Contour Enthusiasts Group Archives Forums General Troubleshooting 95 mystique 2L overheating (fresh coolant, etc)

So this little problem has been going at us.. quite a few times in the past few years we've had the car, to make a long story short it sat for a few years because nobody in the house had a license to drive, we had people over every few weeks who'd take us places with it -- and eventually we noticed it was overheating.

So of course, we had the coolant flushed/refilled. The problem seemed to go away for a little while, but soon enough it came back -- we had one of our mechanics who thought it was the thermostat (pretty sure the one that controls the coolant or whatever) -- and switched that (nobody ever switched the thermometer itself out)... but that didn't fix it either.

In the end the mechanics figured it was just the temperature gauge going wonky, because you can leave the car idle all day and it's just fine [stays in the middle] -- drive it a while (especially city streets) and it goes up (again especially at intersections).

As said, tis' a 2.0 4 banger, but I'm beginning to think this might be fan related -- I tried starting the car earlier when its gauge was at 3/4 with the hood up, noticed the fan kicked in, then it went to high speed after a moment, then it stopped completely o_O At that temp?! What could be causing that?

I thought about turning on the heat but when I put on the "panel" setting full blast all I heard was what sounded like a fan near the dashboard go on, tried the heat and then heard the big fan go to full blast again, but wasn't sure if that was just a thermostat fluke or the heat actually does that..

Hrm, other things to note: We've given it an oil change, new air filter (for engine, not the AC one yet though it needs it real bad) and new spark plugs (it did have some hard starts which I thought was that) -- one we're waiting on the mechanic to get on is replacing a valve gasket (I think?) -- he found oil on 2 of the sparkplugs when he pulled them out but said it really wasn't a big deal [didn't think it was related to the overheating either, though it could have been caused by it].

Oh yeah, related to that one -- every now and then the check engine light comes on but I'm 99% positive it has to do with the gasket and oil getting on the sparkplugs.

Guess that's about all I have to say. Any suggestions? Still find it weird as heck to be driving a car we got when I was like.. 9 or 10.. lol [18 now], but it does drive nice

OOH yeah three more thoughts: 1. When I turn the car on, the airbag light comes on for a few seconds and goes off -- are the sensors unhooked? and 2. How would you go about replacing the hood release latch? (a few years ago a smog check place my mom and a friend took the car to broke that sucker so I have to yank the cable) -- be nice to not have to do that :|

3rd one: How would I tell if the wiring harness was replaced?

Not really too sure but, ill take a stab!

you've flushed the coolant--- what is the current level on the clear yellow tank? make sure the coolant is half inch above the max line..Is the coolant light on?

valve cover gasket--was the oil on the plug itself? if the oil was on the internal side of the engine then the head cover or piston rings have an issue-not valve cover.

Ac filter is the cabin filter, and it would smell funky when the air is on if it needed to be replaced.

We need the CEL code. when the cel flashes on/off then you have a misfire and a fouled plug, might cause this. get the code scanned and report back to CEG.

Air bag on when you turn the car on is normal. if there was a problem it would always stay on. so this is OK is it only stays on for several seconds on startup.

for the wiring harness recall. call ford customer service, give them your vin and they should be able to let you know.

hope this helps a little.

Welcome. . As GoldenTour said, get the CEL scanned (free service at Advance or Autozone) and post the code(s). In addition, change the thermostat and see if it helps with the heating problem.

The Haynes Manual has a good description of how to remove body items (about $16 at Advance or Autozone).

Edit. From Ford CD Manual

Hood Latch Control Handle and Cable
Removal
1. From inside vehicle, pull hood lock release handle to release hood.
2. Lift hood and support with hood support rod.
3. Remove two screws from front of center body pillar inside lower finish panel.
4. Working around center body pillar inside lower finish panel, remove two screws retaining hood lock release handle to cowl side panel.
5. Disengage hood latch release cable from hood lock release handle and remove hood lock release handle from vehicle.
6. Loosen retaining nut and remove hood lock cover bracket.
7. Disengage hood latch release cable from hood latch).
8. To facilitate installing replacement hood latch release cable, fasten a "fish line" about 2.5 meters (8 feet) long to latch end of cable.
9. From inside vehicle, unseat sealing grommet from cowl side, and carefully pull cable assembly out. Do not pull fish line out.

Installation
1. Attach replacement hood latch release cable to fish line.
2. Using previously installed fish line, pull new hood latch release cable through retaining wall and seat grommet securely. Remove fish line.
3. Install cable to hood lock release handle.
4. Installhood lock release handle to cowl side panel with two retaining screws. Tighten screws to 12 N-m (9 lb-ft).
5. Install center body pillar inside lower finish panel and retaining screws.
6. Attach hood latch release cable to hood latch.
7. Install hood lock cover bracket and tighten retaining screw to 12 N-m (9 lb-ft).
8. Check hood latch release operation before closing hood. If necessary, adjust as outlined.

And to answer your other question,
"What does the flashing envelope icon on the Menu bar denote?"
It means that you have unread Private Messages.

Some CEG'ers have said the Zetec 2L 4 cyl runs hotter than the 6 cyl. Mine is a 6 cyl, when the temperature needle reaches M an normal, about 2/3 scale, the fans come on, and stop after a few minutes as the needle drops towards cooler, 1/2 scale. If your engine is idling, it should have the radiator fan cycle on and off to regulate itself, then that fan control system is likely OK. (Maybe another Zetec owner could say what their car does for temperatures?)

The airbag light comes on for a few seconds and goes off, that is the self test. When you use heat, the air noise will change as you turn the temp knob, the (in dash) blower fan should run. Heat affects any mode (a/c pnl/flr, etc.) Maybe you could get a new hood release handle off a wrecked Contour, or pay a visit to the Ford dealer. (Stay away from those new Mustangs and Fusions ) The Contour does drive nice, most CEG'ers will agree.

Wiring harness would look new, or maybe the Ford dealer can check in their system to see if it has been replaced.

Sounds like you might have a bad radiator, water pump or head gasket. The easy answer to all of these is a simple pressure check of the cooling system and a compression check of the engine. Not only will it tell you about your heating issue, but it will also tell you about the engines overall condition. VERY important in deciding wether or not the car is worth making repairs.

Hrm...

Coolant's at/above max. Can't say for sure how much above since the car is sitting on our driveway right now but I'll check that later and get back to ya..

Valve gasket or whatnot: Hrmm.. I'm not even sure what's with that one, but I do know the mechanic was thinking it was a gasket, yep when he pulled 2 of the 4 sparkplugs they were dripping with oil..

Wouldn't be surprised if the CEL was coming on over misfires, but that doesn't flash, it just comes on for about a minute or two and goes off.. yeah I suppose a misfire, I'll see about getting the code

When the cooling system was flushed they wanted to "pressurize" it and that required a new cap for the coolant container since the old one was leaky, had that taken care of and from what I remember there wasn't any problem there..

Sounds like this could get ugly.