Ford Thermostat Life?

[Zap]

The '94 seems to be running a bit cool lately. Sometimes it runs fine (city driving) but on the highway it appears to be lower than it should. The T-Stat was replaced with a Ford part a few years back. Any idea how long they should last?

Last year the coolant was changed along with the W/P and Radiator, so its had newer coolant for a while now.

I'm wondering if it has already given up, or if the sender for the gauge might be flaking out? Any suggestions?

If I do change the T-stat, anything else that should be changed at the same time?

Thanks!

 

[tgsho]

avg. 100,000 miles i believe.

 

[1993MTXSHO]

well to make sure your thermo is actualyl the problem, when you take it out put it in some boiling water and see if it opens all the way, iv bought defective thermo's before and I always test them now before I install them

 

[Kens1992mtxSHO]

well to make sure your thermo is actualyl the problem, when you take it out put it in some boiling water and see if it opens all the way, iv bought defective thermo's before and I always test them now before I install them

That's a pretty good idea! I probably wouldn't have thought of that.

 

[SHOtimer]

100k seems a bit generous on thermostat life. I would say they could last that long, but should probably be replaced with a 60k service.

Doug

 

[Storm-Chaser]

Service life of the thermostat is a function of how you drive the car. If you drive a lot of stop-and-go, sit-in-traffic miles, or leave the engine idling alot, the constant heat cycling is ******* the thermostat. If however you drive a lot of highway miles where the engine maintains a constant stable temperature range for long periods of time, the thermostat should last well beyond 100,000 miles.

 

[SonicRiot]

Replace it when when you do the pump and coolant flush... every 60K.

 

[Zap]

Yeah... this is NOT even close to 60k old. Maybe about 20k, I guess I just had bad luck!

 

[shoclown]

i would not tr4ust the ford gauge or sending unit, as a tech at ford i replaced and tested alot of them...the gauges would not be accurate if someone overheated at one time..
I would check both and then check t-stat with thermo gun to see if it is opening at the correct time

 

[Kens1992mtxSHO]

i would not tr4ust the ford gauge or sending unit, as a tech at ford i replaced and tested alot of them...the gauges would not be accurate if someone overheated at one time..

Interesting that you say that. Ever since my PS pump went on me and my car overheated 6 months ago the engine temp just doesn't seem right.

 

[SHO-NUF93]

i would not tr4ust the ford gauge or sending unit, as a tech at ford i replaced and tested alot of them...the gauges would not be accurate if someone overheated at one time..
I would check both and then check t-stat with thermo gun to see if it is opening at the correct time

Interesting...would that be due to the gauge itself, or perhaps the sending unit?

Good little bit of info here, tho, seriously.

 

[jruss1601]

You know mine runs cold too. Or so it says. Mine has 101k and i got it around 97k and its been that way since. My brother said performance motors run cold. So is it suppossed to be that way or not?

 

[Zap]

That's a good point. I'm wondering if the sender is flaking out on me. Harbor Freight is about 2 minutes from me and the temp guns are only about $40. I remember when they used to cost hundreds. I'm going to pick one up, that has tons of uses!

 

[SonicRiot]

poor readings from the SHO's water temp. gauge is certainly not a new topic...

 

[SHO-NUF93]

poor readings from the SHO's water temp. gauge is certainly not a new topic...

Any gauge on any Ford for that matter. Ask any ****** owner, hehe.

But that still leaves me curious if the higher temperature damages the sending unit, and throws off the reading on the gauge...or would the higher than normal reading on the gauge actually do the damage to the gauge.

 

[I'll sho u]

I have tried at least 4 different sending units trieng to fix the same problem. Only the last one which came from napa seemed to make the guage read somewhat accuratly.

 

[Zap]

Okay, well I picked up the thermo gun, so now I can check operation. Should I be watching for anything in particular that would indicate sticking open/failure open?

 

[Zap]

A quick check yields a temperature at the thermostat output hose of around 188-190 degrees F. Now, of course, the temp gauge seems to be reading correctly in the AL range when this was taken (this was also after a bit of driving). I'll keep the thermometer in the car and check it again if the gauge is reading low at some point.