I have a 66 mustang, 289 coupe. I took her out yesterday and bought new tires and also got an overheating problem. Good and bad, i wasnt sure if the gauge was working so i got that one figured out but overheating is no good. The temp gauge went to hot and it puked over the side. So i replaced the radiator cap, flushed and replaced the coolant as well as new thermostat and gasket today. Went for a short drive in this nice weather and it was fine for a bit and started to get hot again. Whats the normal place for the temp gauge on the stock gauge cluster? It went up to about three quarters, i would imagine it needs to stay at about half, but am i wrong. Just need to know before i go for water pump and radiator. . .Thanks!
Pull the dipstick and check the oil. Its not likely a head gasket problem, but checking the oil for water takes just a minute. If the indicator is inside the normal range, that's not really an overheat. If it goes above, then there's definitely a problem.
Last edited by Bucket Lister; 01-20-2013 at 06:55 PM.
ya i checked the oil while it was warm, seemed normal. yesterday it just pegged out and overheated, but today it went to about three quarters and i put her back in the garage to avoid another overheat and get back in time for the end of the NFC champ game.
Yesterday was the first time i had driven it outside my neighborhood at speeds above 30MPH since buying the car. So all i had done was drive around the neighborhood and idling but it had not been a problem then.
You definitely want to check all the cheap and easy stuff before buying expensive parts. If the radiator is clean and unclogged inside, there are other ways, cheaper than radiators, to improve cooling.
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Amateur restorer. (Well, once in a while I have been paid for it)
If the vehicle has sat for some time, it could be a clogged radiator. When I purchased my car I had to replace it due to overheating. These older engines flake off a bunch of crap and clog up the radiator. I installed a tefba filter with my new radiator and it needs cleaning often.
Yesterday was the first time i had driven it outside my neighborhood at speeds above 30MPH since buying the car. So all i had done was drive around the neighborhood and idling but it had not been a problem then.
I take it you haven't had the car long then.So it could have had an over heating problem without your knowlege. A few questions come to mind here. Is the factory fan and shroud still on the car? Some people put on aftermarket fans and discard the shroud which helps cooling of the engine. Second if the car has sat for a while you might want to take out the radiator and have it pressure tested for flow. If any of the passages are clogged it would definitely make it overheat.
__________________ Scott
Sunlit Gold '68 fastback J Code ,C4,ps,ac,bench seat
95% of the time it's a plugged radiator. Yank it, take it to a radiator shop and have it rodded. Another 4% of the time it's a air bubble stuck in the system or a lower hose that gets sucked closed. One percent of the time it's actually something serious.
ya i havent had it maybe six months, put alot of work into it, but im still a noob at automotive work, im an aircraft mechanic so im not new to mechanic work in general. If this doesnt work im going to pull the radiator, the car sat for a long time in Oklahoma so its got dust and dirt in there.
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66 mustang overheating
Scott
