98elcheapo

so as the title suggests, I have a 94 GT Convertible 5.0 - has 140k on it, I bought it bone stock and am the 2nd owner. all maintenance was performed when I should have been.

The Problem:

Ford Gauge for Reference l NORMAL l

the car has done this since the day I got it. when it was bone stock all of the following were true. as of now with all the mods and upgrades and new parts it does the same thing.

when the car sits and idles it will stay dead between the R and the M on the gauge. will idle like that forever.

if you drive the car around town it will be dead on the M and not move.

if you drive on the highway at around 55-60 mph 2k rpm it will be just a smidge past the M but not on the A

if you goose it and put the pedal to the floor it will heat up to about the L or above if you don't let off.

if you cruise at about 80 mph 2600 rpm it will run between the A and the L

if you slow back down to around town driving or idle... it will cool back down to dead in the middle.

if you sit still and hold the rpm at about 3k within about 30 secs it will heat up to the L. if you let off it will slowly cool back down if idling.

if you drive with the A/C or Heat on it makes no difference does exactly the same thing.

based on all this it comes down to this. under 2k rpm operates fine. 2500+ rpm it heats up. makes no difference if you are driving around or sitting still.

Engine wise things I have done:
BBK 65mm TB
BBK Cold air intake
factory manifolds
BBK off road X
Flowmaster super 44 catback
New Motorcraft plugs / wires / cap / rotor / coil
Ford "B" cam
New Timing chain / Ford Racing Timing chain cover and water pump ( OEM FLOW).
new AGR PS Rack and AGR ford rebuilt pump
all new pullies / serp belt
new factory radiator
new factory radiator fan and relay (both speeds work)
all new hoses
new coolant overflow tank
new thermostat - tried 180 - 180 with a hole drilled in it and -192/5
new thermostat housing
new temp sensor
new temp sender
new wiring for both ^^
swapped gauges from another car
EGR delete - and Tuned for it
Smog Pump Delete (bought ford dummy pully) and Tuned for it
High Speed on fan activates at 190 now.


Things I have tried to solve the problem

Leak down test - everything was perfect no leaks
coolant test for emission gasses in coolant -everything was perfect none found
cooling system pressure test - tested good
burped cooling system 3 days in a row jacking up driver side and allowing air to escape.
brand new radiator
brand new radiator fan and verified both speeds operate and adjusted on temps in tune.
replaced coolant overflow tank as old one was cracked.
new thermostats - 180 -192- 195 even drilled a hole in the 180.
brand new radiator hoses with a spring in the lower hose to prevent collapse
car was tuned on the dyno to delete smog crap and egr. makes about 210hp on 93 gas
replaced my factory gauges with 95 cobra gauges and it reads exactly the same.
replaced sender, temp sensor, wiring
pretty much replaced any part that touches the cooling system except the heater core.
coolant is a 50/50 mix and is fresh and does not change.

used my laptop connected to the car to verify temperatures due to ford gauges being crapy. and here is as follows:

M = 195
A = 205 ish
L = 215 ish
l past the L is 220+

I know this is not overheating but it still runs hot.
it does not over flow. or spew or boil.

im really stumped. even the guy I had tune the car who builds 1000 hp + street and drag cars and has helped me do most of the work is stumped.

I have read a lot of forum posts that talk about broken fans, fans not coming on, lower hoses collapse, bad thermostats, bad radiator cap, timing being wrong, clogged radiators, debris in cooling system, incorrect coolant to water ratio and so on.

am I missing something? I know I might be being **** but I don't like that it runs hot. any other ideas would be a tremendous help. Thanks in advance

Duncan_GT

Need to take the measurements of actual temperature, not off a lap top. The stock gauges literally mean nothing. Mine does the same and moves in a predictable manner. Only way to truly monitor is with a quality gauge, like Autometer

dawson1112

Deleting the egr will cause the temps to run a bit higher because that is what the egr is designed to do cool the cylinders. It really isn't running any different than any other 94/95 . Mine hits 220 on the auto meter when Im really romping hard on it. If you are really concerened about it find a temp reading gun and point it at the lower intake where the ect is screwed into it . The temp reader will read the surface temp.

Get an after market gauge like Duncan says , that stock gauge is junk.

tinman

IMO, Duncan gave the best possible answer here........

98elcheapo

Hey guys thanks so much for the replys,

what I mean by my laptop is that my laptop is connected to the ECU while im driving around. it is reading the temperature that comes from the Sender? or temp sensor? do you think this would be less accurate than using a mechanical or electronic auto meter gauge? if the cars computer is reading wrong I feel like you would have some issues on your hands.

deleting the EGR has made no difference. the car bone stock and I literally mean everything that came from the factory, behaved exactly the same. removing the smog crap and deleting the EGR didn't make it better or worse its exactly the same.

so its ok for the car to run at 220? I had an 89 LX 5.0 and I know the ford gauge sux but it would stay right in the middle no matter how hard I drove it. same for my 01 roush stage 3 with the eaton on it, 98GT and even my 68 with a 302 would run at 190 max with the pedal to the floorboard.

thanks for you time guys. this is so frustrating. I have never had a car that heats up with all new parts simply because you press the gas pedal down.

darkmach1

its not what its designed to do its just the effect of its function. Never seen anyone say their car is running hotter after deleting the EGR, if they are they likely have other issues.