Contour Enthusiasts Group Archives Forums General Troubleshooting Problems with possible overheating!!!!!

I'm not sure if this is as bad as I am thinking so... I was driving home from work tonight and I happen to look down and the temp gauge is hovering between the L on normal and the last red line on the gauge. Never went over the line but, it never went back down. I pull in the drive, the fan never kicked on, the antifreeze level is good, and I cannot see anything else wrong. I turned it off, went inside for 30-45 min, came back out started it up and drove it around again to see if I could replicate it.
As soon as I pull onto main st. the damn thing starts climbing again.

So the question is, am I freaking out about nothing... or... did I notice it before something goes out, eg. water pump, thermostat, etc...

By the way, the car is a 98 zetec, atx w/ 69,800 miles.

Thanks for any input in advance.

Overheating is never a good sign.

Depending on if your vehicle has a dual or single cooling fan, check these points :


For The SINGLE COOLING FAN

ENGINE COOLING FAN CONTROL RESISTOR CONNECTOR
GROUND WIRE ON RADIATOR SUPPORT
A/C CLUTCH CONNECTOR
POWER DISTRIBUTION HARNESS CONNECTORS
ENGINE COOLING FAN AND A/C CLUTCH CYCLING SWITCH CONNECTORS


For the DUAL COOLING FAN

A/C CLUTCH CONNECTOR
PASSENGER-SIDE ENGINE COOLING FAN CONNECTOR
DRIVER-SIDE ENGINE COOLING FAN CONNECTOR
ENGINE COOLING FAN CONTROL RESISTOR CONNECTOR
GROUND WIRE ON RADIATOR SUPPORT
POWER DISTRIBUTION HARNESS CONNECTORS
A/C CLUTCH CYCLING SWITCH CONNECTOR
COOLING FAN DIODE


check for possible corrosion or burned terminals... broken or cracked wires/insulation.


good luck

If you are driving at highway speeds, especially in the winter, you normally don't need the fan anyway. Normally, there is enough air flow from the movement of the car to keep the radiator cool at highway speeds. If you were driving slow, or stop and go, that's another story. You may have a problem with the temperature sender, or the gauge.