bolts with the 12MM socket and lift the housing off. Pry the thermostat out with a screwdriver and note the condition of the housing and the engine side.

    I was able to take the bolts out using the 12MM and nothing snapped. (yah me!!!) This is what we are looking at. The thermostat has seen be… (1992 Ford Bronco) And this is the nasty engine side. (1992 Ford Bronco)

  4. Step 4

    Scrape the old gasket off the housing, clean the face with sandpaper, clean up the hose inserts and wipe everything down with a rag. Sand and wipe out the engine side the same way, then start the truck for a few seconds so water flushes out anything missed.

    This is after scraping off the nasty gasket and hitting it with sandpaper to clean it up. Once I finished this, I also cleaned up the hose… (1992 Ford Bronco) I also hit the engine side with sandpaper and wiped it out the best that I could. Once wiped out, I started the truck for a few seconds so… (1992 Ford Bronco)

  5. Step 5

    Fit the new thermostat into the housing with the correct side facing in. Bill Crozier warns that the truck will run hot if it is reversed.

    When putting the new thermostat back in the housing, make sure you put the correct side in. If it is reversed, the truck will run hot. (1992 Ford Bronco)

  6. Step 6

    Apply silicone to the housing, getting all the way around the bolt holes. Set the gasket on next, followed by more silicone, which is not pictured.

    First, I put silicone on the housing itself. Make sure you get around the bolt holes. (1992 Ford Bronco) Then put on the gasket and (not pictured) more silicone. (1992 Ford Bronco)

  7. Step 7

    Put the housing back on the engine, finger tighten both bolts and then just snug them with the socket rather than cranking them down. Spray WD-40 inside the hoses to make them easier to refit, then fill the radiator with water, test drive the truck and top off the overflow.

    and finally, put the housing back on the engine. I had already sprayed the bolts with WD-40 at this point. Finger tighten both bolts and th… (1992 Ford Bronco)

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