[escortrio]

mine used to not go past the N and after unclogging my heater core and putting in a different but somewhat new thermostat it still overheats if stopped which used to only be here & there. Past few days its been overheating just going thru stop & goes for 5 min. The fluids all new and the cooling fan is on high at all times which is the only way i can get it to work.

so how can i tell if its opened?

the top hose is always hot and feels like it usually does but i havent felt the bottom hose.

 

[EscorGo]

You can warm up the engine with the rad cap off. Once the engine gets to operating temp, the t-stat opens and you should see the water flowing thru the rad.

 

[zzyzzx]

Another way to check if it's open or closed is to remove it.

 

[dave8338]

Head gasket? 8O

 

[juggalo]

ur thermostat is workin but ur leaking coolant somewhere. if it's internaly, it's more than likely a blown head gasket. externaly, u'll wanna find the sorce of the leak and replace it right away.

 

[Jeffescortlx]

after unclogging my heater core

What was it clogged with? Maybe your radiator is clogged with the same stuff?

 

[juggalo]

i bet u the water pump is fallin apart causin a clog

 

[madmatt2024]

^Highly unlikely.

 

[juggalo]

from what i remember, i took the old coolent from my car to persision tune to dispose of it and one of the workers there tells me that brown gunk that was at the bottom of my bucket was my water pump deteriorating and should be replaced soon. couple weeks later i find out that my water pump was leaking horribly.

 

[madmatt2024]

The water pumps in these cars have metal impellers so the likelihood if it falling apart are slim. The brown gunk is simply the result of the iron block rusting from the water passing through it.

 

[juggalo]

i see ur point.

 

[Joey_Twowagons]

Check your thermostat(s) by placing them in a pan of water or better yet, some coolant from the engine, and heating on the kitchen stove. A 195 thermostat will only start to open right near boiling so it's hard to see with all the steam if the liquid is just water (especially if you wear glasses). Use an immersion type thermometer (lab type, borrow from one of your amphetamine manufacturing friends), and hold it in the coolant above the pan bottom just in case that's a tad hotter.

Let the pan of water cool down and note the temperature at which the unit closes which will be a bunch lower than the opening temperature, and is the true operating temperature of the thermostat. I have found that they usually are quite accurate, even old used ones.

 

[HyBrad]

1> With the car cold, check your coolant level in the radiator and the tank and fill it appropriately.

2> Install the radiator cap.

3> Start the car... let it idle.

4> Keep your hand on the upper radiator hose while the engine idles. From time to time, take a quick look at the temperature gauge (or have a second person monitor that reading).


The upper hose will for the most past stay cool to the touch (luke warm at most) until the thermostat opens... then within the next few seconds you will feel it transform from cool/cold to "too hot to touch". Once you feel this transaction take a look at your temp gauge.. should be roughly in the middle of the gauge.

If you feel the upper radiator hose gradually warm up as the engine does, then the thermostat (or bypass passage in the tstat housing) is stuck open allowing constant coolant flow.

If the temperature gauge approaches the overheating range and the upper radiator hose remains cool/luke warm to the touch, then the thermostat is stuck in the closed position.

If you are having problems with the heat not getting hot enough, feel the radiator hoses after the thermostat opens... both should be about the same temperature as the upper hose. If they are both cool then there is no coolant flow to the heater core. If one is hot and the other is cool then there is a restriction in the heater core. If both are very hot but the heater isn't hot, then there is either a problem with the blend-door (in the dash) or the heater core has a lot of corrosion internally, not allowing the heat to dissipate to the core as the coolant flows through it.

Heater core issues aren't real typical on these 2nd gen escorts...

 

[racethisescort89]

how would u flush the heatercore without removing it from the car? i've heard you can stuff a garden hose in the one rad hose and crank the water on. does this hold any truth?

 

[Joey_Twowagons]

Cleaning heater core

Hybrad has an excellent reply to the checking the thermostat in the car. My car had the cold heater hose/no heat problem, so I finally figured out it meant a clogged heater core. I looked at a core in the parts store and saw that the passages are very narrow, thus easily clogged.

So last weekend I tried to clean the core in situ. I got two lengths of 5/8" heater hose about three feet long and stuck them on the inlet and outlet of the heater core. Then I jammed the garden hose on the outlet then the inlet and alternated back and forth several times. I tried to collect the water in a pail and saw there was a large amount of rusty dirt.

It would be much easier with five foot lengths of heater hose. 3/4" will work too, it just needs to be clamped tighter. I had a pressure regulator on the hose I set to 25 psi, but it's unlikely full pressure would hurt the core, and it's hard to make a good seal when you jam the hose ends together anyway.

It worked! I now have very warm air coming out of the heater. Not as hot as with a new core, but quite good. Plus, now that the hot water circulates through the heater hoses, the temperature sensor sees hot water much quicker, getting the engine out of cold, rich running with fast idle, sooner.

 

[racethisescort89]

so i let the car run today with the heat on full car ran for exactly 5 mins and the coolent hose was warm to the touch is this normal to feel it open so fast? the car was fired up from cold state sitting all night. ive been told by the person i bought my car from that he installed a 160* thermostat someone lemme know why my heat never gets hot and barely gets warm.

 

[Joey_Twowagons]

How come no heat

" ive been told by the person i bought my car from that he installed a 160* thermostat someone lemme know why my heat never gets hot and barely gets warm."

Um because someone installed a 160 degree thermostat. It should have a 195 degree.

 

[juggalo]

EFP sells 180 thermostats just to let u know

 

[racethisescort89]

EFP?

 

[juggalo]

escortfocus.com

it just stands for escort focus performance

edit: the thermostats won't work for mazda motors