Coolant temp fluctuating

[1994MTX]

Yesterday I did a oil change (mobil 1), and an entire coolant flush. I installed a new t-sending unit and a 180 degree t-stat.

At idle the temp guage is centered but when I took it for a spin around town it went up to the N-O area, a lot warmer than it should be. Considering the temp stayed centered before the flush, i think I did something wrong. The t-stat I had put in a year ago was a 192 and worked out just fine.
My fan is kicking in, but when the temp goes up, it won't lower until i turn the engine off and let it cool down.
It's a little frustrating because the whole idea behind the flush was "preventative maintenance"

 

[luigisho]

Maybe the system has some air in it. Did you get the t-stat with the jiggle valves?

 

[1994MTX]

Jiggle valves? not real sure what you mean.
I think i may have mixed the coolant to rich, but i don't think that would cause the high temp?

 

[1994MTX]

Whats the best way to remove air from system. I tried by running engine with rad. cap off and rocking car.

 

[N3FOL]

I got rid of some air in the system by running the car for about 5 minutes and let the engine cool down cool down. Afterwards, I opened the radiator cap (a little whiz of air) and air came out. Be very careful, it will have some pressure in it.

Hope this works for you.

 

[luigisho]

The Ford oem t-stat has two small jiggle valves that should be installed in the 12o'clock position. They look like 2 tiny loose jiggly pieces. Not positive but I think they are there to release vapor from the system. How rich did you mix the stuff? Coolant is a misnomer when refering to straight anti-freeze. The water is what does most of the cooling and the other stuff keeps it from, well... freezing. Did you install the correct Ford part or did you go aftermarket? You can help burp the system by squeezing the top rad. hose to help move the air through the system and into the overflow tank. Do you have enough coolant in the system? Is the fan coming on at the appropriate time?

 

[1994MTX]

The t-stat didn't have the valves, but i just picked up a 192 oem with the valves, and some dex-cool coolant (orange). I'll give it a try.
I was just worried that I had damaged the water pump by introducing cold tap water to the engine when it wasn't completly cooled down yet.

 

[srfdude]

There has recently been a lot of discussion on another board about the dex-cool (orange) stuff. You need to get all of the old green stuff out before you put that in; and in general the consensus is that its not worth the extra money. I have two gallons I bought and won't be using; GM has been having way too much trouble with this stuff. Also, its not necessary to mix richer than 50-50 with any antifreeze (unless you live in Alaska or Minnesota.)
Mike

 

[1994MTX]

I went with the orange stuff because sdpatt seems to recommend it, i don't need a whole lot about it myself, but i trust his advice like most others on this site

 

[luigisho]

Use distilled water instead of tap. Takes all the minerals and junk out.

 

[BeatDaSHO]

you should get the motorcraft 180 degree thermostat. that is the one that is recommend best for your car. To let the air out of the system, you should fill up it up to the top, start the car, wait until the thermostat opens, fill it back up, and do this a couple times. Then squeeze the upper radiator hose by the coil pack to get the air out. Then fill it back up again. Take it out for a drive and come back and do the same thing. This should work.

Greg

 

[fredhurderjr]

Someone once told me that the V6 SHO radiator contains materials that are incompatible with Dex-Cool (orange).

I have also been given the guideline of staying with the same color coolant as what came with it factory.

I don't have any specifics about the Dex-Cool, but I've always had good luck with Zerex or Prestone(Green). In a pinch, Peak.

Of course, this is hearsay and opinion only.

 

[sdpatt]

The cooling system will naturally purge itself of any air as the system temperature increases and decreases. The heatup causes the air to be pushed out through the pressure cap to the expansion bottle. When the coolant temperature is reduced by the radiator fan running, the car moving with sufficient air through the radiator or shut down, is causes the system to draw coolant into the radiator from the expansion bottle. This occurs while the engine is operating and after it stops and will, in time, return the system to liquid solid conditions. Just don't push the engine too hard until the temperature is once again stabilized indicating the air has been evacuated.

There is nothing in the radiator that the Dex-Cool hasn't been made compatible with. The SHO's radiator is made no differently than those of many other makes of cars. Aluminum, plastic and rubber are hardly specific to the SHO.

The benefits of the orange coolant are the longer change intervals and the silicate-free formulation that reduces the wear on the water pump seals. We all know how we would like to reduce the necessity of replacing the water pump.

 

[1994MTX]

the temp has seemed to even out, but i still plan to go with the oem t-stat and dex-cool. And I to know the importance of preserving my water pump, I work at Advance auto parts and still can't get a pump for less than 160 buckaroos.

Thanks for the advice
thumbs_u

 

[sdpatt]

Just a reminder, the 3.0L SHO uses the 180 degree thermostat and the 3.2L uses the 190 degree version. If and when you need to replace the water pump, get an A1 Cardone 57-1373 remanufactured pump (front case half with impeller, shaft, new bearings, seals and refinished exterior) from O’Reilly or other local auto parts store for $61.45 (approx.) including the gasket and a lifetime warranty.

Scott