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1996 Ranger overheating after draining


750beater

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Hi all bought my Ranger almost a year ago now.

I just completed a timing job on my 1996 Ranger 2.3. This truck has always been a PITA to get all the air out of the cooling system. I have replaced the water pump and thermostat a few months ago. Truck was running fine. Then a week ago the timing belt snapped off. I put everything back together, Truck is running great but it keeps wanting to overheat. I even tried filling it up though the heater hose. The heater is working but the gauge is past the halfway mark. I have ramps to try to elevate the front end. Also noticed the lower hose was cool to touch but the top hose is hot on the engine side and not that hot on the rad side. However I noticed the fan clutch seems like it works right away but wasn't working when the engine was hot. I didn't test the clutch yet. I'm going to move it in the morning when it's cold. Tried driving it around. Driving up and down my driveway. The thermostat that's in there is a motorcraft. I'm just running out of ideas. Any advice?
 


RonD

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Reads like radiator is clogged up

When thermostat opens upper and lower rad hoses should be 15-20deg different, lower hose being 15-20deg cooler than top hose

Fan clutch works from radiator heat not engine heat, as the center of the radiator warms up it heats up the bi-metal spring on the fan clutch which "engages" the fan to spin closer to water pump speed

Shut warm engine off and move fan shroud back
Run your hand over radiator fins, should feel even heat all the way across and toward the bottom it will start to get cooler but not cold.
Any colder "spots" are blocked cooling tubes.

New thermostat could be bad, it happens, new used to mean "tested and working", new now means "YOU test it, and we will replace it if it doesn't work"

I know on some engines you can reverse the fan belt on the water pump, so it, and the fan, is spinning backwards, not sure on the 2.3l
Flow thru rad and engine would be much less
 
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750beater

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Reads like radiator is clogged up

When thermostat opens upper and lower rad hoses should be 15-20deg different, lower hose being 15-20deg cooler than top hose

Fan clutch works from radiator heat not engine heat, as the center of the radiator warms up it heats up the bi-metal spring on the fan clutch which "engages" the fan to spin closer to water pump speed

Shut warm engine off and move fan shroud back
Run your hand over radiator fins, should feel even heat all the way across and toward the bottom it will start to get cooler but not cold.
Any colder "spots" are blocked cooling tubes.

New thermostat could be bad, it happens, new used to mean "tested and working", new now means "YOU test it, and we will replace it if it doesn't work"

I know on some engines you can reverse the fan belt on the water pump, so it, and the fan, is spinning backwards, not sure on the 2.3l
Flow thru rad and engine would be much less

Thanks for the feedback, I'll def try that. The cooling system is crap. TBH. The radiator was installed by previous owner about 2 years ago now. Would a standard garden hose flush work? Or should I just replace it again?
 

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Before condemning the radiator, start the engine from cold. Place a hand on the upper radiator hose. It should stay cold until the coolant inside the engine(not radiator) gets hot, about 190F. The hose should get warm all of a sudden, then hot. If it warms slowly, or not at all, the stat is either installed wrong(leak/backward), or defective. It should seal, pretty tightly, until it decides to open and allow flow.
Once the stat opens, take a glance at the gauge reading. If it is too high, again, the stat is the item doing the heating, controlling anyway, and the radiator is on vacation until the stat opens.
tom
 

750beater

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Before condemning the radiator, start the engine from cold. Place a hand on the upper radiator hose. It should stay cold until the coolant inside the engine(not radiator) gets hot, about 190F. The hose should get warm all of a sudden, then hot. If it warms slowly, or not at all, the stat is either installed wrong(leak/backward), or defective. It should seal, pretty tightly, until it decides to open and allow flow.
Once the stat opens, take a glance at the gauge reading. If it is too high, again, the stat is the item doing the heating, controlling anyway, and the radiator is on vacation until the stat opens.
tom
I'll definitely do that, one thing I left out. There's coolant in the radiator obviously but when I try to drain it with the petcock it doesn't drain. A few drips come out very slowly, that leads me to believe it is a clogged radiator.
 

750beater

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Okay guys, update. I ran the truck and pulled the shroud off after it was hot. There's a straight up cold spot in the center of the radiator. Which would rule out the fan clutch being bad. I'm going to pull the radiator and try to flush it.

I also unsrewed the drain valve on the radiator and again drips come out. So again thanks for yalls feed back, it is much appreciated!
 

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I found a brand new one on ebay for 71.50. If you have the money I would just go ahead and replace. I have seen where flushing it will work and when it will not. Sometimes once a radiator gets a cold spot for long enough and everything around heats up all the time it usually creates a weak point there.
Just my .02 cents.




https://www.ebay.com/itm/1726-New-Radiator-For-Ford-Ranger-1995-1996-1997-2-3-L4-Lifetime-Warranty/130594318247?fits=Year:1996|Make:Ford|Model:Ranger&hash=item1e680727a7:g:BIwAAOSwYSlXhYFb:sc:ShippingMethodStandard!39574!US!-1&vxp=mtr
 

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Coolant is a higher PH and has anti-corrosive chemicals added, to prevent metal corrosion in the cooling system.

When cooling passages in the radiator and heater core get clogged up there is no circulation so no protection from corrosion, so basically just a matter of time before it springs a leak.
Flushing can get a few more miles out of them, but I would start saving and shopping for a sale on the needed part.

The 2 year recommended change time for the older style of coolant, silicate/green coolant, is because anti-corrosion chemicals lose effectiveness after that time so needs to be changed for new
 

750beater

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Hey guys. So question about the fan clutch. I replaced the radiator and thermostat and it is hot now. Finally got the heater to start working. But I noticed when the truck is cold and first starts the clutch seems to be on. Clearly blowing air. But when the engine gets hot the fan is not blowing. I used a paper towel Roll a d could stop the fan. I just find it hard to believe everything is just failing like this.
 

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When engine is cold, so is fan clutch and its oil inside, so at startup the fan clutch should be locked and you will hear louder noise from the fan, but that should only last a few seconds, 5-8seconds, then it will unlock and noise level will drop.
Fan clutch has the bi-metal spring on the front that is heated by the radiator
As spring heats up it expands and closes a valve inside that limits oil passing thru it, this brings fan blade speed closer to engine RPMs, it is never fully Locked to water pump shaft speed.

Tell tale sign of failing fan clutch is NOT unlocking after cold start, so no decrease in noise
Or engine temp climbing but only when idling or driving very slowly(stop and go traffic), so it is not locking up enough.
Rolled up paper test can't really tell you radiator temp or fan clutch spring temp.

Start cold engine, wait for fan clutch to release, you will "hear it", shut off engine and manually spin fan blade, should spin easily, remember that
After shutting off fully warmed up engine the fan should be harder to spin manually, test for that

Fan is only needed when idling or driving slowly, when vehicle is at any speed above say 30MPH air flow thru the radiator is more than any fan could provide.

Although I do remember driving one time across the prairies, years ago, going 65MPH, in a car with AC on and was watching temp gauge go up a bit, ???
Turned off AC and it was still climbing a bit ??
Rolled down window..................NO WIND noise, lol, stuck my arm out the window absolutely NO WIND at 65MPH
Had a very strong tail wind so no air flow at radiator.
Only ever experienced that one time, very cool but...............

22 years old is what the parts are on a 1996 Ranger, some have been changed some haven't, so really not that unusual to find "other" related parts out of spec when doing repairs.
 
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750beater

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When engine is cold, so is fan clutch and its oil inside, so at startup the fan clutch should be locked and you will hear louder noise from the fan, but that should only last a few seconds, 5-8seconds, then it will unlock and noise level will drop.
Fan clutch has the bi-metal spring on the front that is heated by the radiator
As spring heats up it expands and closes a valve inside that limits oil passing thru it, this brings fan blade speed closer to engine RPMs, it is never fully Locked to water pump shaft speed.

Tell tale sign of failing fan clutch is NOT unlocking after cold start, so no decrease in noise
Or engine temp climbing but only when idling or driving very slowly(stop and go traffic), so it is not locking up enough.
Rolled up paper test can't really tell you radiator temp or fan clutch spring temp.

Start cold engine, wait for fan clutch to release, you will "hear it", shut off engine and manually spin fan blade, should spin easily, remember that
After shutting off fully warmed up engine the fan should be harder to spin manually, test for that

Fan is only needed when idling or driving slowly, when vehicle is at any speed above say 30MPH air flow thru the radiator is more than any fan could provide.

Although I do remember driving one time across the prairies, years ago, going 65MPH, in a car with AC on and was watching temp gauge go up a bit, ???
Turned off AC and it was still climbing a bit ??
Rolled down window..................NO WIND noise, lol, stuck my arm out the window absolutely NO WIND at 65MPH
Had a very strong tail wind so no air flow at radiator.
Only ever experienced that one time, very cool but...............

22 years old is what the parts are on a 1996 Ranger, some have been changed some haven't, so really not that unusual to find "other" related parts out of spec when doing repairs.

Thanks Ron I will retest tonight. But already I see issues. The fan does come on right away but it's longer than 5-8 secs. More like a minute. I also never really hear the noise you are referring to. It's pretty quiet.

Also I'm basing the temp of the engine idling and the temp gauge claiming overheating status. More than 1/2 way.
 

Denisefwd93

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Thanks Ron I will retest tonight. But already I see issues. The fan does come on right away but it's longer than 5-8 secs. More like a minute. I also never really hear the noise you are referring to. It's pretty quiet.

Also I'm basing the temp of the engine idling and the temp gauge claiming overheating status. More than 1/2 way.
Fan clutch is pretty cheap, even heavy duty fan clutch that I love on my truck was pretty cheap. Most people hate it but I love the sound the fan makes like a Jeep, when I start out in the morning, I had it done, but with special wrenches it should only take a few minutes to change, good luck!
 
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RonD

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Swap it out if temp gauge climbs when idling, and you don't hear LOUD fan noise on Cold Start

Water pump with worn out impeller(fins) can do same thing, temp climbs at idle, but you would still have the loud noise from working fan clutch :)
 

tomw

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A reading on the gauge of 'more than 1/2 way' does not indicate overheating. The 2.3 doesn't generally produce enough heat to need a fan clutch, but they are installed for two other reasons: 1) A/C condenser cooling & heat rejection and 2) fuel economy(to get fleet ratings).
I did not understand how the upper hose can be hot & cold at the same time, hot at the thermostat end but cold at the radiator end. It is possible there was not enough flow and the 'hot' was being dissipated/diluted as the coolant flowed towards the radiator???
When the gauge is reading above 1/2, feel the air being blown by the radiator fan. It should be quite warm. An overheated engine will SMELL different from one at normal operating temperature.
To my knowledge, you will not get a fan to spin freely at any time. Freely being spinning like the blades of a household fan. The clutch has fluid in it that will dampen free-spinning. The fan will turn at least a portion of a rotation before stopping when it is not engaged, and should be a bit more difficult to turn when it is engaged if spun by hand.
tom
 

750beater

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A reading on the gauge of 'more than 1/2 way' does not indicate overheating. The 2.3 doesn't generally produce enough heat to need a fan clutch, but they are installed for two other reasons: 1) A/C condenser cooling & heat rejection and 2) fuel economy(to get fleet ratings).
I did not understand how the upper hose can be hot & cold at the same time, hot at the thermostat end but cold at the radiator end. It is possible there was not enough flow and the 'hot' was being dissipated/diluted as the coolant flowed towards the radiator???
When the gauge is reading above 1/2, feel the air being blown by the radiator fan. It should be quite warm. An overheated engine will SMELL different from one at normal operating temperature.
To my knowledge, you will not get a fan to spin freely at any time. Freely being spinning like the blades of a household fan. The clutch has fluid in it that will dampen free-spinning. The fan will turn at least a portion of a rotation before stopping when it is not engaged, and should be a bit more difficult to turn when it is engaged if spun by hand.
tom
Alright everyone, I ran the test last night and on a cold start the fan clutch runs for about a good minute and or a minute and a half. Finally when it shuts off it spins better but not a full rotation. Also Tom I'm a little confused about your statement. Any engine with a water cooled design sitting and idling would eventually overheat without the assistance of a fan in front pulling air from the radiator. Just saying.

Also I did not let the engine get past operating temp, I shut the engine off once the fan disengaged, one thing I heard was the sound of dripping water but nothing was leaking. Leading me to believe it was internal coming from the engine. My heater is working fine though and I believe there is no air in the system. I refilled it while it was on ramps.

I am going to be ordering a new clutch today and we shall see.
 

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