Hey all -- newb here as well and also a non-mechanically minded female. Having a heck of a time dealing with my 97 F150. Ran out of coolant early Nov, thought I must have done something wrong although never figured out where that coolant went. I had the coolant system flushed and went about a month and all was fine. Now I have the putred smell of coolant in my truck. Thursday night my windows fogged up badly so took it to a mechanic and was told I had a hole in my radiator. So I had a new one installed. Guess what? I still smell coolant in my truck. No visible coolant stains on carpet, supposedly no visible leaks anywhere else. I'm at my wits end. Is it possible to check the heatercore without taking the truck apart? I don't know what to do next the truck seems to run fine except for that smell. I tote my son in the truck with me is the smell of coolant harmful?

 

You have a bad heater core, it very common and very involved to fix. Entire dash gets removed. The one grand dollar amount is not unheard of at dealership. No other signs because a slight leak smells badly and evaporates before it can puddle.
Oh am I would find new mechanic, a radiator leak would not smell interior of truck, he was throwing parts and your dollars at it.

 

bigdaddy do you still have that documentation on how to replace the heater core. My email is Icewolf0927@yahoo.com