1997 Ford Taurus Cooling-overheats

Tiny
TWOTAURUS
  • MEMBER
  • 1997 FORD TAURUS
  • 6 CYL
  • FWD
  • AUTOMATIC
  • 66,000 MILES
The car ran on upper end of the heat gauge while on the highway in the morning but did not overheat until it was driven through stop and go traffic in the afternoon during the heat of the day. Was checked out at a local garage where they removed the thermostat, still heated up and sent alot of coolant back to the coolant tank. Removed the water pump to check if the fins had separated from the shaft, it was OK. They assumed it was a blown head gasket. Could it be possible the radiator is restricted and overheating the engine? Car has no water pump at the moment and I towed it home. Is there a way to test the flow with the radiator still in the car? Very difficult to remove the radiator as you would know. Anything else you can suggest to check before assuming a head gasket is blown?
Wednesday, June 25th, 2008 AT 8:00 AM

2 Replies

Tiny
AMRAAM35
  • MEMBER
  • 39 POSTS
If there is no water pump, there is no way to test the engine. Everything will leak out where you put the pump. To test the radiator, remove the outlet hose, and spray water from a hose in the intake hose, under pressure, while leaving the cap on. It should flow out with not much pressure loss.

Are you loosing coolant? Externally, internally? Check your oil, any coolant or foam in it? Check your coolant, any oil in it. When a head gasket goes, you typically burn the coolant in the cylinder and it doesnt get mixed in with the oil. That is bad for the cylinder. When the pumps fail, it is usually by leaking. If you have an external leak and are just low on coolant, that would cause it to over flow. You could have an internal clog that is restricting flow in the enginer that is causing it to over heat. How clean was your fluid?

We need more info.
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Wednesday, June 25th, 2008 AT 5:58 PM
Tiny
TWOTAURUS
  • MEMBER
  • 2 POSTS
Checked oil when it overheated and there was no coolant or foam in the oil. When the coolant overflowed on the ground it did not appear to have oil mixed with it. Never noticed any weeping at the bottom of the waterpump either. Mechanic who checked the vehicle applied pressure thru the coolant resevoir and it did not indicate any external leaks. Had the car for six months and not sure when it was last flushed. Fluid was fairly clean. One other note is the heater does not work. The electronic portion of the heater works well so I suspect the heater core is clogged.
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Wednesday, June 25th, 2008 AT 10:15 PM

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