Can overheating (because of no cooliant) cause your freeze plugs to blow out?

 

I would think your block would crack (a terminal condition) before your freeze plugs would "blow out". If your cooling system is not maintained properly on these cars (and you've got to flush them out annually to maintain them properly because they tend to sludge up constantly), your freeze plugs can corrode and rust out. This happened on my Dad's car. The first one blew out near the power steering pump - no big deal to replace because it was relatively easy to get to. The second one, however, resulted in a $700 bill because the tranny had to be de-coupled to reach it.

Moral to the story: if you own a Ford Taurus, stay on top of your cooling sytem. Otherwise you're in for some big bills...

 

It could happen - but likely the block would have major troubles first. Steam pressure from leftover coolant in the system could build high pressure. If it overheated I'd check into another engine since block mating surfaces can warp at high temperatures and cause trouble assembling new parts - and if you have an internal fracture in the block it could wreak havok until you're at wits end - check it out first (machine shop-magnaflux) if you're going to reuse it - that will save you a lot of mysterious headaches. Chances are if you didn't drive too long after overheating it might be OK -but only a good machine shop can tell you for sure since the hairline fractures that could occur aren't able to be seen most times.