96 F150 4.9l, About a week ago i was pulling a trailer with my truck and it just about overheated because the trailer was too big. there was coolant spewing out of the overflow and temperature was way up. I let it cool down and put coolant in and stopped pulling the trailer. I have been driving it like normal for the past week and it drives fine but the temperature will go up a bit higher than it used too. i even switched to a 160 therm. from a 195. and it will still rise a little higher than i like. It drives fine though. I was just wondering what i might have messed up. thanks

 

How big was the trailer?

 

I'd question putting a 160 degree thermostat as it will probably affect the computer control of the fuel system. It will believe the vehicle is still in the warming up state as it expects to see 195 degrees. You'll be running richer than you should be.

 

The lower thermostat wouldn't cause it to run hotter, but your right he should put the temp that it calls for back in. I went through a similar thing with my truck. Here is the forum https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/9...ml#post8965854.

 

Does the fan still spin like it should? When cold - and the engine OFF of course - it should move by hand but stiffly and it should not spin freely by itself at all.

 

Put a pressure tester on it to see if you have any leaks , check the fan clutch & radiator cap , you should have at least a 180 thermostate ....Lew