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Overheating, constantly running hot, any suggestions?

D

Dendel

Be Gentle I'm New Here
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Aug 1, 2006
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2
I have a 97 Contour with 4cyl Zetec. I've had it for a little over a year, and it has always tended to run hot (needle on the temp gauge usually resting between the "M" and "L"), but now it is constantly pushing into the edge of the "red" area.

The needle will drop when I can drive swiftly (like on the highway) but when I drive around town, it will go up rapidly. My first thought is that the thermostat is stuck, as the needle will go to the middle section of the temp gauge, then immediately drop down, then go back up again.

I read the Haynes manual for changing the thermostat, but it would require me to drain out the cooling system, and I don't really have access to do that myself (I live in a shared dwelling, I don't have enough clearance to get under the car with my jack) and I can't seem to even locate where the thermostat is!

Does this sound like a simple stuck thermostat, or is this indicative of further issues? I have read a few old threads on here where people took their car in for overheating, and had water pumps and all kinds of things replaced but still had the same issue.

Can anyone assist me? Thanks.
 
First thing, How many miles are on the car? Has the radiator ever been flushed and refilled with new coolant? Possibly change thermostat at the same time as doing a radiator flush. If you cannot work on your own car then you should take it somewhere to work on it or take it in.
Overheating a car multiple times can dramatically reducer they life of the engine or even crack the block, warp the heads, or blow the head gasket.
 
It could be the waterpump, if the heater doesn't put out much heat. Could also be the cooling fan system.
 
it's got 110k on it.

I have been getting what I would consider a "normal" amount of heat when I use the heater......

I will likely take it to a local garage and have them check it out. I would like to get by with just a flush-and-fill and thermostat change, if that's what will fix it.

I don't want to dump too much money into the car, as I have an electrical problem as well (no output from rear spearkers. first the right quit working, then the left quit two weeks later) so I think i'll replace the car in a year, possibly.
 
It does sound like a themostat problem but you don't need to drain the fluid. They always tell you to do that. Just follow the rest of the directions. It's kind of like when they tell you to disconnect the battery for almost any work you do. You don't always need to! Anyway, back to the problem. You can do a easy check on the water pump. Remove the the belt and then spin the pump pully. It should move easily with no play. Anyway, I don't think it's the pump because they are designed to leak from the bottom when they go bad and you didn't mention anything about losing fluid.
 
The waterpump impeller is plastic, even on the Zetec. Sometimes fail, but not as often as the ones on the Duratec.
 
You probobly can't locate the thermostat housing because your intake is in the way. Once you get the intake system off, look directly to the drivers side of your valve cover, you'll see it. I don't think you NEED to drain the coolant, but there are 3 8mm bolts on the housing. The bottom one can be a pain, but won't take you too long.
 
Thermostat = easy as heck replacement! did mine in the parking lot of Auto Zone with some rental tools!
 
More likely your elec fan or relay

More likely your elec fan or relay

You say that it runs fine on the highway, which makes me think your cooling fan is not engaging. This can be caused by the fan itself, or the relay.
 
It sounds like the fan is not working properly. There are two relays in the engine compartment fuse box. One green, one black I forget which is high and low speed. One or both may not be working.

my 2 cents
 
projectSHO89 said:
The low speed dropping resistor is also a common failure.

Steve
Click to expand...

this is interesting, i was not aware this existed. Can you quickly run by me how that works?

My cars gauge likes to sit around the "M" and "A" and the odd time will go to the "L" when im stuck in traffic. But on the highway and as of really late, it will sit in front of the "N" or around the "O" and "R". Not too worried but does sound like the fan doesnt kick in until real late. Or is it designed like that?

The Thermostat is easy to change, as stated earlier. JUst need to remove resonator (for room) and remove the housing. Now to get to the coolant petcock is a real B*TCH. YOu have to remove the large plastic shroud under the car (also helps to turn the wheels out to get more room) and than you got to contort yourself to be able to reach the darned thing. Ive found using a stubby screwdriver works best.
 
Cooling Fan

Cooling Fan

It has got to be the cooling fan. If it was the thermostat, it wouldn't run cool on the freeway.
 
Try this classic topic from old CEG, it may help you test the fan system. The cooling fan should come on with a/c on.Fan topicAlso, could be waterpump, and some past CEG'ers have concluded you are experiencing normal operation.
 
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