Over heating, what next??

[wtucker]

OK, I have a 94 conti signature with the ever so wonderful 3.8 liter v-6. This car has been nothing both trouble ever since I bought it. Any way, Monday on my way to work, driving down the highway about 70, I got an over temp chime as my temp gauge was blinking. Didn't sound like the lifters were rattling or any thing but I exited the freeway any way, and while sitting at the light, the temp went down. This is odd to me because it normally works the other way, hot when still, and cools down when moving due to the air flow through the rad etc.... Any way, Monday after work, the car would not start. The car would not crank at all, just clicked. Had the battery tested at autozone and it tested good. I checked a couple other things and determined it was the starter. Had to have the car towed the 20 miles home and last night I put in the starter. Great, car starts now. I also had a low oil chime just for a moment on that trip to work. I checked oil level, and was full.
Also, on Sunday, I had a horrible idle problem, very rough, almost would not run at all while idleing. So today (Friday) I was driving the car, picked my daughter up from school etc, and the idle is a little better, not much, but I am still overheating. I have replaced the water pump last year, the radiator as the other one was leaking, did the front cylinder head gasket, all last year. I haven't had any more over heating issues until last Sunday. When I went to autozone today to check on them pulling my codes, which I did at home already and posted the codes on this board which I haver had 126 views and 0 responses, I thought I would have them pull them and tell me what they mean. They can't pull codes from cars older than 1996, so oh well. I can read in my code book what they mean, but doing any further testing is out of my realm of ability as I have nothing more than what the code book says. I don't know what to do now that I have the codes. Just in case some one here can help, I'll list the codes again. 533, 634, 648, 656. These are all KOEO tests, since I am not able to figure out what to do now that I have the codes, I have not done the tests while the engine is running. I also would like some help in determining what is now causing my over heating problem. I am at a lost and am tired of dumping money into this car.
Any ideas guys? I could use some help please....:Bang

 

[MichiganTeddyBear]

ok, lets start with the codes..

533=Data communications link to electronic instrument cluster (EIC) fault(note, this will not cause a problem with the car running, just the display of info on the dash)

634=Manual Lever Position (MLP) sensor voltage out of Self-Test range
648=Incorrect gear ratio obtained for fourth gear
656=Converter Clutch Control continuous slip error detected

This is cut/paste from my 92 manual, which should be the same as the 94.

now, as to why your overheating...

you changed one of the head gaskets, but not the other.. maybe the other has failed now. test by checking for oil in the coolant, and coolant in the oil. also, with engine running, give the tail pipe a good sniff (test both hot and cold engine). if you smell antifreeze (a sweet smell), a headgasket is gone.

Verify that the cooling system is full, with no leaks. these engines are very easy to get air pockets in, and they will wreak havoc on everything, including the temp sensors for the engine, as well as dash.

Now, if all that is ok, we need to verify for certain that it is in fact overheating. one possible cause of the 533 error, as well as incorrect info on the dash, is believe it or not, the cluster itself. Has it ever been removed and the 2 black connectors on the PCB's resoldered?? these 2 connectors have all the gauge info (speed, temp, volt, oil press, low oil warn, ect) comming in on them, as well as the DCL (which is the 533 code). it could be that bad connections on them solders (and dont just look at them, get them redone regardless of what they look like, the cracks can be microscopic) causing all the problems.

I can't stress the DCL issue enough, as it is probably by FAR the easiest and cheapest fix out there if you can solder, or know someone who can.

 

[wtucker]

ok, lets start with the codes..

533=Data communications link to electronic instrument cluster (EIC) fault(note, this will not cause a problem with the car running, just the display of info on the dash)

634=Manual Lever Position (MLP) sensor voltage out of Self-Test range
648=Incorrect gear ratio obtained for fourth gear
656=Converter Clutch Control continuous slip error detected

This is cut/paste from my 92 manual, which should be the same as the 94.

now, as to why your overheating...

you changed one of the head gaskets, but not the other.. maybe the other has failed now. test by checking for oil in the coolant, and coolant in the oil. also, with engine running, give the tail pipe a good sniff (test both hot and cold engine). if you smell antifreeze (a sweet smell), a headgasket is gone. OK, how do I test for oil in the coolant, and coolant in the oil?

Verify that the cooling system is full, with no leaks. these engines are very easy to get air pockets in, and they will wreak havoc on everything, including the temp sensors for the engine, as well as dash. How do I get the air out of the cooling system, and how do I verify it?
Now, if all that is ok, we need to verify for certain that it is in fact overheating. one possible cause of the 533 error, as well as incorrect info on the dash, is believe it or not, the cluster itself. Has it ever been removed and the 2 black connectors on the PCB's resoldered?? these 2 connectors have all the gauge info (speed, temp, volt, oil press, low oil warn, ect) comming in on them, as well as the DCL (which is the 533 code). it could be that bad connections on them solders (and dont just look at them, get them redone regardless of what they look like, the cracks can be microscopic) causing all the problems. I have not had this done. Any ideas on how to go about it?
I can't stress the DCL issue enough, as it is probably by FAR the easiest and cheapest fix out there if you can solder, or know someone who can.

Thanks for your help

 

[wtucker]

ok, lets start with the codes..

533=Data communications link to electronic instrument cluster (EIC) fault(note, this will not cause a problem with the car running, just the display of info on the dash)

634=Manual Lever Position (MLP) sensor voltage out of Self-Test range
648=Incorrect gear ratio obtained for fourth gear
656=Converter Clutch Control continuous slip error detected

This is cut/paste from my 92 manual, which should be the same as the 94.

now, as to why your overheating...

you changed one of the head gaskets, but not the other.. maybe the other has failed now. test by checking for oil in the coolant, and coolant in the oil. also, with engine running, give the tail pipe a good sniff (test both hot and cold engine). if you smell antifreeze (a sweet smell), a headgasket is gone.

Verify that the cooling system is full, with no leaks. these engines are very easy to get air pockets in, and they will wreak havoc on everything, including the temp sensors for the engine, as well as dash.

Now, if all that is ok, we need to verify for certain that it is in fact overheating. one possible cause of the 533 error, as well as incorrect info on the dash, is believe it or not, the cluster itself. Has it ever been removed and the 2 black connectors on the PCB's resoldered?? these 2 connectors have all the gauge info (speed, temp, volt, oil press, low oil warn, ect) comming in on them, as well as the DCL (which is the 533 code). it could be that bad connections on them solders (and dont just look at them, get them redone regardless of what they look like, the cracks can be microscopic) causing all the problems.

I can't stress the DCL issue enough, as it is probably by FAR the easiest and cheapest fix out there if you can solder, or know someone who can.

I added about a gallon of water to my radiater just now as it was overheating when I picked my daughter up, and now it idles like crap. It didn't before I added the water. I don't know if this is related to the idle issue or not but it sure seems like it.

 

[MichiganTeddyBear]

if your going thru coolant (dont use straight water for any length of time over a couple days) pretty quick, with no signs of leakage, then a headgasket is probably bad.

testing for oil/coolant contamination is pretty easy actually, as in the rad you will see oil floatin on top, and in the crankcase, the oil will look like chocolate milk. Another test to see if the gasket is bad just at a water jacket is to fill the system with engine cold, leave cap off rad. start the car, if you get a lot of bubbles or even a geyser, you have a bad head gasket.

getting air out of the cooling system is pretty much just repeating 'fill, warm up, let cool, open cap, see if its still full' on these cars. make sure to keep the overflow bottle properly filled as well, as if it draws coolant in from there, and it goes dry, you get air in instead. you can look to see if yours has a 'bleed screw' or similar, on the top of a small pipe comming out of the intake, near the thermostat. not all had them (my 91 didn't, but my 92 cougar with 3.8 did).

speaking of thermostats, they can stick shut you know and cause an overheat problem. also, many replacement 'stats have small holes or a check valve to aid in bleeding air from the system.

doing the cluster resolder isn't bad. do a search on google for 'dcl tuneup' and you should get a few hits. the one I recommend is on a different lincoln site, and is very good, although it does not include resoldering the connectors. but once the cluster is out, you can take it apart, and then you will see the solderjoints in question. you can see the top part of the connectors with the cluster assembled, but the problem lies on the opposite side of the circuit board from where the connectors stick out (to mate with the wiring harness in the car).

I can resolder the cluster for you if needed, all you need to do is pay shipping both ways for it. takes me about 1 or 2 days to get it done (my soldering equipment is at my work, not my home). you CAN drive the car without the cluster, as long as you know there isn't anything else going on with it (such as overheating, fuel runs out, ect.. ).

 

[wtucker]

if your going thru coolant (dont use straight water for any length of time over a couple days) pretty quick, with no signs of leakage, then a headgasket is probably bad.

testing for oil/coolant contamination is pretty easy actually, as in the rad you will see oil floatin on top, and in the crankcase, the oil will look like chocolate milk. Another test to see if the gasket is bad just at a water jacket is to fill the system with engine cold, leave cap off rad. start the car, if you get a lot of bubbles or even a geyser, you have a bad head gasket.

getting air out of the cooling system is pretty much just repeating 'fill, warm up, let cool, open cap, see if its still full' on these cars. make sure to keep the overflow bottle properly filled as well, as if it draws coolant in from there, and it goes dry, you get air in instead. you can look to see if yours has a 'bleed screw' or similar, on the top of a small pipe comming out of the intake, near the thermostat. not all had them (my 91 didn't, but my 92 cougar with 3.8 did).

speaking of thermostats, they can stick shut you know and cause an overheat problem. also, many replacement 'stats have small holes or a check valve to aid in bleeding air from the system.

doing the cluster resolder isn't bad. do a search on google for 'dcl tuneup' and you should get a few hits. the one I recommend is on a different lincoln site, and is very good, although it does not include resoldering the connectors. but once the cluster is out, you can take it apart, and then you will see the solderjoints in question. you can see the top part of the connectors with the cluster assembled, but the problem lies on the opposite side of the circuit board from where the connectors stick out (to mate with the wiring harness in the car).

I can resolder the cluster for you if needed, all you need to do is pay shipping both ways for it. takes me about 1 or 2 days to get it done (my soldering equipment is at my work, not my home). you CAN drive the car without the cluster, as long as you know there isn't anything else going on with it (such as overheating, fuel runs out, ect.. ).

MTB, thanks for all the help. I'm gonna go out this morning and check some of the things you just mentioned. I'll also get a t-stat, some anti freeze. As for the cluster, do you have to de-solder the joints first and then re-solder? Or just put the heat to it and re-solder?

Will

 

[MichiganTeddyBear]

on the resoldering, it depends on the condition of the existing solder. if possible, the best method would be to desolder them, then all new fresh. I have had good sucess with just heating the old joint, and adding some fresh to it (the flux in the new solder will do wonders for reflowing the old stuff).