Just bought a 96 escort and the temp gauge does not work
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Look at the rear of the cylinder head. ( below the fresh air hose going from air cleaner to throttle body.
Find the thermostat housing and look at the spout coming off of it going toward the fire wall. You'll find the sender screwed into that spout.
The gauge should be the one with the single wire hooked to it.
Find the thermostat housing and look at the spout coming off of it going toward the fire wall. You'll find the sender screwed into that spout.
The gauge should be the one with the single wire hooked to it.
yep,mine stopped working one day,after i had taken off the snorkle at the throttle body to work in that areaof the engine,so i figured i must have inadvertently pulled the wire from the connector there at the block,which is exactly what happened.check the haynes manual if you can`t find it.
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Since I replaced the coolant temp sensor for the gauge, the gauge needle does not always work. Some days it works and if I'm driving, the needle just drops down to the left and maybe after a few mins it slow comes up and goes back down. Other times the needle reads in the middle and after awhile it goes back down to the left. I think the temp gauge is messed up. I will probably buy an autometer temp gauge so I know exactly what the car temperature is operating at.
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Sounds like the temp sender is not grounding good. Before you spend any money, check the support bracket for the tube that your sender is screwed into.
It's at the right side of the tube ( as your leaning in over the left fender or nearer to the firewall. There is a bolt at the botton of that support bracket that has to be clean and tight.
This is the ground for your sender. If that bolt is loose or dirty, it can't not ground correctly. Your gauge will be intermittant as you describe.
You might also be sure the wire that connects to your sender is clean and fits tight on the sender. If it's loose or dirty, you could get the same problem.
Just a thought
It's at the right side of the tube ( as your leaning in over the left fender or nearer to the firewall. There is a bolt at the botton of that support bracket that has to be clean and tight.
This is the ground for your sender. If that bolt is loose or dirty, it can't not ground correctly. Your gauge will be intermittant as you describe.
You might also be sure the wire that connects to your sender is clean and fits tight on the sender. If it's loose or dirty, you could get the same problem.
Just a thought
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Not in the case of my 93 LX. Don't know abouit your application.
That bracket fits under one of the bolts that holds the transmission in.
Take a look and see that the bolt is installed where the bottom of that bracket meets the trans housing. IF you have the same set-up that's on my scort, there's a rubber hose between the tube your senders screw into and the thermostat housing. There's also a rubber hose from the other end of that tube and the firewall.
Since those senders are actually variable resistors, and they screw into that tube, the tube has to be grounded in some fashion or the senders have no electrical path back to ground.
Ford chose to use the support bracket for that tube to accomplish the ground path. Anything dirty or loose will interfere with that ground path and cause an intermittant situation that's normally seen when the engines temp gauge sweeps erractically or continues to change it's read out as you describe.
Some of the others can comment here please. Seems, now that I think about it that your 96 has a different t-stat housing and the tube I'm thinking of is park of that housing. That being the case, there likely won't be a support bracket on it. The ground in that case is accomplished through the t-stat mount bolts and into the engine block.
Before I get long winded, tell me what set-up you have on your enigne.
That bracket fits under one of the bolts that holds the transmission in.
Take a look and see that the bolt is installed where the bottom of that bracket meets the trans housing. IF you have the same set-up that's on my scort, there's a rubber hose between the tube your senders screw into and the thermostat housing. There's also a rubber hose from the other end of that tube and the firewall.
Since those senders are actually variable resistors, and they screw into that tube, the tube has to be grounded in some fashion or the senders have no electrical path back to ground.
Ford chose to use the support bracket for that tube to accomplish the ground path. Anything dirty or loose will interfere with that ground path and cause an intermittant situation that's normally seen when the engines temp gauge sweeps erractically or continues to change it's read out as you describe.
Some of the others can comment here please. Seems, now that I think about it that your 96 has a different t-stat housing and the tube I'm thinking of is park of that housing. That being the case, there likely won't be a support bracket on it. The ground in that case is accomplished through the t-stat mount bolts and into the engine block.
Before I get long winded, tell me what set-up you have on your enigne.
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I cleaned the ground cable by the driver side firewall, it is clean and tight, and still my water temp gauge flickers when I drive. I looked at the ground on top on the trans and it is clean and tight. Is there any other grounds by the tube? I looked and I don't see any at all. I looked by the tubes and everything looks normal and I don't see any other grounds. I looked by the thermostat housing and I don't see anything. So is there just one main ground for the temp gauge, which would be the one by the firewall on the driver side?
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OK, before we go any further, lets identify what your working with.
Tell me which thermostat housing your engine has on it.
(1) A long spout that is part of the t-stat housing with the sending
units screwed into it.
(2) A rubber hose that couples your t-stat housing to a metal pipe
and the metal pipe has the sending units screwed into it.
Once I know which you have we can work through the possibilities one step at a time.
Tell me which thermostat housing your engine has on it.
(1) A long spout that is part of the t-stat housing with the sending
units screwed into it.
(2) A rubber hose that couples your t-stat housing to a metal pipe
and the metal pipe has the sending units screwed into it.
Once I know which you have we can work through the possibilities one step at a time.
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428 Posts
This is the thermostat housing on the car. I have the rubber hose, the sending unit screws into the rubber/metal hose.Benlightnd said:
This is the ground by the driver side fire wall that I cleaned and is tight
This is another ground I see below the sending unit on top of the trans, and is clean and tight.
I'm wondering if there are any more grounds that ties in with the coolant temp sending unit?
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OK, looking at your first pic, the rubber hose that connects to the thermostat housing ( smaller hose ) also connects to a metal pipe.
Is there a bracket / stand-off / leg attached to the other end of that metal pipe ???
IF not, what supports the pipe out the end nearest the firewall ?????
Is there a bracket / stand-off / leg attached to the other end of that metal pipe ???
IF not, what supports the pipe out the end nearest the firewall ?????
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703 Posts
OK, something is a miss................
My 93 has a very similar set up with the sending units screwed into that metal tube. On the end of the metal tube, ( the end closest to the firewall ) there is a support bracket attached to the tube. It drops down to one of the transmission mount bolts. The bolt holds the bracket tight to the trans.
This bracket serve's two purposes. It supports the tube / heater hose to keep it from flopping around and breaking from the movement and vibration of the engine and it creats a ground path to the engine so those sending units will work.
Keep in mind, the sending units have wires plugged into them. Those wire supply a small voltage from the PCM. The resistance in those sending units changes as they heat up from the heat of the engine.
As the resistance changes, so does the voltage back to ground. That's how the PCM knows how hot the enigne is. That's also how your temp gauge changes to tell you how hot the engine is.
In order for all this to work, the sending units need a good path to ground.
The support bracket is there to accomplish that ground path.
IF your not seeing anything attaching that metal tube to the engine ( or some other ground ) thats why your temp gauge is erratic.
Some of our other scort fans will need to jump in here and tell us what was used on the 96 but it will be something similar.
IF nothing else, run a jumper wire from one of the grounds nearby ( the ones you cleaned ) and attached that to a clean spot on that metal tube.
See if your temp gauge stabilizes.
Let us know what happens.
My 93 has a very similar set up with the sending units screwed into that metal tube. On the end of the metal tube, ( the end closest to the firewall ) there is a support bracket attached to the tube. It drops down to one of the transmission mount bolts. The bolt holds the bracket tight to the trans.
This bracket serve's two purposes. It supports the tube / heater hose to keep it from flopping around and breaking from the movement and vibration of the engine and it creats a ground path to the engine so those sending units will work.
Keep in mind, the sending units have wires plugged into them. Those wire supply a small voltage from the PCM. The resistance in those sending units changes as they heat up from the heat of the engine.
As the resistance changes, so does the voltage back to ground. That's how the PCM knows how hot the enigne is. That's also how your temp gauge changes to tell you how hot the engine is.
In order for all this to work, the sending units need a good path to ground.
The support bracket is there to accomplish that ground path.
IF your not seeing anything attaching that metal tube to the engine ( or some other ground ) thats why your temp gauge is erratic.
Some of our other scort fans will need to jump in here and tell us what was used on the 96 but it will be something similar.
IF nothing else, run a jumper wire from one of the grounds nearby ( the ones you cleaned ) and attached that to a clean spot on that metal tube.
See if your temp gauge stabilizes.
Let us know what happens.
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The bracket others described was loose on my '95. MY temp guage was very erratic, often not working at all.
Not realizing that support was there, I got a generic large sized aligator clip from the parts store and used that to ground the assembly to my negative battery terminal.
If your support bracket is actually missing all together, this clip on ground will get your guage working correctly.
I will add, when I realized (thank you, FEOA) what was actually wrong, it was a really awkward job tightening that bolt. It took an assortment of long and short extensions with a flex adapter (like a universal joint on a RWD driveshaft) to get a socket onto that bolt well enough to tighten it. Before I did it, I sprayed some Seafoam aerosol in there in a effort to clean some of the potentially insulating grime off before I seated the bracket down.
The bolt was fairly loose. I think I got 2-3 full revolutions on it before it torqued down tight.
Not realizing that support was there, I got a generic large sized aligator clip from the parts store and used that to ground the assembly to my negative battery terminal.
If your support bracket is actually missing all together, this clip on ground will get your guage working correctly.
I will add, when I realized (thank you, FEOA) what was actually wrong, it was a really awkward job tightening that bolt. It took an assortment of long and short extensions with a flex adapter (like a universal joint on a RWD driveshaft) to get a socket onto that bolt well enough to tighten it. Before I did it, I sprayed some Seafoam aerosol in there in a effort to clean some of the potentially insulating grime off before I seated the bracket down.
The bolt was fairly loose. I think I got 2-3 full revolutions on it before it torqued down tight.
hi all,
just joined this site.
i just bought a 93 escort 1.9 yesterday. tore into it today to do an overdue maintenance(86k miles and never had a coolant flush, guessing)
so what do you call this "metal tube"? it's official name? because i believe mine is leaking from metal to metal T joint where it leads to the temp sensor. it had a rusty ring, residue, on this tube/pipe.
i have taken out radiator, fan, thermostat housing, all rubber hoses and this metal tube that i cannot find online anywhere.
and i noticed poor gnx547, you guys are just on two different wave lengths, but talking about the same car. i recommend setting your car down on the ground, disconnecting the air intake and looking below it. i believe you're not looking back far enough and it's on the top side of the transmission, then go back and read the good advice from benlightnd.
brandon
just joined this site.
i just bought a 93 escort 1.9 yesterday. tore into it today to do an overdue maintenance(86k miles and never had a coolant flush, guessing)
so what do you call this "metal tube"? it's official name? because i believe mine is leaking from metal to metal T joint where it leads to the temp sensor. it had a rusty ring, residue, on this tube/pipe.
i have taken out radiator, fan, thermostat housing, all rubber hoses and this metal tube that i cannot find online anywhere.
and i noticed poor gnx547, you guys are just on two different wave lengths, but talking about the same car. i recommend setting your car down on the ground, disconnecting the air intake and looking below it. i believe you're not looking back far enough and it's on the top side of the transmission, then go back and read the good advice from benlightnd.
brandon
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703 Posts
Good morning Bran20man and welcome aboard.
I don't know if this tube actually has a name. I have all the original Ford manuals for my 93 and it isn't mentioned in any of them. Nor can I find it in my Chilton.
I doubt you will find another one anywhere short of a JY.............
Others on this site have upgraded their engines to a 3rd gen T-stat housing. The metal tube has been intagrated into the T-stat housing in the newer year models and has the ports to screw the sensors into.
In updating to this design, you will eliminate this metal tube completely.
Then all you need is a longer heater hose.
Pretty sure you can get the newer T-stat housing at the parts stores.
It mounts the same and uses the same gasket etc.
There are some pics on here that show the difference but you'll need to do a search for those.
In any case, again welcome and have fun reading.
I don't know if this tube actually has a name. I have all the original Ford manuals for my 93 and it isn't mentioned in any of them. Nor can I find it in my Chilton.
I doubt you will find another one anywhere short of a JY.............
Others on this site have upgraded their engines to a 3rd gen T-stat housing. The metal tube has been intagrated into the T-stat housing in the newer year models and has the ports to screw the sensors into.
In updating to this design, you will eliminate this metal tube completely.
Then all you need is a longer heater hose.
Pretty sure you can get the newer T-stat housing at the parts stores.
It mounts the same and uses the same gasket etc.
There are some pics on here that show the difference but you'll need to do a search for those.
In any case, again welcome and have fun reading.
very much appreciated. i'll do that today then. but what about the other plug that's screwed into the pipe? just behind the water temp sensor. mine just has the 2 side pipes to screw the water temp sensor into the front one and some other plug into the rear one. i have noticed that there was also some cars that had a 3rd, but mine just has the 2.
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YUP, mine also has two.
The second one is the sensor that turns your engine fan on when the engine temp gets to hot.
You will need it and if memory serve's me, the new t-stat housing has taken that into consideration and has 2 ports in it.
Those rigs that have 3 sensors, as I understand, are typically automatic trannies. The 3rd sensor keeps you from mashing the gas and dropping the trans into passing gear before the engine warms up.
IF no luck here finding pic's of that updated housing, I'm sure you can go to your favorite auto parts store and do a search on their web for anything newer than a 96. They should show pic's so you can see what that thing is designed.
The second one is the sensor that turns your engine fan on when the engine temp gets to hot.
You will need it and if memory serve's me, the new t-stat housing has taken that into consideration and has 2 ports in it.
Those rigs that have 3 sensors, as I understand, are typically automatic trannies. The 3rd sensor keeps you from mashing the gas and dropping the trans into passing gear before the engine warms up.
IF no luck here finding pic's of that updated housing, I'm sure you can go to your favorite auto parts store and do a search on their web for anything newer than a 96. They should show pic's so you can see what that thing is designed.
thanks benlightnd,
well, i guess the housing from the 3rd gen escorts is the one from the 2.0 engine?
autozone couldn't get this part...
now, i believe my "heater core inlet pipe" doesn't leak. by the way, on previous post, i got it mixed up, water temp sensor towards firewall. however, i do believe it was leaking from the rubber hose on both ends of this metal pipe from the factory clamps.
so i've ordered some new formed heater hoses and i'll just clean up the original pipe and t-stat housing, using new hose clamps and hoses. going back with original setup.
everything was working fine, but i start out just doing a coolant flush and now i have half the parts under the hood removed, lol.
i got a new fail safe t-stat and gasket today. this car still has all motorcraft everything, down to the fuel filter, yes i changed it(93 sedan lx, auto w/86k miles) very clean!
i'm considering replacing the waterpump and timing belt. i got in touch with the previous owners who had the car a while to see if they had done the water pump or timing belt and they had not. they did mention that they had changed out the thermostat 3 months ago, but they didn't even use a gasket or seal of any type!
coolant was like it had never been flushed ever, was leaking from radiator cap too. so i guess that's 4 leaks that were all tiny.
i love these cars, they're so easy to work on and they are one of the best kept secrets if you ask me.
this is my 3rd 93 escort to purchase. my brother still drives the first one i got. and gets 38mpg hwy. stick shift 2 door.
well, i guess the housing from the 3rd gen escorts is the one from the 2.0 engine?
autozone couldn't get this part...
now, i believe my "heater core inlet pipe" doesn't leak. by the way, on previous post, i got it mixed up, water temp sensor towards firewall. however, i do believe it was leaking from the rubber hose on both ends of this metal pipe from the factory clamps.
so i've ordered some new formed heater hoses and i'll just clean up the original pipe and t-stat housing, using new hose clamps and hoses. going back with original setup.
everything was working fine, but i start out just doing a coolant flush and now i have half the parts under the hood removed, lol.
i got a new fail safe t-stat and gasket today. this car still has all motorcraft everything, down to the fuel filter, yes i changed it(93 sedan lx, auto w/86k miles) very clean!
i'm considering replacing the waterpump and timing belt. i got in touch with the previous owners who had the car a while to see if they had done the water pump or timing belt and they had not. they did mention that they had changed out the thermostat 3 months ago, but they didn't even use a gasket or seal of any type!
coolant was like it had never been flushed ever, was leaking from radiator cap too. so i guess that's 4 leaks that were all tiny.
i love these cars, they're so easy to work on and they are one of the best kept secrets if you ask me.
this is my 3rd 93 escort to purchase. my brother still drives the first one i got. and gets 38mpg hwy. stick shift 2 door.
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