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Car overheated and now it won't turn over - help PLEASE

  • Thread starter Thread starter starstruck106
  • Start date Start date Aug 26, 2019
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    1995 3.8 mustang convertible cranks but no start overheat start switch thermostat
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starstruck106

New Member
Apr 6, 2019
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Sep 5, 2019
#41
  • Sep 5, 2019
  • #41
Dumb question would comprehensive insurance cover it if it is for sure the head gasket? It is supposed to cover water damage would that include from a head gasket that is a poor design by the manufacturer if it causes engine damage?
 

General karthief

wonder how much it would cost to ship you a pair
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#42
  • Sep 5, 2019
  • #42
No, but a call to your insurance carrier will confirm
 

96pushrod

I think they're a little easier to get off
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Sep 5, 2019
#43
  • Sep 5, 2019
  • #43
starstruck106 said:
Dumb question would comprehensive insurance cover it if it is for sure the head gasket? It is supposed to cover water damage would that include from a head gasket that is a poor design by the manufacturer if it causes engine damage?
Click to expand...

I highly doubt it. I’d bet none of us know the specific details about your insurance plan, but it never hurts to call your insurance company to ask though.
 
T

trebor3170

mine usually gets hard with the car on
May 31, 2019
83
26
28
Salisbury, MD
Sep 6, 2019
#44
  • Sep 6, 2019
  • #44
I'm sorry to say, your comp insurance is most likely not going to cover this. I would look over my insurance policy, before I would call and ask, so's to not give them an excuse to raise my rates, even if they did cover it, you would still need to meet your deductible. Comp is usually for stuff like a broken windshield, or hail damage, something you had no control over. I would suspect that the "water damage" they cover would be something like, a limb falls off a tree during a storm, and punctures your roof, and rain water damages your carpet, not water damage to the engine from a blown head gasket. The only way I can see that your insurance would cover this, is if you could prove that the board you hit damaged the cooling system, and caused the overheating that caused the blown head gasket. Honestly, I don't see that happening unless the board damaged the radiator, which you don't indicate that it did. A compression test will tell you if you have a blown gasket, or a cracked head, but until it's pulled apart, you can't know for sure which it is.

In my opinion (which is worth exactly what you paid for it), you have three choices, 1, find out what's wrong with your engine, and fix it, 2, get a used engine put in, do it yourself, or pay somebody, maybe get in touch with a local Mustang club, if there is one, and see if any of their members would be willing to help you, I'm sure many on this site would, if they were close enough, or 3, sell it, and put the money towards another vehicle. You have a vert, and, if in as good a shape you say it is, even with a bad motor, you should be able to get a reasonable price for it.

(I know I'm going to catch some flak over this, but I'm being practical here) A 25 year old car, no matter how low mileage, is not a very good choice for primary transportation, many things deteriorate due to age, not miles, (yeah, I drive my 95 GT, 180K+, everywhere, but I have alternate transportation to drive on a daily basis), used Toyota Corollas are a dime a dozen, and practically indestructible. I'm not shilling for Toyota, and have never owned one, but I have a friend who is an accountant, inherited the family farm, disappears for weeks at a time camping in Montana or Alaska or God knows where, and drives nothing but used Corollas, even though he could afford anything he wanted.
 
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96pushrod

I think they're a little easier to get off
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Sep 7, 2019
#45
  • Sep 7, 2019
  • #45
trebor3170 said:
I'm sorry to say, your comp insurance is most likely not going to cover this. I would look over my insurance policy, before I would call and ask, so's to not give them an excuse to raise my rates, even if they did cover it, you would still need to meet your deductible. Comp is usually for stuff like a broken windshield, or hail damage, something you had no control over. I would suspect that the "water damage" they cover would be something like, a limb falls off a tree during a storm, and punctures your roof, and rain water damages your carpet, not water damage to the engine from a blown head gasket. The only way I can see that your insurance would cover this, is if you could prove that the board you hit damaged the cooling system, and caused the overheating that caused the blown head gasket. Honestly, I don't see that happening unless the board damaged the radiator, which you don't indicate that it did. A compression test will tell you if you have a blown gasket, or a cracked head, but until it's pulled apart, you can't know for sure which it is.

In my opinion (which is worth exactly what you paid for it), you have three choices, 1, find out what's wrong with your engine, and fix it, 2, get a used engine put in, do it yourself, or pay somebody, maybe get in touch with a local Mustang club, if there is one, and see if any of their members would be willing to help you, I'm sure many on this site would, if they were close enough, or 3, sell it, and put the money towards another vehicle. You have a vert, and, if in as good a shape you say it is, even with a bad motor, you should be able to get a reasonable price for it.

(I know I'm going to catch some flak over this, but I'm being practical here) A 25 year old car, no matter how low mileage, is not a very good choice for primary transportation, many things deteriorate due to age, not miles, (yeah, I drive my 95 GT, 180K+, everywhere, but I have alternate transportation to drive on a daily basis), used Toyota Corollas are a dime a dozen, and practically indestructible. I'm not shilling for Toyota, and have never owned one, but I have a friend who is an accountant, inherited the family farm, disappears for weeks at a time camping in Montana or Alaska or God knows where, and drives nothing but used Corollas, even though he could afford anything he wanted.
Click to expand...

This is the truth.

Sadly, a v6 non-running sn is worth less than $1000, even if it’s in good shape. It would be wise to try and fix the car, though it will be expensive if you don’t have tools and ability to do yourself.
 

starstruck106

New Member
Apr 6, 2019
27
0
1
Idaho
Oct 8, 2019
#46
  • Oct 8, 2019
  • #46
Sorry I dropped off the entire situation just depressed me to where I just left it parked and have not touched it to check compression, or anything else for that matter. Someone mentioned the water pump possibly causing the issue - is the water pump located underneath the car where the board could have hit it and did something to cause the problem with it overheating after I pulled over to take top down? The only thing I noticed before I pulled over is that after I hit the board it seemed to not want to handle as well as it was, but that could have been caused by the tire since the day after I brought it home the drivers side tire was flat. I have not even bothered to have this changed at this point hence the not looking underneath for damage from the board or checking anything else. I did however take another look at the hose I was told was blown and the person who told me this obviously does not know what they were looking at because the hose to the ac is perfectly fine. I had replaced a couple of sensors earlier this year when I had the belt changed so I am pretty sure it was not a sensor problem. However, I did look online and found something interesting regarding the fan on recalls. I had a shop check recall information last year when I had a anchor put into the car for carseat and they said they found nothing on my VIN but this says that they did not recall by the VIN does anyone know anything about this or if it would have caused the issue?
 

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96pushrod

I think they're a little easier to get off
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May 15, 2018
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Oct 8, 2019
#47
  • Oct 8, 2019
  • #47
I think you’re really wasting time getting caught up with this board.

There are only a couple components which cool an engine: radiator, water pump, and a fan.

The fan is easy to figure out, it either turns on or it doesn’t. The v6 only have one speed.

The water pump is also easy to figure out, you’ll feel the coolant hose get hard as water pressure builds up. Likely it works if this is the case. They usually have a weep hole as well if they’re going out.

The radiator is also simple. If there’s coolant inside and There are no leaks, then they usually work well.

You said there’s lots of coolant in the oil? This would pretty much prove a bad head gasket, or a crack in the head or block. There’s good info others have posted, but you keep bringing up this damn board.

Will the engine even crank over? Is it seized up?
 
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starstruck106

New Member
Apr 6, 2019
27
0
1
Idaho
Oct 8, 2019
#48
  • Oct 8, 2019
  • #48
It won't crank over - it trys but won't quite turn over all the way. I am stuck on the board thing because it gave a flat tire as well and I am trying to figure out if it may have damaged something. Of course, I have not even looked under the car yet I just got the tire put it on it. Also wondering if the recalls on the fan motor may have had a play in it but FORD told me my VIN Was all clear two years ago but they never checked the plant or the build date only. They did not keep track of the VIN where and when my car was made so it wouldn't show the recalls under my VIN. My insurance agent is asking questions so I am trying to rule things out without paying for another tow to the shop. Hoping there is an external reason for the overheating but had to put it down for a couple of weeks it was giving me a headache.
 

96pushrod

I think they're a little easier to get off
5 Year Member
May 15, 2018
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Savannah
Oct 8, 2019
#49
  • Oct 8, 2019
  • #49
The fan recall was done due to fire hazard with the wiring. If your vin was cleared, then there’s not much more to say.

If the engine won’t turn over a full rotation then it pretty much has to come out, or at least torn down to see what’s going on. This has been said before. While it sucks to hear, it just comes with the territory of having a car.

There’s not a whole lot to pull a motor out of a sn95, it’s super easy and can be done fast with a person who has worked on cars before. If you know someone with tools and an engine hoist maybe they can lend a hand.
 

OneSick99GT

Active Member
Nov 20, 2018
364
46
38
Dayton, Ohio
Oct 20, 2019
#50
  • Oct 20, 2019
  • #50
Putting water in your radiator was the first mistake. The motor needs taken apart and diagnosed by a professional. Cracked head or blown head gasket. Rattling sound was the pistons slapping or rods knocking from poor lubrication and excess heat in the engine. Your looking at 1500 to 2 grand for repairs if it's just a head gasket. We all can guess but wont know until you pay a shop to look at it.
 

Chythar

Recently finished repairing my rear
20+ Year Stangneter
Aug 26, 2004
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Nov 2, 2019
#51
  • Nov 2, 2019
  • #51
Former V6 owner here. The V6 engines are known for head gasket issues, - they were so bad, Ford was forced to extend the factory warranty JUST for the head gasket and cover any repairs owners had done during the new warranty period. Mine failed somewhere around 80k miles, and after the 'recall' Ford paid for most of the repair bill. Then the new head gasket failed at 178k.

You're looking at a lot of money to rebuild the engine, at least $1500 if no other parts are broken. You can save some of that money if you are handy with tools and are willing to learn, but it's a big project if you're new to engine repair.

Like everyone keeps telling you, you're screwed. Buying a few parts isn't going to suddenly make your engine purr like a kitten. The symptoms you have described are signs of some really serious problems with the engine. Really expensive problems, much more expensive than whatever you paid for the car. To fix this engine, you will pay much more than the car is worth.

Now, I'm hardly one to talk - I dropped a Cobra engine into a V6, when it would have been much cheaper to scrap the V6 and buy a Cobra. However, I did the project not to save money but to be able to say 'I did this'. And learned a heck of a lot along the way. If you want to learn how to do the work yourself, it's going to cost a lot of money. But it may be worth it to you.
 
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General karthief

wonder how much it would cost to ship you a pair
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Nov 3, 2019
#52
  • Nov 3, 2019
  • #52
Shop around for a used V6, you will thank me later.
 
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