Replaced actuator in 02 Lincoln LS 3.9 V8 still running hot. Please!!! Somebody Help!!!

[Dajon Porter]

Replaced actuator in 02 Lincoln LS 3.9 V8 still running hot. Please!!! Somebody Help!!! I have a 2002 Lincoln LS 3.9 V8 overheating problem.. I have replaced the hydraulic fan assembly, the overflow tank, the actuator, all pipes and hoses including thermostat housing, heater core and gasket seals, replaced coolant, all relays and fuses and the car is still running hot fan not kicking up, please! What's wrong!

 

[02LincLS]

Its running hot "not kicking up", but is the fan coming on at all? At what temp? When the a/c is on?
If no fan, is there air stuck in the hydraulic system?
Did you replace the pump as well? Maybe that's bad.
How hot is it getting (measured with obdII scanner)?

IIRC, you need to hit 235 before the fan comes on 50%, and something like 245-250 for full liftoff mode. Turning the a/c on makes the fan come on sooner.

 

[fudge12]

Hi, welcome to LvC. These cars are notorius for overheating.

First and foremost, bleed the system throrougly. Im not too familar wirh the v8, but on the v6 the bleeder screw is right in the front between the fan and engine, right at the top. Then theres the bleeder screw by the degas bottle.

I usually put the heater on max and the fan on full speed. I have someone rev the engine to 2.5k rpm and proceed to bleed. Let the engine idle and bleed again. Keep repeating till no more air comes out the screw. Do NOT remove the degas bottle cap at anytime during the bleed proceedure.

If you are sure that there is no more air the syatem and the car still overheats and the fan does not kick on full, you either have contaminated fluid in the hydraulic system or a faulty valve behind the fan.

If the fluid in the fan reservior is not a bright red color, or appears to be milky then your problem lies there. Keep us posted.

 

[joegr]

When does it overheat?
A. Idling and driving slowly.
B. Driving faster than 40 MPH (maybe going up a hill).
C. Both.

Does the fan change speed when you turn the AC on (if the AC has been off for several minutes)?

 

[Dajon Porter]

The fan is on but it's running slow all the time even when the temp Needle climbs up the fan continues to spin at regular speed. It runs hot in idle and when I'm driving it as well. The fan speed does not pick up when ac is on.

 

[Dajon Porter]

Before all of this started happening I noticed I was putting coolant in my car every day but I was not loosing it with the car parked in place I was loosing it while driving. After awhile that problem went away and it somehow began to hold coolant again and the car ran just fine. Now, the fan is not kicking in but the overflow tank has coolant. I replace the actuator but the fan is still not ramping up

 

[Dajon Porter]

When does it overheat?
A. Idling and driving slowly.
B. Driving faster than 40 MPH (maybe going up a hill).
C. Both.

It's C. Both

Does the fan change speed when you turn the AC on (if the AC has been off for several minutes)?

 

[joegr]

You need to replace all the cooling system plastics and get the cooling system to where it is not leaking and pressurizes. (If you replaced the degas bottle with the Dorman one, then you need to replace it and the cap with Motorcraft.) This will resolve your overheating while driving at reasonable speed.

The overheating at idle is likely the fan. You'll need to diagnose the real problem (fan motor, fan pump, reservoir filter, ...) or just replace those items. If you replaced the actuator with a new one, then you have likely eliminated that as the cause, assuming that you flushed out the system and have new, clear fluid in there.

 

[grizzlyls]

Having the same gen 1 system the thing that came to my mind when reading this is you basically state you replace virtually the whole system. What came to mind is the wheelbarrow load of cash for all that, if all was new. If you pulled the stuff from the junkyard, well it could be any number of the issue, but I would start by saying an used actuator likely is a no good one.

One thing my mech showed me one I thought I might have a hokey one is if you put your hand on the pump fluid reservoir with the system running you will feel it pumping. You can also see the fluid flow with a bright light shone into the reservoir.

Also A/C on vs off there is a definite difference in the fan speed, and with the A/C off, you wont feel the pump like I said if it is running in normal cool mode (not hot).

 

[Dajon Porter]

I have been driving my car only late at night and early morning for the past two days. It has not run hot. Not when it's cool outside. But after I made it to work early this morning I noticed after I had parked and gotten out of the car a cloud of white smoke come rushing from the back side of the motor. What is that?

 

[joegr]

... But after I made it to work early this morning I noticed after I had parked and gotten out of the car a cloud of white smoke come rushing from the back side of the motor. What is that?

Seriously?

You need to replace all the cooling system plastics and get the cooling system to where it is not leaking and pressurizes. (If you replaced the degas bottle with the Dorman one, then you need to replace it and the cap with Motorcraft.) This will resolve your overheating while driving at reasonable speed....

 

[grizzlyls]

The cats are positioned such that when fluid stuff hits them they send smoke up the firewall looking like the back of the engine. What this says is you have a pretty serious leak. Now, I am not sure what coolant would look like in that case, but when we used the Ford valve gaskets instead of Jaguar this last year, I had mass oil leak and got 'clouds' of smoke (brand new out of box btw). My mech knew he shouldnt have but hey why would ford pack bad gaskets in new valve cover boxes? Any how now the Jags are in, zero smoke.

You really need to trace this leak, and when all leaks are gone you should be running fine.

 

[02LincLS]

The fan is on but it's running slow all the time even when the temp Needle climbs up the fan continues to spin at regular speed. It runs hot in idle and when I'm driving it as well. The fan speed does not pick up when ac is on.

How are you determining fan speed? You can't really tell by looking/listening as it makes infinite increments. You need a scanner to look at the engine temp, and the fan duty cycle and fan speed. This will show if the car is electrically trying to do the right thing, and is mechanically not responding (bad pump and possibly still the actuator if it was not replaced with new).

You may still have other issues after you get the fan working. I didn't see the thermostat on your list of replaced parts. Even if you did, test it in boiling water on the stove to make sure its opening. Make sure its in the right way.

Pressure test the system to 15psi (no pressure loss over 30 minutes) to be sure its leak tight. If you still have issues, it could be radiator blockage (inside and/or out) or possibly water pump (less likely).