Installed a new radiator from Radiator Barn (radiatorbarn.com) this weekend and what a difference in engine temps. The old radiator was plugged partially from stop leak and needed to be cleaned externally as well. I changed some of the radiator hoses and the thermostat. Something interesting I found out after reading through a few forums is the thermostat could be incorrectly replaced with one that is designed for the 2V 4.6. The thermostat orifice for the 2V motor is almost half the size of the one intended for the 4V motor. My car indeed had the 195 degree thermostat but the orifice size was that of the 2V variety. I had ordered a replacement Motorcraft thermostat from rockauto and it was stamped 188 (degrees) and it's orifice size was much larger than the one I had removed. Suffice to say the car runs much cooler now. Now on to upper control arms and brakes all around next weekend.
new radiator/thermostat installed
- Thread starter DPA
- Start date