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94 overheated

two weeks ago i changed the coolant and thermostat--it was sticking open--in my 94 xlt (128k miles), and for these past two weeks it's been great. nothing remotely resembling overheating; the temp gauge would peg right in the middle of the word NORMAL, sometimes left of center. but my brother was driving it yesterday on a medium hot day in bumper-to-bumper freeway traffic, and it overheated! he said the needle made it all the way into the H area. he pulled over and checked the coolant level, which was fine, and after a few minutes was able to get back on the road with the heat all the way on.

i drove it today for a 35 minute freeway trip (not heavy traffic though) and couldn't get it to heat past the center of NORMAL.

did my new thermostat stick closed in the hot weater, or did the water pump fail or something else? for the last year i've had a squealy drivebelt which i haven't been able to diagnose, but i'm thinking that maybe in the hot weather at idle all the time, the water pump seized or failed otherwise..... what could be the reasons for overheating? i also plan to inspect my radiator grille to make sure it's not all clogged up.

thanks, john

Reply to
John T. Waisanen
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It's difficult to see between the AC condenser and the radiator...... there is a very good chance that there is a tremendous amount of s***ma pasted to the rad........ just did a Windstar on Friday - the condenser looked new and the radiator looked like someone hung a blanket over it. Low forward speeds seem to exacerbate this condition..

To check your water pump, remove the belt and try to move the shaft up and down... repeat this for the fan clutch, too..... there should be no perceptible movement. Bear in mind that this will not indicate the condition of the water pump impeller which may be eroded by hard water or upset Ph levels in the coolant. You could also check to see if cauliflowers are growing on the core tubes in the rad but these usually manifest themselves in overheating at speed....

-- Jim Warman snipped-for-privacy@telusplanet.net

Reply to
Jim Warman

Also do a fan clutch hot / cold test.. the fan may not be spooling up when it's hot.

Reply to
rakster

this is where i try to stop the fan from turning at cold temp and at normal operating temp? am i correct that if it's not hard to stop the fan spinning at normal temp, then the clutch might not be engaging properly (and i would therefore need a new one)?

thanks, john

Reply to
John T. Waisanen

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