Can someone help me figure out why my car runs hot as ****?

[DaveB]

Latest example, driving back to school monday night (100 miles all highway) my car had the temp guage right between the M and A in "NORMAL". Mind you this is with the cruise set at 70 (stock 3.08s) and the entire ride I never once brought the RPMs past 2,500.

I've been having this problem for a while and the other nite just enfuriated me. This began last summer after I installed LTs, an offroad X, and a smog pump eliminator. Before these mods, the car run fine temp wise. Just as soon as I finished with those mods, the car started to run hot as 'Kiss Me''Kiss Me''Kiss Me''Kiss Me', even on the highway.

I added a AFPR which helped slightly but the problem was still there. I also got a new thermostat, which didn't make much of a difference, and had the cooling system flushed.

Then winter rolled around, and me never driving that far from school, didn't experience the problem too much. Now that spring is around the corner, and the temps are starting to get warmer, my car has started to run really hot again.

Now I had to grind some of the ERG off in order to get it to fit my LT headers, could the EGR somehow be malfunctioning and always letting hot exhaust air into the engine?

Also, if you just let the car sit and idle the temps will be normal, like around the R or so on the gauge. Its just when you drive around that the problems happen. And if you mess around, forget about it. I've seen the gauge jump 2 letters just from 1 0-50mph run. Oh ya, and my fans work.

Now I will a $375 Fluidyne totally get rid of the problem? Because I have a feeling that I'll spend a lot of money, and install it and still have the same problem. Anyone have any ideas?

Cliffnotes - car ran fine temp wise before LTs/xpipe/smog eliminator. Right after wards, almost overheats (A-L on guage) but never does. Still having problem with no solution in sight.

Please help guys. Thanks.

 

[Mrgreen94gt]

Check whether or not your fan is coming on. These cars have issues with the CCRM. Could also be a simple as adding some coolant or flushing the radiator.

However, last time that happened with me, my radiator burst. Not pleasant.

 

[DaveB]

Fans definitely do work and radiator has been flushed. And monday afternoon I added some Redline Water Wetter, of course did nothing .

The thing that really gets me is the drive after I those mods the car started acting up and has been pulling the same 'Kiss Me''Kiss Me''Kiss Me''Kiss Me' on me ever since.

 

[urban96]

it may be that your stock temp gauge is off, thats what happen to mine, it'll go crazy so i bought an autometer temp gauge and all is well

 

[TrueBlue95GT]

How does the car run? Is it possible that you have a vacuum leak?

 

[DaveB]

Temp gauge is accurate as far as I can tell. I remember I had taken the car to my mechanic while the car's temp guage was "A" or so (can't remember exactly) and he used one of those infared temp guages that shoots out a little red light. His guage said it was running in the 230* range. And when the engine is running that hot, you can tell. You could probably cook some eggs on the upper intake.

The car runs fine. Idles smooth as could be once the car warms up for a minute or so (LTs remember, farther O2s). There also is no CE light or anything.

 

[jmuva44]

You say the fan works, which is fine. But does it turn on when the car gets hot? Does it turn onto the high setting? My car was overheating bad...turned out to be a bad $15 ECT sensor. But the bad ECT sensor was causing my fan to not turn on when it should have. If your fan is coming on when it should and how it should, it probably isnt that.

You may want to look into your water pump. The stock pumps go bad after a while and can either leak or not move water like it should.

Also, could you possibly have an air bubble in your system? When you did the exhaust, did you do anything coolant related? An air bubble in your system will cause the temps to go way up. For this you would have to burp your system.

When you did the exhaust, is it a possibility that you either hit a cable that sends a reading to the guage or that a cable is laying on the header? Maybe it is shorted out and giving you a false reading.

I would start by looking at how your exhaust install and anything else you did at that time, could have effected how your guage reads your temperature. If you say that it is actually running hot after having a pyrometer read your temp then you can probably through out the shorted cable.

I dunno, there are a lot of variables that can go into an "overheating" car. Please dont automatically blame it on the radiator like many do. A lot of times, when you replace the radiator with a heavy duty radiator you may only be bandaiding the actual problem. You could have a faulty water pump for example that causes your engine not to get enuf water but with the new heavy duty radiator, the cooling capabilities outweigh the lack of water to the engine and you run cooler. Just think logically as to what can cause an engine to overheat and rule them out one by one. THEN maybe consider a new guage or a new radiator and see if it could be one of them that have gone bad.

Good luck!!
Chris

 

[Badder Adder]

You guys are missing an obvious one here...

The simplest answer tends to be the correct one, so about the thermostat? It's probably gone bad and isnt allowing coolant to circulate. Very cheap and simple to fix. That'd be my first guess.

The radiator isn't your problem. That is, as long as it is not clogged.

The fans may be the issue, but more than likely not. Your fans aren't moving the air at speed, the motion of the vehicle is.

 

[Venom351R]

it may be that your stock temp gauge is off, thats what happen to mine, it'll go crazy so i bought an autometer temp gauge and all is well

That happend to me to, thought I was always over heating but there was a loose connection.

Id advise getting a new water pump and going to a 180 T Stat if you havent yet. W/ just a 180 T Stat mine never gets over half way on the temp guage and when it does ( slow traffic driving) the fan quickly kicks on and it cools down.

 

[Zero Signal]

The first thing I did to fix my overheating was a new T-stat. It only helped alittle. I would like to believe my stock temp guage is off, but my pinging sort of confirms that it is , in fact, overheating. I'd kind of think it's my fan since it doesn't come on by temp, only by A/C.

You may want to look into your water pump. The stock pumps go bad after a while and can either leak or not move water like it should.[/QUOTE0]

So, could a bad water pump maybe work only from time to time? How would you test the water pump to see if it's working well?

 

[DaveB]

Wow, lots of replies, awesome .

Anyway, between the problem developing and getting a new AFPR I had a new thermostat installed (I beleive stock temp though) as well as had the cooling system flushed.


At the time the problem developed the waterpump was about a year old (I had replaced it the summer before) and like I said, there were never any issues.

Im sure the fans work, if I leave it to idle, the engine temp stays fine, its only when you drive around that problems start.

Actually when I did the exhaust I put in a bottle of Water Wetter. I had the system flushed though (along with a new thermostat), and the problem was still there.

Could a improperly functioning EGR cause a problem like this?

 

[jmuva44]

May be coincidence but after i deleted my EGR, my temps went WAY down. To the point to where they were too cold. But I did other things too, mainly swapping intakes and adding an aftermarket MAF.

 

[stangboy]

Ok, I've been having a similar problem with my car for about 2 years now...still unresolved 100%. Here's everything I tried: 1). 180* T-stat - it heped but didn't cure. 2). flushed coolant system - no difference. 3). bought a Fluidyne - brought my temps down a good bit but during the warmer part of the year I still have a problem with my temps rising higher than I'm comfortable with(anything past the R and I'm nervous) when I run the car any harder than normal driving(I cruise between 80 and 90mph, so thats normal driving for me). I personally think that my fan doesn't go to high speed mode. The only time I've ever heard my fan go into high speed is when I hooked up a code scanner to my car and it checked the fan. What I'm thinking about doing is putting a pusher fan on my car and I'll control it with a toggle switch.

Question: Is the CCRM issue a recall on our cars? Is that the thing that looks like a computer right by the overflow bottle?

DaveB, a Fluidyne radiator is definately a good buy. It may not resolve your current problem but it will help. Like I said I think its probably a fan issue. Oh, get a 180* stat, that helps a little too.

 

[stangboy]

May be coincidence but after i deleted my EGR, my temps went WAY down. To the point to where they were too cold. But I did other things too, mainly swapping intakes and adding an aftermarket MAF.

Did you have any issues when you deleted your EGR like idling issue or constant "Check Engine" light? I've been thinking about deleting my EGR stuff but I don't want any idling issue, its bad enough I'll probably have those kinds of issues when I change my H/C/I.

 

[jmuva44]

No issues other low temps and check engine light. Drove just fine. Lower gas mileage slightly

 

[go-stang5.0]

did you install under drive pulleys at any time? Cuz the slow down of the water pump can cause overheating. I have underdrives and now that I have a fluidine I can rev it when I'm sitting at a light and temps will drop down to 185 or so (right around where the t-stat opens) and I can phycically see the gauge move. Granted when I had a stock radiator results werent as dramatic from revving but it still dropped as soon as the coolant started circulating faster. So if you installed underdrives....it could be that.

 

[DaveB]

I have pullies, but they were on for a year before I did the problem started. And I never had any problems at all.

 

[rio95]

how are the steeda radiators??

 

[stangboy]

how are the steeda radiators??

Its a Fluidyne with Steeda's name on it.

 

[Venom351R]

if you get a Fluidyne ( steeda) then you have to run diffrent coolent in it. The pink colored kind or it might leak in colder weather. Threads on leaking fluidynes pop up every now and then but they always seem to be related to cold temps or not using the pink colored coolent.