A week ago, I had the 98 Town car coolant and rad system flushed. (Apparently the old old coolant was not winter-ready). Anyway had it done along with a tranny flush and oil change. Car ran so smooth, it was hard to tell it was running. Beauty. But a day or so later, driving in traffic the temperature guage went from normal to hot in a minute or so and the car started lurching on and off. Fortunately I was close to a good shop, and they checked it, put a coolant tank cap on and I was on my way. Two hours of highway driving later, all looked ok....until later than night. Idling at a fast food lineup, the needle went hot again. Car was towed the 100 miles back to the mechanic shop. That was last weekend.
This past Monday, they once again flushed the system, pressure tested put in a new thermostat, tested it all day at slow speeds and I was on my way. Alas an hour later (stop start), the needle again rose quickly, the car shuddered and I pulled over and had it towed. This time antifreeze on the road. The shop took the coolant bottle out found a filter that had crap on it put a Ford thermostat in (3rd one this week) and I drove the car yesterday most of the day trying to replicate the stop start idea-actually looking for traffic (yes, I did). No problem and really thought I'd licked it. I should mention that during all these visits they tested the water pump (good circulation), hoses, the rad (good circulation) The car has never driven better, is so quiet it purrs. But....this morning, I noticed some antifreeze under the car, & immediately took it back. A few blocks from the shop, the needle/shudder act reoccurred. They suggested that some air might be seaping in via a bad head gasket. I didnt believe this but they put the temporary goo in to seal that. Unconvinced this was the issue, I drove it directly to the Ford dealer (a good one I should add). They checked the ignition switch (a recall apparently) but found nothing. They asked me about thermostats and flushes (4 in a week now), and said the only thing they could see was that there is a "lot" of crud in the system (Huh? still?). Yikes. In surfing the web on similar predicaments, the only thing I can see that has not been checked (or maybe it was, who knows) is a bad "clutch fan". The dealer is good at diagnostic and might find the problem (but maybe not) and I will leave the car over the weekend. But wondering whether anyone has any experience with this. If the system is still spitting up crud after all those cleanings, should I have the rad replaced? Or ....the car?
Will this madness end? Or should I just tell them to begin throwing parts at it.
Thanks for reading this far and sorry for the long note.
Paul Ryan
This past Monday, they once again flushed the system, pressure tested put in a new thermostat, tested it all day at slow speeds and I was on my way. Alas an hour later (stop start), the needle again rose quickly, the car shuddered and I pulled over and had it towed. This time antifreeze on the road. The shop took the coolant bottle out found a filter that had crap on it put a Ford thermostat in (3rd one this week) and I drove the car yesterday most of the day trying to replicate the stop start idea-actually looking for traffic (yes, I did). No problem and really thought I'd licked it. I should mention that during all these visits they tested the water pump (good circulation), hoses, the rad (good circulation) The car has never driven better, is so quiet it purrs. But....this morning, I noticed some antifreeze under the car, & immediately took it back. A few blocks from the shop, the needle/shudder act reoccurred. They suggested that some air might be seaping in via a bad head gasket. I didnt believe this but they put the temporary goo in to seal that. Unconvinced this was the issue, I drove it directly to the Ford dealer (a good one I should add). They checked the ignition switch (a recall apparently) but found nothing. They asked me about thermostats and flushes (4 in a week now), and said the only thing they could see was that there is a "lot" of crud in the system (Huh? still?). Yikes. In surfing the web on similar predicaments, the only thing I can see that has not been checked (or maybe it was, who knows) is a bad "clutch fan". The dealer is good at diagnostic and might find the problem (but maybe not) and I will leave the car over the weekend. But wondering whether anyone has any experience with this. If the system is still spitting up crud after all those cleanings, should I have the rad replaced? Or ....the car?
Will this madness end? Or should I just tell them to begin throwing parts at it.
Thanks for reading this far and sorry for the long note.
Paul Ryan