Overheating Engine !!!!!

[johnjamis]

I started my marauder and it slowly went to redline on water temperature. I shut down and after cooling tried again with the same results. I pulled the thermostat and checked it in some boiling water and it is ok(188 degrees). The antifreeze is ok(50-50 mix) and full. I also opened the air bleed fitting on the top pipe and there is no air in it. The belt is ok. What is left - is my water pump inop? HELP - no car on Christmas weekend! Any other ideas, guys? Thanks, John

[Zack]

You might have a bad gauge, but I doubt that.
It is also possible that the water pump impeller has become 'unpressed' from the shaft, resulting in no water circulation. This sounds far fetched but it has happened to me on other vehicles. Good luck.

[johnjamis]

Thanks Zack. It did dump some antifreeze in the warmup process. John

[johnjamis]

A mechanic friend of mine says it could be the electric fan or fan module. I parked the car on an incline and opened the fill port and topped it off. All is OK now.

[jgc61sr2002]

A mechanic friend of mine says it could be the electric fan or fan module, so I guess its off to the dealer on Mondsy.

Does the cooling fan come on?

[Glenn]

The MM are very sensitive to air in the cooling system and sometimes require a vacuum to pull all the air out of the system (your Ford dealer has the equipment). But, this should only occur if you had the system open for some reason or an air leak; i.e. replaced the thermostat, hose leaking, etc. The air bleeder on your hose sometimes is just not enough to completely bleed the system. My bet it is air related.

Glenn

[SergntMac]

Yes Glenn, there is a special air bleed tool from Ford for cooling system repairs, but my L/M wrench said that it only works to 90 percent. He too, pulls the plug from the top pipe and lets air boil out. It's just that with a 180 stat, it takes longer to get all of the air out.

IMHO, more cooling system problems are getting posted here, and fewer of them have had any mods to them at all. So, we should keep an eye on the electric radiator fan as one more thing to check, or, rule out in the post overheat investigation, yes?

[johnjamis]

I tapped on the fan module, wiggled the connector, and started the car and everything is ok for now. Thanks for all the feedback. John

[jgc61sr2002]

I tapped on the fan module, wiggled the connector, and started the car and everything is ok for now. This is very strange and not confidence inspiring. The fan is now definitely working. The fan is the first thing I will check if this happens again. Thanks for all the feedback. John


You are very welcome. :D