[ChrisViper09]

Ok so my SVT is pissing me off so much lately that I want to sell it.[rant] One thing at a time though...

Here goes, My heat does not work at all. The car overheats BAD when driven, if you come to a stop and let it idle it goes back down to operating temperature. I am thinking it is a stuck thermostat?
But I also had the thermostat replaced about 5 months ago, but for a different problem. I was leaking coolant.
I hate my SVT I want to get rid of it because I can't ever enjoy it when it always has something wrong with it. I want to get someone's opinion on what it is. Like I said my best guess is to replace the thermostat, but before I spend the 20 some-odd bucks to buy one, I figured I would ask here.

 

[tukaniSVT]

sounds like the first place to start ... I've had that problem, and to me it was my thermostat.

Hope you get your problem fixed so that you can enjoy the car. How many miles do you have?

 

[ChrisViper09]

77k and counting
Sad to say the car is no fun anymore[bawling]

 

[domdil]

what other kind of problems have you had with it? these ones seem pretty minor

 

[ChrisViper09]

Thermo twice, clutch slave cylinder twice, Coolant leak. But that's not why the car isn't any fun. N/A fwd 4 banger= FTL!

 

[CaysE]

Kinda simple one, but did you check the coolant level or see any crud coming out of the radiator drain? No cabin heat + overheating engine typically means you have low coolant, an air pocket, or a blockage in the line.

If it is your t-stat, then it's stuck closed. Take it out and check if it works... just drop it in a pot of boiling water and it should open.

If there's crud in the coolant, there must be a blockage somewhere. Flush the system and refill.

An air pocket can sometimes only be fixed by draining and flushing, as well, though I don't think this would be the case on a Focus since the degas tank is the highest point in the system. Even if you filled the system with the nose of the car pointing down, it should still clear the air pocket to the degas tank eventually. I'm just offering up ideas, but this is probably not it.

 

[ChrisViper09]

Coolant level is normal, no crud coming out anywhere. I do have another coolant leak right where the thermostat is though, for the second friggin time. A very minuscule leak at best

 

[Peregrine]

Are you getting a "streamlike" drip down the right front corner of the motor, down the transmission housing flange?

Check to make sure that the large O-ring seal between the engine and the housing isn't deteriorated. Since the Zetec valve covers like to barf oil through hard turns, oil that's made it's way down to the T-Stat housing will cause the T-Stat O-ring to breakdown.

Try to a regular maintenance cycle on the system again, flush change coolant (stick with the motorcraft gold since it runs about 20 degrees cooler than the common green stuff).


Also, when was the last time you recharged the A/C canister behind the right front wheel well splash guard?

 

[CaysE]

The type of coolant doesn't dictate its temperature; the t-stat does. I've been running pre-mix Prestone since I've had the car, with a 180 degree t-stat, and the needle sits right smack dab in the middle.

The stock t-stat is 190 or 195 degrees (I forget which exactly). That's the only thing that would drop your coolant temp, or your t-stat isn't doing its job correctly.

 

[Peregrine]

I just suggested sticking with the Gold Motorcraft because I've noticed that my SVT doesn't tend to overheat when sitting at idle for ten minutes or so. Even with a replaced thermostat, housing, viton o-rings up until I switched back to the gold fluid.

 

[SVT_ME]

Coolant level is normal, no crud coming out anywhere. I do have another coolant leak right where the thermostat is though, for the second friggin time. A very minuscule leak at best

^^ That is no doubt your T-stat housing plug o-ring, a very common problem for the SVT. And, if you had your t-stat replaced because you thought it was leaking, they would have put the same housing back on....

New t-stat + same housing = still leaking... [V]

Check this thread out - http://www.focusfanatics.com/forum/showthread.php?t=74242

Sounds like you have a couple problems contributing to your overall affects.

 

[CaysE]

I just suggested sticking with the Gold Motorcraft because I've noticed that my SVT doesn't tend to overheat when sitting at idle for ten minutes or so. Even with a replaced thermostat, housing, viton o-rings up until I switched back to the gold fluid.

If your car was overheating while idling, your radiator fan wasn't working. The relay pack on the fan housing is the usual culprit, though it may have also been the temp sensor. Flushing the coolant may have cleaned something off the sensor and now it works again. I have never had an overheating issue with my car.

 

[ChrisViper09]

The leakage is dripping down the passenger side of the motor and is getting on the belt and throw around the motor leaving white stains on all of my plastics under the hood. I can't find the freakin' leak. This was the deciding factor, I will now be selling my car. It's a heap of junk!

 

[CaysE]

Dude, it's probably just the degas/overflow tank leaking, then. It's a piece of cake to fix and you will LOVE the car if you take it around some of those high speed curvy highways in CT.

Check the t-stat like I said before and check the hoses that connect to the degas tank.

 

[Peregrine]

^ My fans would want to kick on every two minutes. Seriously, it was annoying.

 

[ChrisViper09]

I've driven the car, it just doesn't give me that excitement that everyone on this forum talks about. Ok it can go around corners big deal.
It's not any tank or reservoir with coolant leaking. It's either the hose or a head gasket.

 

[CaysE]

^ My fans would want to kick on every two minutes. Seriously, it was annoying.

There must've been something building up on the temp sensor then... that's the only thing that makes sense for your issue.

 

[ChrisViper09]

I can't find the stupid leak. The only coolant I can find are on the bottom end of the engine, and on the belt.

 

[CaysE]

I've driven the car, it just doesn't give me that excitement that everyone on this forum talks about. Ok it can go around corners big deal.
It's not any tank or reservoir with coolant leaking. It's either the hose or a head gasket.

If it's the head gasket, and the break reaches an oil line, there's bound to be gunk in the coolant that would cause a blockage, causing your symptoms (no cabin heat, overheating motor).

If it's a hose, just replace it. It's not difficult.

Either way, you're going to have to fix it before selling anyway, or risk losing resale value.

 

[ChrisViper09]

I know it's gotta be fixed, just such a PITA, I need a car and mine can't be driven. And working on a car is not what I want to be doing outside with this temp.