Contour Enthusiasts Group Archives Forums General Troubleshooting Perhaps a common cooling problem???

I have searched, and I have seen cooling system problems, but I havn't seen this issue. Perhaps I looked for the wrong keywords, if that's the case, my apologies.

My girl has a 97 Ford Contour. When the car warms up, it runs between the "L" and the "bracket" on the temp gauge.

Sometimes, depending where she is going, it gets a tad bit higher.

To me, this seems a problem, even though it is in the "normal" status.

I do not believe it's the thermostat. It warms up normally, and the top coolant hose gets warm.

i was thinking, perhaps a bad radiator cap. Maybe it's not building enough preasure to kick the fan on at the proper time??

Btw, the cap on this car, is the cap just the resavoir cap?

I was told that a similar thing happend to another Contour, and that it was either 2, or 1 of the 2 sensors.

1. Coolant Temp Sensor
2. Engine Coolant Temp Sensor (ECT)

The Haynes manual states that you have to unbolt something where the top hoses near the oil fill hole is at. The big hose, not sure of it's name.

The only thing I see, is a few bolts that look like the whole unit unbolts.

Is that correct, or am I missing a sensor?

Anyways, has this happend to anyone, and do you know the fix?

If so, what part, and any help/guidance will be appreciated.

I think the specs for the radiator cap is 18 lbs, so I may get the cap pressure tested.

Thanks alot!

Jeremy

Bump?

I4, or V6?

My '95 ZETEC ran hot too, what coolant mix are you using, changed it recently?

Unless Ford did something different with the Zetec, the cap is only for the reservoir. It is pressurized, but there is no cap on the actual radiator. Do the fans kick in when you turn the AC on? I haven't had any cooling issues with the 'Tour, but my mother's Taurus has quite a few. The main culprit was the plastic reservoir tank was leaking slowly. That was a pain to figure out. It still loses coolant, but no problems. We have given up..

In your case, the coolant level is good? I would suggest flushing it out.

Coolant level is fine, right where it has been for the past 4-5 months.

The resavoir cap does have a gasket inside, so I guess it is the only cap for the coolant system.

Yes, the fan does come on when the ac is on.

Up Up and Away!

Pull out the thermostat and try a new one. Also, it could be that the guage is just off. Try using a thermometer to get the engine temp. I'd suggest getting another Zetec to compare to. Maybe let them both idle for the same amount of time, then put the thermometer on the valve cover, or soemthing.