Ford F-150 - 1997-2003 :: Overheating In Hot Weather - Restricted Coolant Flow?
Jul 21, 2011
I have an 1997 F150/4.2 V6/220,000 miles/4x2. During hot weather (over 90F) the engine slowly overheats. While driving on the interstate (from Indy to Fort Wayne), the coolant temperature shows normal on the gauge. Slowly the temperature gage creeps up to close to the red area. I am running the A/C.
When I switch the heater on and the heater fan at max, the temperature gauge drops pretty quickly to a normal range. I switch off the heater and the A/C back on, then it takes 30 minutes for the temperature gauge to start rising again.
When I open the hood when the gage shows close to the red area, the upper coolant hose has a lot of pressure (cannot squeeze it), which would mean that the thermostat is open and the waterpump is working. Also the fan is running fast. The coolant was changed out a few weeks ago and the coolant level is at normal level when the engine is cold. At lower ambient temperatures, there is no overheating. I am puzzled what the problem can be. I am thinking of a restricted coolant flow. Looking for solutions to my problem.
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I have an 1997 F150/4.2 V6/220,000 miles/4x2. During hot weather (over 90F) the engine slowly overheats. While driving on the interstate (from Indy to Fort Wayne), the coolant temperature shows normal on the gauge. Slowly the temperature gauge creeps up to close to the red area. I am running the A/C.
When I switch the heater on and the heater fan at max, the temperature gauge drops pretty quickly to a normal range. I switch off the heater and the A/C back on, then it takes 30 minutes for the temperature gauge to start rising again.
When I open the hood when the gauge shows close to the red area, the upper coolant hose has a lot of pressure (can not squeeze it), which would mean that the thermostat is open and the water pump is working. Also the fan is running fast.
The coolant was changed out a few weeks ago and the coolant level is at normal level when the engine is cold. At lower ambient temperatures, there is no overheating. I am puzzled what the problem can be. I am thinking of a restricted coolant flow.
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I've got a 2001 F150 and lately, since the weather has warmed up, I've had a problem. After a few minutes on the road, the engine seems to be lacking power and is running hard. It also seems to shake a bit too. It's not overheating and the gauges don't show signs of high temp. My drive to work is 40 minutes and by the last 10 or 15 minutes it seems to be OK. ... A month or so ago when the weather was cold, I had problems keeping coolant due to leaks but that problem seems to have diminished. I don't know if any of that is connected to the original problem or not.
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My fan sounds like its blowing hard on high but air flow seems to be restricted some. I have noticed a sound of the fan hitting leaves in the past. I just don't know how they get in there. It still cools good but air flow is nice when the temperature is close to 100.
96 Ranger 2.3 XLT Regular Cab ...
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I have a 2003 F150 4.6l triton v8.... I started over heating yesterday. Got home, let it cool down and found Oil in Coolant. No coolant in oil or transmission fluid. What could be wrong?
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I have a 2003 F150 4.6 Triton V8.... My truck started over heating again after replacing the Thermostat and Water Pump later this summer.... Well I checked Coolant and I have Oil in the Coolant. I see Nothing wrong with the Tranny Fluid and see nothing wrong with the Oil.... What could be the problem??????
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The Symptoms: Car decided not to turn over for my son one morning, when I came home I tried with my key and the engine did turn over but immediately died.
Turned on key to power and watched for lights like the immobilizer/key but that came on and went off no problems there, did the same with both keys and the immobilizer/security key light went off fine.
Read for codes and there was a P0320 which pointed to Crankshaft Position Sensor. Order the part from good old Rock Auto and 2 days later it came, installed, cleared out the code, tried to start, did not start.
Decided to spray some starter fluid into the throttle body to get it to turn over in hopes a new code would come out.
It did fire up for a few seconds and did throw another code, this time P0321. That code points to the same sensor I just replaced.
Figured I would check to ensure the fuel pump and relay were working so I wired from positive and negative battery terminal to the outer plug clips at the fuel pump and I heard and felt it click. Not sure if it should prime and make more than just a click.
In my other cars you can clealy hear it prime for more than a second so not sure if the fuel pump is really the culprit here.
The car has 125K and the pump is original I can see.
I did check the relay fuse under the drivers side dash and I can feel/hear it click when I turn the ignition on.
I also did check all of the various fuses in the side compartment that have to do with the engine, they all look good and tested with multimeter as well.
So now I did order a new fuel pump, what else to try out? I did change the fuel filter at 100K so do not believe that is causing the issue. Not sure if the fuel regulator by the rail could be an issue.
It seems like all of a sudden fuel is not being delivered and with faulty injectors or plugs, they throw a code for misfire etc. Also starter seems to be fine, no griinding/smoke etc but was thinking about taking it out and over to Advance to have them check as well.
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I am having a overheating issue with my 1.8t AWP gti, it goes as fallows, start the car, engine warms up go for a drive (short 5-8 mi), park the car and temp gauge starts to rise, (turns off car)... I began to check some things with the system, I checked both rad hoses bottom is hot top is a bit hotter and fans work when ac is on; here is where it gets interesting i took off the coolant return hose on the reservoir (cold start) and nothing was flowing ...water pump?... So i turned the heat on and air full blast and all of a sudden coolant starts to flow.
It also seems like air is being spat out as well. Soon after the flow beginning my coolant in the reservoir starts to fluctuate (rising and dropping) with air bubbles and beginnings to over flow so i shut the car off. Now I know what the possible issues are its either the water pump, air in the system or bad autozone thermostat. Here is some history of the car TB was replaced at 70,000 by Previous owner, i bought the car had the belt inspected and was told it was good, about 2 months ago i had a coolant leak and had it misdiagnosed as a thermostat housing leak; it turns out it was a coolant bypass hose that was leaking so i ended up fixing it. I lost a lot of coolant but topped it off with g12+. My mechanic doesn't think its the water pump and recommended changing the thermostat for an VW one another mechanic recommended to bleed air of the system.
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I have a 1999 4x2 F150 XL, 4.2L engine, 5-speed trans., about 197,600 miles and have been getting P0306 and P0174 codes. The check engine light came on and stayed on. Also, pretty much randomly, my engine over-heats and the engine compartment coolant reservoir is suddenly dry as a bone. I bought the truck new and this has only happened twice, during normal driving.
Clearing the 0306 and 0174 codes. Not sure what to do about the over-heating thing.. What I've done so far to try to clear the codes is the least expensive stuff:
=> Replaced both forward O2 sensors, have read where the two rear O2 sensors don't necessarily need to be replaced so I haven't replaced them yet. The sensors that came off are Bosch, as are the ones that I bought from Autozone and installed.
=> Replaced old spark plugs with Motorcraft brand, gapped to 0.054 in.
=> Replaced old spark plug wires with Motorcraft spark plug wires.
=> Cleaned the MAF sensor
=> Replaced PCV valve and replaced an section of elbow hose near it. The original elbow had a big hole right at the 90-degree bend, on the inside.
=> Replaced a cracked, dried-out, vacuum hose coming from the evap cannister purge valve and going to the front underside of the upper intake manifold.
=> replaced fuel filter.
After doing all this, I took it out on the road long enough for the computer to wake up and relearn and got the check-engine light again. Only this time it was flashing. I gather from reading in this forum that a flashing CEL is worse than a constant-on CEL so I drove back home and have yet to take it back out.
After reading about problematic ignition coils, I followed a procedure in my Haynes manual to check mine out:
=> Verified the correct resistance values at the electrical connector (0.7 ohms),
=> Verified battery voltage is present at the harness side of the electrical connector (about 12.6 volts),
=> checked the resistance values between the three sets of 'towers'. Starting from front to back, the resistance readings were 13.06 kOhms, 13.12 kOhms, and 12.98 kOhms. The correct range in the Haynes book is 6.5 to 11.5 kOhms so I thought maybe my ignition coil was bad.
I located a Motorcraft ignition coil at a local O'Reilly Auto Parts store, went there, and was able to check the resistance values on that new one. Turns out the resistance on the new one at the parts store is pretty much the same as that on the one on my truck (all three coils were 13.something kOhms), so I haven't replaced the ignition coil. I guess either my Haynes book is probably incorrect or the ignition coil on my particular F150 has different resistance values than the rest of the vehicles covered by that manual.
Next things I'm looking at replacing:
=> egr valve and the associated line to the DPFE sensor. (DPFE replaced a few years back, as a result of a P0401 code)
=> iac valve
=> upper intake plenum gaskets
I'm kind of at a loss at this point. I hate to just continue replacing things without knowing that I'm replacing the right things.
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Coolant flow seems to be not at its max output seems like it's blocked somewhere. Lots of pressure in bypass line of radiator after clamping of hose and releasing pressure of degas bottle?
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IPR CF2 Byasss High Flow Coolant Filter Ford 6.0
Made for the 6.0, the biggest problem on the 7.3 might be finding real estate for the filter assembly.
One review refers to using it on a 7.3.
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I have a 2003 F250 Super Duty 5.4L V8 with no heat. It wasn't missing, running funny or blowing white smoke out of the tailpipe and there were no coolant leaks nor did it overheat. Thermostat has been replaced twice, heater core flushed twice, water pump replaced, fan clutch replaced and blend door works...Cabin airflow gets colder when turned from hot to cold. This thing is sitting in my driveway and I am about to push it over a cliff. Did I mention it only has 56,000 miles on it?
Coolant was drained to replace water pump and flush heater core (again, water ran through in both directions with no stoppage). 3 gallons of undilluted antifreeze was put into the overflow bottle to be topped off with water...the coolant went in and stopped. Engine was started to force coolant from bottle...coolant backed up into the bottle and out the top. Heater core inlet hose is hot and outlet hose not very warm if at all. Upper radiator hose is soft. Didn't check lower radiator hose as I was a bit peeved and slammed the hood closed and called it a night. I have been throwing money at this thing that I do not have and am at my wits end with it.
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Well I was fueling the truck today and I opened to hood to check it out and noticed that there was no pressure in the cooling system by squeezing the upper hose. I did have a spare degas bottle cap and removed the old one slowly and replaced. I have been driving over 30 minutes and it is close to 100 degrees.
I then drove on down the road, the truck is not getting hot. I stopped to look at some running boards and the truck was running and then I came home and still no pressure, the truck is still running, I removed the cap and no pressure, I then removed the small hose going to the top of the degas tank and no coolant came out. I turned the truck off and disconnected the upper hose and some coolant did come out.
Is this normal? The truck runs just fine, just has me worried. I just bought the truck and the previous owner recently replaced the water pump, T-stat, hoses, etc. All parts were bought at O'Reilly. So everything looks good.
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My 2001 F-150 came up with this code and I changed the EGR valve cleared the code and it returned 15 miles later. The truck only has 30K miles and the warranty expired 24 May.
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Dreaded insufficient EGR flow. I've read I should clean the EGR ports.
I can't really find where these are? I took the throttle body off.
What I should do with this thing? I also get a hesitation on initial take off.
1999 F150 4.2 V6 ... 160k miles on it. Runs good otherwise.
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Has a P0401 code EGR unSufficient flow. Ive read several things that it could be, from a DPFE sensor to the EGR valve it's self our that the port going into the TB could be plugged. Truck drives fine does not have a miss or anything noticeable when driving other than the CEL, trucks a 4.6 with 200k on it. Forgot to mention it sometimes gets a P0455 code but i assumed that is gas cap. or could it be related?
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I just bought a 1997 ford f-150 4x4 with 4.6 motor. the check engine light came on. My diagnostic tool reads code 401 (egr insufficient flow). I've replaced on the parts on the egr side of engine. light still on. could it be a leak in the vacuum lines. I don't see any wear.
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I have a '97 Buick Century. I noticed the smell of coolant, and the "Low Coolant" light flashed on the dashboard. However, according to the temp gauge on the dashboard, the car was at normal temperature. I pulled over and opened the hood. The coolant in the overflow tank (not the radiator) was boiling, and sputtering out.
I took the vehicle to a nearby shop, where they said it needed a new "Coolant Level Switch." They told me they put a new one in and did a coolant flush, and sent me on my way.
About a mile down the road, the "Low Coolant Light" came on again. I pulled over and found that there was ZERO coolant in the engine. I filled it myself, and continued driving. Over the next few days, I checked the coolant every day and it stayed normal. I drove a bit, but never more than a few minutes, so the car didn't have a chance to overheat.
Then, today, I drove it a good distance for the first time since the original incident. After a few minutes of driving, I smelled coolant and pulled over. The coolant in the overflow tank was once again boiling and bubbling out. What it might be?
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I have a 1999 Ford F-150 XLT, with the 5.4 and a 4spd auto. 172,XXX miles on the clock and i have owned it starting on April of 2014.
Tonight driving home from work, it took some time on the highway (4 miles) to shift into top gear. When you lift off the gas pedal after reaching the speed limit, normally the truck will shift from 3rd to 4th no problem. When I let off the pedal, there was no gear change.
It took sometime for it to shift up. When downshifting on the exit ramp, there was nothing abnormal. Where I live it is 19 Degrees Fahrenheit and this is the beginning of the cold snap that will last well into mid-January of next year.
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Ok I've been getting a intermittent misfire on my truck for soem time now. It ran great all winter but now its getting hotter it intermittently misses. Last summer I replaced all the coils. And the coil inquestion now was replaced since last summer with Motor Craft Coil. I have red the check Engine Codes a d here is the freeze Fram data
DTC :P0351
Fuel System I : Closed Loop
Calculated Load: 71.37%
Engine Coolent temp: 199.4 F
Short Term Fuel Trim Bank 1 : 3.91%
Long Term Fuel Trim Bank 1: 0.78%
Short term Fuel Trim Bank 2: 6.25%
Long Term Fuel Trim Bank 2: 0.78%
Engine RPM :1613.25
Vehicle Speed Sensor: 4.35 MPH
What might be my problem? Since The Short Tem Fuel trim from bank 1 and Bank two are vastly different could that mean my fuel injector is not working correctly?
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A problem with having a 12 volt battery maintainer hooked up to your truck when not being used for a few weeks? In this cold weather the new battery keeps drawing down while not in use and is slow to turn over after 1 1/2 weeks or so? I think the maintainers charge at about 1.5 amps. I wonder if that can keep up with all the parasitic draws: PCM, radio presets & clock, remote door lock system, and factory security system and keep the battery topped off as well?
Also, is there any problem with putting a charge on a battery when the cables are still hooked up to the trucks electrical system with either a maintainer or a full size charger, Example: screwing up the PCM?
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