Hi! Got the car back today. The dealer replaced the fan relay, otherwise nothing was apparently wrong. I drove the car 10 miles, stopped at a traffic signal for 2 minutes, and the engine overheated and the coolent blew out of the recovery tank with spectacular force! Now it's back at the dealer, again! This time it happened, it was clear that the temp gage was heading skyward, and very quickly at that. Clearly it looks like an overheating problem. I suspect the fan is faulty not the relay.
Something to try if they don't get it fixed this time (this isn't a fix, but it's a "buy time and limp it home" kind of thing)--turn off the air conditioner, and crank the heater full blast. Seriously.
I know it's a PITA, but the heater core is nothing but a small radiator, and you might draw enough heat out of the motor to make it home/back to the shop without dumping all your coolant. I managed to limp our company van back home (220 miles) doing that when the fan died last week.
Assuming the water pump is running. Don't know if Ford uses a plastic impeller in this engine but have seen the impeller come loose from the shaft in other cars. Everything looks OK but water is not pumping. Overheats quickly and if you're not careful will take the head gaskets out.
Thanks for all the suggestions. I finally got the car back, and all now seems OK. It was fixed under warranty. Seemed like I caused them (the dealer) some grief in tracking down and fixing the problem. I finally went around and talked to the service manager, who tried to tell me that the car was most likely overheating because "someone" (i.e., me) had replaced the stock air filter with a K&N one. I told him that I wasn't *that* stupid! He seemed quite proud of the fact that one of his technicians was "able to reproduce the problem in the shop."!!! Amazing, they let the engine overheat and puke all its coolant, AGAIN!!!!! Man, this is supposed to be a FORD DEALER!! Anyway, after some pissing around, they finally replaced the fan motor, the fan solonoid (again), the coolant temperature sensor, and of course the coolant. It would have been nice if they'd cleaned up the engine bay instead of leaving me to breathe old coolant fumes on the way home, but I cleaned that up. After 100 miles or so, all seems to work as its supposed to, and the fan comes on and the temp gage is right in the middle of the scale. But now I'm worried that these three episodes (and God only knows how many times they let the thing overheat in the shop!) have caused some permanent damage. This is my first Mustang. Although I love to drive this car, if this is a sign of things to come, it could very well be my last.
Ahhh yes, blame the customer for quality control problems.
Yes, this IS a Ford Dealership, and this is pretty typical of the way they do business. Complaining will elicit laughter from Corporate on down.
It would have been faster to check a few simple circuits and input sensors with a simple $20.00 ohmmeter. I recently lost the fan motor and CTS in my beater, and it took me 5 minutes to determine the exact cause of the problem with simple hand tools.
The last dealership moron whom I let work on my car splashed antifreeze, brake fluid and power steering fluid all over the hood, fender and engine bay, and left the interior, door and steering wheel streaked with nauseating black grease. It took me 2 weeks to clean up the mess.
Doubtful. The computer will automatically shut down the engine long before damaging temps are ever reached.
I'm still running on the OEM intake from 1998 without any problems. I do run a 180 degree thermostat which helps keep temps/pressure down, but I plan to install the retrofit-part myself later this summer.
As for the quality of Ford's dealership service departments, well, you've expressed 1/100th of the contempt I hold for these circus performers.
You're right, Larry. If the water pump goes south, running the heater won't help a bit. But it's something to try. If it works, you might save the hassle/$ of having to get it towed. If it doesn't work, you were going to puke coolant anyway, so it doesn't cost anything.
-- A happy kid behind the wheel of a 98 Mustang GT Cold air intake FRPP 3.73 gears Steeda Tri-Ax Shifter Flowmaster 40 Series mufflers (self-installed woohoo) Hi-speed fan switch
It might be a blown head gasket, followed by a lot of pressure in your cooling system resulting in a hose popping. If you switched it off early you probably saved the heads. Coolant in the battery box area might be your radiator leaking. Anyways, it's Ford's concern now. Make sure once it is fixed that it is fixed WELL. Take it for a long drive and watch the cooling temps. Also, let it run/idle for a while and see what happens when the engine gets hot (fan kicks in, etc), and that it does not develop leaks. Also keep a close eye on the coolant level.After the initial couple 100 miles or so it should no longer drop. If it does, there's a leak. You are getting close to the warranty expiring and you want this resolved before it does. Make sure you keep all receipts/documentation for whatever they fix so you have something to use in case it does go bad after the warranty expires.
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