Water temp issue

[Bushbasher]

I've got a bit of an odd problem that I can't seem to cure. About 6 months ago or so my engine temp suddenly decided it wasn't going to run up to temperature in a timely manner any more and the car started running cold, if you believe the temp gauge. So where the needle was and should go from cold up to somewhere between the N & O within a couple of minutes once you get rolling of a morning it started taking 30-40km to just get into the "Normal" range. I figured it must be a dodgy thermostat stuck open so I changed it but that made no difference. Then I thought there might be a blockage of some kind down the back of the head to where the temp sensor is, plus my thermo fans were playing up AND I thought the replacement thermostat might just have been a dud maybe so I flushed the motor ALOT, put another new thermostat in and changed the thermo fans, still no change. In fact in the dead of winter the Fairlane was actually struggling to get going under load for the first 2 minutes which meant the gas converter was running on the verge of freezing up till some warm coolant began to flow through it, (it never did this before). Then I thought it might be the temp sensor itself causing the problem so last week I changed that too but still no change!! What the hell could it be and am I missing something? Is there a second temp sensor somewhere that might be faulty? The only other thing that may or may not be of relevance is that I changed the water pump a while back....twice, but that's another story. So does anyone have any ideas about where I might turn to next because if my temp gauge is to be believed then I'm basically running cold most of the time and it takes a hot day and a lead foot or hill to push the temp gauge up to where I'd expect it to be. Once it's up there though it does tend to stay there which is also confusing.

Any ideas anyone???


Cheers
Bushbasher

[GK]

What temp thermostat did you put in?

GK

[Mechan1k]

The Cylinder Head Temp Sender is at the back of the head on the driver's side ... that's the only one on the AU.

At least your's is reading cold ... mine always wanted to rise on a warm day with a little load on ... even after replacing everything in the cooling system. I drew a blank on that and traded the vehicle in.

[Bushbasher]

Originally Posted by GK

What temp thermostat did you put in?

GK

Well right now GK, I'm back to the original thermostat that was in the car after the LPG conversion that I know was a good one. I removed it because of the extra leg that shuts off the heater pipe when hot. I cut the extra leg off, tested it to make sure it was still functioning properly and put it back in. At the same time I tested the outgoing one to make sure it was not jambing open or opening early and it also seemed fine; as expected because it was the new one. I can't remember the exact temp number off the top of my head but it is the correct thermostat listed for the engine.

Bushbasher

[Mr Hardware]

put your cluster into diagnostics mode and tell us what the temperature says it is.
mine sits on 86deg all day long.

[Bushbasher]

How do I get it into diagnostic mode?

[Mr Hardware]

http://www.fordforums.com.au/showthr...iagnostic+mode

[Bushbasher]

Thanks Mr Hardware.

Ok, now I'm really confused. I managed to get it into diagnostic mode on the second attempt YAY!, but when I scrolled to the temp reading , at dead cold it read 125(c?) so I went for a drive to town to check the mail and by the time I got back, (approx. 20km), that number slowly worked it's way down to now reading 69(c?) while the temp gauge slowly rose to now be at just in the "N", still below where I would expect it to sit. At the same time there is a number fluctuating in the bottom left corner where the odo reading would otherwise be that started at about 30.0 and worked it's way up to floating between 85.5 and as high as 90.0 while I was accelerating from stop to 110kph onto the highway but seems to settle back to 85.5 in short order. If this number is the temp reading, and going by the way it reacts and settled at running temp I'd guess it is, what the hell is the larger font number in the upper right ?

Bushbasher

[GK]

Gee Bushy, you've got a weird one on your hands there.

I had similar symptoms with my wagon to what you'/re describing, but all mine was, was a crook thermostat (stuck open). New one fixed it up straight away.

What about your header tank cap? That in good order?

GK

[Bushbasher]

Ok, just went and picked up the kids from school, (20km in the other direction from the mail) and I've figured it out. The number in the bottom left is indeed the temp which is running fine and as it should which means it must be the gauge reading a little low which is ok now that I know, I'll adjust, no sweat. The number in the upper right is in fact the range. Which made itself known when the trip meter beeped at me to tell me my range is down to 40km (gas) and the cluster number matches. I haven't seen a low series cluster diagnostic but maybe it's different than the high series which is where I got confused as the diagnostic instructions don't mention the range at all.
So to sum up, it seems my gauge is reading a little low so may be a loose wire somewhere or a resistance issue and the cluster diagnostics appears on the face of it to have a slight variance between high and low series which I will assume is the case unless and until someone more knowledgeable tells me different.

Thanks Mr Hardware and GK for the input, it helped alot.

Cheers
Bushbasher

[GK]

Glad it's all okay!

I know that nothing gets me quite concerned as temp issues/coolant leaks.

GK

[Mechan1k]

Originally Posted by Bushbasher

Thanks Mr Hardware.

Ok, now I'm really confused. I managed to get it into diagnostic mode on the second attempt YAY!, but when I scrolled to the temp reading , at dead cold it read 125(c?) so I went for a drive to town to check the mail and by the time I got back, (approx. 20km), that number slowly worked it's way down to now reading 69(c?) while the temp gauge slowly rose to now be at just in the "N", still below where I would expect it to sit. At the same time there is a number fluctuating in the bottom left corner where the odo reading would otherwise be that started at about 30.0 and worked it's way up to floating between 85.5 and as high as 90.0 while I was accelerating from stop to 110kph onto the highway but seems to settle back to 85.5 in short order. If this number is the temp reading, and going by the way it reacts and settled at running temp I'd guess it is, what the hell is the larger font number in the upper right ?

Bushbasher

I had a thread on this ... and use to report back when I saw all the time.
It has been a while since i looked at it ... but there was an update list on the reads for each row of data.

[Mr Hardware]

No probs mate

[Mechan1k]

God my typing suck above ... LOL
I'll have a hunt around tonight ... and see what i can find for the most current info for the Diagnostics.