Just a WAG could an idle air control motor cause this? Not sure if that could ever cause a no start or not....

 

That or a stuck open EGR valve. JP, does your engine has vacuum controlled EGR system or a electric motor driven? i.e. - do you have this:
http://i99.photobucket.com/albums/l2...enture/EGR.jpg

or this:
http://s20.postimg.org/yof9mrs65/egr1.jpg

 

I think you guys are right with a vacuum leak. i started the engine and took vacuum lines off and they had barley any pressure at all to the point of the engine barely noticed.

So if it a vacuum leak and i don't have a smoke machine how do i check for it?

the radiator looks low again but the over fill is normal at max. It did not over fill again after driving it the other night. Guess i will top the coolant off in the radiator for now as i haven't had time to flush it.

 

one of my programs Tells me its coming from the intake manifold gaskets. and when i looked down there they look like they are a bit leaky, and i have heard this is a common issue for monteros.

2 - Replaced Intake Manifold Gasket(s)
1 - Replaced Oxygen (O2) Sensor
1 - Replaced Brake Booster
1 - Cleaned Fuel Injector(s)
1 - Replaced Vacuum Hose/Line(s)


what do you guys think?

the other thing it said was vacuum hose lines which makes sense as well.

Either way i need to do the gaskets because they are leaking a little bit. and can try and trace down the vacuum lines while doing so. Its the perfect time to do so since i should do a tune up on it since i have no idea of the previous owners maintenance habits.

 

Yes, if you take off a big vacuum hose (i.e. brake booster) the engine should stumble and then recover. If you did not observe that - you have a massive leak.
Since you do not have a scantool to see live feed from the O2 sensors, you can get a can of starter fluid and with the engine running (at idle) spray a little of ether around different areas. Squirt a small amount onto the MAF connector, air boot, work your way towards the throttle body, and all around the engine. Once you find a spot where the vacuum leak is happening - the engine will pick up RPM momentarily. If that happens - repeat it near the same spot until you can figure out where exactly the leak is. It can be a bad (or missing) manifold gasket or something else like that. Vacuum brake boosters are common leak area. Also, once you find one spot - work through the rest of the engine to make sure that you do not have another one. I would suck to repair one spot only to find out that you still have a leak elsewhere.

 

Will it hurt anything to keep driving it as is? It's my only vehicle at the moment as I sold my old pos explorer.

 

double post

 

JP, you starting to sound panicked. Relax and take a step back from your tool box to regroup. Here is why:
1. Don't jump to any conclusions regarding a blown head gasket. If you insist on this being a possibility - get a chemical test kit and test coolant for blown head gasket.
2. There is no reason to replace valve cover gaskets when looking for a vacuum leak. Find and fix the vacuum leak first, then tackle the other issues/needs.
3. Bubbling sounds can be related to the fact that cooling system is not working right - not cycling fluid in and out of the overflow and thus developed an air pocket. Replace radiator cap, refill and bleed the cooling system. There is a bleeder screw next to the thermostat.
4. Make sure you get all air out of the system or you will have gurgling sounds and air pockets in the system (bad).
5. Leaking oil. Where does the oil go? Is it on the ground or does it simply get burned in the cylinders? If it's on the ground - crawl under and figure out where it is coming from. If it just "disappears" - then it's likely gets burned. With the older vehicles burning oil is not uncommon. As long as it is consistent rate and not excessive you are fine. The only way to fix that is a ring job which is a BIG project.

In conclusion - relax, take one step at a time, don't get over excited about ripping everything out before you know what you absolutely have to do.

 

Your right i am sorry i was panicking i thought the worst when i saw the oil level drop badly and then heard the bubbling. one thing at a time heh.

The valve cover gaskets do look like they are leaking oil though. The oil cap looks like it needs replaced as well its in crappy condition and could be contributing to the oil loss.

So for the radiator cap only OEM will work then? if so that sucks because the nearest dealer to me is a long drive or would take a while to ship me one. are used ones acceptable? if so i may check some wrecking yards.

Will continuing to drive it in its condition hurt it in your opinion as its my only vehicle at the moment.

Thank you for all the info and help thus far.

 

If you have to drive for awhile while waiting for the radiator cap, do the following - once engine cools off, top off the radiator with the coolant, open up bleeder screw to bleed out any trapped air. close screw back once fluid comes out, replace radiator cap and drive. It should be no problem for few days. I've done this myself when i was in the same situation 500 miles from home.