The overheating is a common problem. You'll probably get a lot of answers that say it's supposed to do that, but I don't buy that theory. On the 95, you should have two speeds on a single cooling fan. I suspect that the low speed fan is not coming on when it is supposed to. Check your wiring, and the fan, and a resistor mounted at the bottom driver's side of the radiator. All of these are known weak links in the cooling system. Also, the entire wiring harness is a problem on the 95's. Ford extended the warranty on the harness, but with a 95, your time may have expired. I think the warranty was like 8 or 10 years, and 100,000 miles.
There have been other posts on the harsh 1-2 shift, but since I've not had that problem, I'll let others address that issue. I think a faulty sensor of some kind may be involved.
