guys,
I posted this problem on this news group a while back. Now I have additional information but I have yet to find a solution to this problem.
I have a Mercury Tracer 1988 that has an overheating problem. The problem is due to the lack of coolant flowing thru the system. I have removed the thermostat from the system for the sake of testing. When the engine runs, there is no coolant flowing thru the upper hose (from the engine to the radiator). I know this because I disconnected the hose and absolutely nothing comes out (while engine runs).
I thought that it was either a bad water pump or some internal blockage. I removed the water pump and it looks good (the water pump had been replaced
6 months ago). I tested the flow in the system by connected the garden hose to the radiator hose. It seems that water flows without any restriction thru the engine block and radiator. A good friend of mine (who has more automotive experience) told me that it could be an internal blockage that prevents a region of the engine block to be cooled down even though the flow is not overall restricted because it by-passes "the blocked region" somehow (maybe thru the heater core bypass).What should I do next ?
Pierre