hey guys i have been battling a cooling issue with my 98 cobra. i have put a new thermostat in it, all new hoses, radiator has been completely takin apart and cleaned out by a radiator shop. it has been tested for hydrocarbons. the car is not completely over heating but gets up to the "L" on normal sometimes a little higher. yesterday i had coolant flowing out of the radiator cap which was also replaced. i was sitting in traffic on the freeway in about 90 degree heat, but once the traffic started flowing and i got to about 50-60mph the car cooled right back down. it seems the car is overheating while the car is sitting, or moving slowly and its only happening when it is 85+ degrees out. the fan is turning on like it is supposed to. is there anything else i should check or anyone have a similar issue. i did have a SCT x calII on the car but returned it to stock for smog reasons. could this have messed computer up? i have had the programmer off the car for well over 6 months, but the problem didnt arise until the summer heat came. thanks any input will help.
98 cobra cooling issues
- Thread starter 95StangMan
- Start date
-
Sponsors (?)
well i finally figured it out. the connector to the fan was bad. if i wiggled the connector the fan would turn on which is probably why i overlooked it a few times (because the fan was on). the past 2 days the car has not been getting warm in the summer heat. heard they had a recall on these cars for fan issues, anyone else know about this. would like to get my money back for the fan which was like 400 bucks if i can.
COBRA90GT
Mod Dude
Glad you found the culprit.
FWIW regarding your car getting warm:
When you changed out the thermostat - did you drain out most of the coolant too? Also, did you properly "burp" the cooling system of trapped air after refilling with coolant?
Trapped air (due to improper filling of the cooling system/lack of burping) is usually the cause for overheating issues in these 4V engines. It is essential to refill the cooling system at the coolant crossover tube location [located directly in front of the alternator, plug is removed by unbolting it (1/4" size)] and to burp the engine of air.
Run a search on "burp" for further info.
BTW - The 96's had the cooling problem (was not fan related, it was A/C condensor related). The following thread reveals the necessary information pertaining to the TSB that Ford issued to correct the overheating issue for 1996 models:
http://forums.stangnet.com/512471-what-cooling-upgrade-96-cobras.html
(the "Crunch Colorado " website:
SVT Cobra Mustangs '96s )
Goodluck troubleshooting!
.
FWIW regarding your car getting warm:
When you changed out the thermostat - did you drain out most of the coolant too? Also, did you properly "burp" the cooling system of trapped air after refilling with coolant?
Trapped air (due to improper filling of the cooling system/lack of burping) is usually the cause for overheating issues in these 4V engines. It is essential to refill the cooling system at the coolant crossover tube location [located directly in front of the alternator, plug is removed by unbolting it (1/4" size)] and to burp the engine of air.
Run a search on "burp" for further info.
BTW - The 96's had the cooling problem (was not fan related, it was A/C condensor related). The following thread reveals the necessary information pertaining to the TSB that Ford issued to correct the overheating issue for 1996 models:
http://forums.stangnet.com/512471-what-cooling-upgrade-96-cobras.html
(the "Crunch Colorado " website:
SVT Cobra Mustangs '96s )
Goodluck troubleshooting!
.I battled overheating issues forever ... I ended up finding the same thing out.
I actually replaced my plug with a "factory rebuild" kit. You get a new plug that's prewired, etc. .... but it ended up taking a dump a 6 months later as well. Looks fine, but would not always cut the fan on. A real pos and pain in the ass!
I ended up taking heavy gauge wire....putting connectors on the ends and connecting them to the fan plug....then jamming the other raw ends into the plug. No problems since.
I'm going to cut and hard wire the thing. If I ever need to take the fan out, I'll just cut the wire and do it all over again.
Also, I ended up needing to replace the plastic overflow...something about them warping when they get hot. I went w/an aluminum one. Looks f'n sweet too!
Similar threads
