Contour Enthusiasts Group Archives Forums General Troubleshooting overheating?

i just inherited my mom's 98 mystique as a daily driver. it only has 32k miles on it, but i'm a little stumped with a cooling problem.


it the zetec engine with an automatic trans.

the temperature gauge gets all the way to the "A" in "normal" before the fans kick on. then, of course, the gauge goes way down, to "0" or "R".

i changed the ect sensor, the one that tells the fans to kick on, and it didn't change the temp at which it tells them to kick on, so that's not it.

to make sure there wasn't a cooling problem, i changed the thermostat, put in new coolant, and even added "water wetter", since it worked so well on my mustang. (by the way...a plastic drain plug in the worst place possible to drain the coolant...baaaad ford, baaaad ford!)

now, the temp when driving around normally hovers around the "0". but, extended idling in traffic sends the needle to "A". on the highway, the needle won't make it above "0".

is this where everyone's fans kick on? shouldn't they kick on earlier?

thanks for the help.

tim

Mine does the same thing when sitting in traffic. For what it is worth....

Im assuming you have a pre98 because of the fact that you have "normal" written on the gauge cluster. In which case Ford put in a really low degree temperature sending unit. So really when the temp is hitting that "a" on "normal" its actually only at about 190-200 degrees. Which isnt that hot. Thats when the computer is SUPPOSED to kick on the fans. So you have nothing to worry about, if you are really concerned, you can get a lower degree thermostat and a full coolant flush. Enjoy the mystique... its rare to find one that old with that few of miles on it... and before I forget...

WELCOME TO CEG!

hey, thanks you guys. my mind is now at ease.

i was completely prepared to dislike the car, being "underpowered" and all that. but, especially with todays gas prices, i'm liking the 30mpg and smooth ride....at least compared to a mustang.