still overheating!!!! WTF!!!!

[313blkstang]

Ok.. Got the fan replaced and it does work but now my car goes wayyyy too far to the right on the temp gauge.. I mean it goes all the way over between the A and the L and sometimes all the way on the L.. Now if I'm driving on the highway it will pretty much stay between the M and the A but when I'm sittin at a light or whatever it creeps over to that frickin L!!!! My question bredren is this.. should I have the radiator and water pump replaced? I have a new thermostat and fresh coolant from my intake manifold install. I also need a new serp belt. Or should I have the coolant system flushed first? Please give me some suggestions... thanx bredrens!!!! :comando:

 

[firstonraceday]

you sure the fans are working?

 

[313blkstang]

yeah cuz I can hear it when its running, well when I got out of the car it was running. I did a search on overheating and I see this is a common issue with my year ('96).. I think I'm going to start with a coolant system flush and then a better radiator..

 

[MeanGrn Gt]

1st get a decent gauge and make sure there is no air in the system

 

[jfor441]

Dude... I went through the same thing you did last year. I replaced the fan, thermostat and water pump. Then I figured only thing left is the radiator. Found a 96 mustang in a junkyard and pulled the radiator. Now my car only start to overheat when I run the AC. My next step is to get a Fluidyne radiator.

After searching around, Ford revised the radiator system in 97 because of the issues the 96's had. Also make sure that you have that plastic piece that diverts air up over the radiator. It's at the bottom of the front bumper.

 

[jfor441]

Oh yeah.... I also had my radiator flushed. That didn't help. Just a defect in the factory cooling system.

 

[AaRoN]

i am having this problem now with the new p.i. motor. tech said it may have something to do with the different water pump.

 

[313blkstang]

Dude... I went through the same thing you did last year. I replaced the fan, thermostat and water pump. Then I figured only thing left is the radiator. Found a 96 mustang in a junkyard and pulled the radiator. Now my car only start to overheat when I run the AC. My next step is to get a Fluidyne radiator.

After searching around, Ford revised the radiator system in 97 because of the issues the 96's had. Also make sure that you have that plastic piece that diverts air up over the radiator. It's at the bottom of the front bumper.

will definitely get it checked for air in the system.. but I'm starting to realize that it's a design flaw so I'm gonna look into getting another radiator soon. Today actually wasn't so bad.. took surface streets home from work (20miles) and it mostly stayed between the R and M only venturing over to the M sporadically.. But I'm still gonna get that radiator... I love this site!!!

 

[jfor441]

Droptoppomy posted a link to a guy on ebay that has Fluidyne radiators for like 360 plus 40 for shipping. Thats still cheaper than anywhere else I have found. Plus, it's all aluminum so if you ever get a leak in it, it can be repaired. The problem with the having the plastic resovoirs on the stock radiators is when they start leaking they can't be fixed.

When I get the new motor ready to put in there is gonna be a new radiator go in with it.

 

[19inchmustang]

HAVE YOU CHECKED YOUR FREEZE PLUGS 2 SEE IF THEIR LEAKING

 

[stanger2125]

Yes its true, in hot wheater if you sit in traffic, the temp gauge will max and then when it hits 214 dgrees or so, the fan start up. And when you drive on the highway evrerything is normal. Mine does that too. That's probably because we have underdrive pulleys. You see at idle, the waterpump spin a bit slower than with stock pulleys. Maybe that's why you see something odd. Tell me if i make any sence.

 

[AaRoN]

Yes its true, in hot wheater if you sit in traffic, the temp gauge will max and then when it hits 214 dgrees or so, the fan start up. And when you drive on the highway evrerything is normal. Mine does that too. That's probably because we have underdrive pulleys. You see at idle, the waterpump spin a bit slower than with stock pulleys. Maybe that's why you see something odd. Tell me if i make any sence.

that makes sense. alot of stangers with udp's experience either charging or cooling issues. sometimes both. that's why it's good to just use the stock alt. pulley.

 

[313blkstang]

I've had my UDP's for a couple years now.. never had this issue til this year.. I switched to a 180 therm and no rel change... I think I'll have the system professionally flushed.. after that, new raditor perhaps..

 

[9psi 98]

Yes its true, in hot wheater if you sit in traffic, the temp gauge will max and then when it hits 214 dgrees or so, the fan start up. And when you drive on the highway evrerything is normal. Mine does that too. That's probably because we have underdrive pulleys. You see at idle, the waterpump spin a bit slower than with stock pulleys. Maybe that's why you see something odd. Tell me if i make any sence.

that makes sense. alot of stangers with udp's experience either charging or cooling issues. sometimes both. that's why it's good to just use the stock alt. pulley.

Yup, that would have been me and my 88GT that had UDP on it. Overheating in traffic and a dead battery were a daily event. It was so bad that I actually put a volt meter in my car so I could see if it was charging enough. To this day I still back into every parking spot that I go into, just cause of my old car that constantly needed a jump start or roll started by myself. I ditched the UDP's for a stock setup and never again had any problems. If all else fails, you may want to give that a try, the 96's had cooling problems anyway without having UDP's to compound the problem. Red line makes a product called "water wetter" It made my car run 10-15deg cooler.

 

[96 blue moon]

When I first started installing mods to my motor one of the things that I bought was the UDP and noticed the temp rising just a tab. Before SCT came out with their tuner I had bought the Superchip tuner and I could actually program for the fans to come on sooner when I was sitting at a traffic light. I have since then did several mods to my motor including installing the SCT tuner with my original stock radiator and do not have an overheating issue because my fans are demanded to come on sooner. You might want to try this if you have a SCT tuner. Also, when you replaced your thermostat how did you fill your cooling system? The reason I am asking you this question is because whenever you drain your cooling system on the 4.6L and after you have done your repairs to the cooling system you should always remove your thermostat and then fill your intake so you will not have any air pockets in the cooling sysytem. After the intake is filled just reinstall your thermostat and top off your overflow bottle. Ford has a TSB bulliten to do it this way. I hope this helps your problem.

 

[313blkstang]

Thanks for the tips... I have another question.. A lot of my friends have been telling me to simply remove the thermostat all together.. Will this make that much of a difference?

 

[96 blue moon]

I would not remove the thermostat. That will not solve your overheating problem. I would install a 160 or a 180 degree thermostat but I would not remove the thermostat. :thumb:

 

[9psi 98]

Thanks for the tips... I have another question.. A lot of my friends have been telling me to simply remove the thermostat all together.. Will this make that much of a difference?

A lot of your friends aren't too informed in the world of the internal combustion engine.... Removing that thermostat doesn't give the radiator time to cool the coolant that is being held in there by the thermostat. If you take it out, your engine seem to run cooler for a very short time because it has a greater amount of water to cool. It will gradually heat up and will never cool down. Taking it out will only compound your problem.

 

[jfor441]

Hey man. If you have a 96GT, then your problem is the radiator design. Ford changed it in 97. I know I started I having cooling issues last summer whenever I would drive my car with the AC on. As long as I am moving I am ok but the minute I get into stop and go traffic I can watch temp gauge creep up. I just bought a new radiator that will be going in this weekend and I'll report back how it works for me. It should fix my cooling issues and then I can start running the AC in these hot ass humid Alabama summers.

 

[danroadking]

I had the same problem but I solved buying a 25 dollars 160 degrees thermostat (however I first change the water pump, radiator, sensors, and flush the system) :S