3.8 running hot

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Sep 30, 2005 | 07:59 PM

LongArmSuperDuty

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3.8 running hot

I have a 93 T-Bird......203,000 miles. Been a great car. Lately its been running HOT, Im running water because i have to keep putting water in it every other day but theres no leak. anyways......ill fill it up and it will run 3/4 up the gauge, and if i slow down or stop it will heat up a bit towards H, then when i get her goin it will go down a bit.......
Im thinking water pump or clogged radiator, or even thermostat. I wanna make the right guess......is it the water pump or the radiator?????????????

Oct 1, 2005 | 11:21 AM

LongArmSuperDuty

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anyone have anything to say on this?????
it will be appreciated

Oct 1, 2005 | 01:11 PM

Bob Ayers

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From: Durham, NC

The 3.8L is known for having head gasket problems. Try doing a cooling system pressure test.

Oct 1, 2005 | 02:05 PM

Kruse

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From: Kansas

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bob Ayers

The 3.8L is known for having head gasket problems. Try doing a cooling system pressure test.

Agreed. The 3.8 motors of that era are notorious for head gasket failures. I have an '88 that has over 300K miles with original gaskets, but that is very rare. If the victim of these failures is good with tools and is mechanically inclined, you can replace them yourself and still have a good motor. If you are paying another person to do it, first figure how much the car is actually worth. In order for a proper repair, the O2 sensors should be replaced also because they are probably contaminated with anti-freeze.

Oct 2, 2005 | 09:35 PM

LongArmSuperDuty

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I already had the head gaskets changed several yrs ago......at about 100000 miles.....im thinking water pump or radiator, remember, it heats up when stopped, and goes down slightly when cruising. So it is the opposite of over heating when cruising, thats when it cools a little, but still hot.

Oct 3, 2005 | 01:34 AM

pfogle

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From: Oak Harbor, OH

If it's losing coolant, but you don't have a puddle under the car, and no steam when it's running then you have a bad head gasket, or cracked head/block. I would get some anti-freeze in it ASAP becasuse the water will boil at a lower temp than the anti-freeze/water mix will. That's probably why it's overheating, it's not pressurizing, so it's boiling the water, and that's not good.

Oct 3, 2005 | 11:01 PM

BrianA

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From: Trussville, Alabama

clogged radiator?
Causing plain water to boil off?
I'd have the radiator (and maybe thermostat) checked.
As mentioned above, if you're losing water and it is NOT leaking out or boiling over, you have something wrong inside (gasket, cracked head, etc.)