Engine running hot (or temp gauge showing it is)
 

Hello.

Okay so this started yesterday night. My wife and I were on vacation
and had our 2001 Explorer parked over at a friend's house after being
dropped off at the airport. We came back and it was covered with
sawdust (my friend had been doing a little wood cutting).

So, we get in and drive home. About 1/4 home I notice that the temp
gauge warning light comes on and the gauge itself it just about over as
far as it can go. Now, I'm just about to look for a place to pull over
when the thing starts dropping back down to the middle range.

Okay, that was weird. It stayed there the rest of the way home (about
another 30 minutes or so). So, this morning I get up to drive to work
and about 4 miles from home it begins it's climb again. This time I'm
watching it pretty carefully, of course. It hits the same point and
after staying there about a minute, drops back down to the middle and
stays there for the rest of the trip to work.

It does climb a little when stopped at a light or something, so I'm
guessing the wind from driving on the highway is cooling it a bit.

So, my question is: Why does it climb to the high point in the first
place?

Sawdust? I'm guessing that's most likely the case and will clean it
when I get home, but could the temp sensor?

Any ideas suggestions are greatly appreciated.

Thank you.

Engine running hot (or temp gauge showing it is)
 

"TTU" > wrote in message
oups.com...
> Hello.
>
> Okay so this started yesterday night. My wife and I were on vacation
> and had our 2001 Explorer parked over at a friend's house after being
> dropped off at the airport. We came back and it was covered with
> sawdust (my friend had been doing a little wood cutting).
>
> So, we get in and drive home. About 1/4 home I notice that the temp
> gauge warning light comes on and the gauge itself it just about over as
> far as it can go. Now, I'm just about to look for a place to pull over
> when the thing starts dropping back down to the middle range.
>
> Okay, that was weird. It stayed there the rest of the way home (about
> another 30 minutes or so). So, this morning I get up to drive to work
> and about 4 miles from home it begins it's climb again. This time I'm
> watching it pretty carefully, of course. It hits the same point and
> after staying there about a minute, drops back down to the middle and
> stays there for the rest of the trip to work.
>
> It does climb a little when stopped at a light or something, so I'm
> guessing the wind from driving on the highway is cooling it a bit.
>
> So, my question is: Why does it climb to the high point in the first
> place?
>
> Sawdust? I'm guessing that's most likely the case and will clean it
> when I get home, but could the temp sensor?
>
> Any ideas suggestions are greatly appreciated.
>
> Thank you.

My 2003 with 58000 miles has been doing the exact same thing for about 3
months. I have yet to replace the engine coolant sensor but I suspect it is
going bad. The climb to hot happens about the same time which is probably
when the thermostat opens and the rush of hot water streams by. My 2003 also
(most of the time) sounds the alarm on the message center of engine overtemp
and shuts off the A/C compressor for a brief moment. Knowing I don't have an
overheating problem, it's annoying at best.

Engine running hot (or temp gauge showing it is)
 

I would do the easy things first. Check to make sure your radiator
and or your AC condenser are not blocked or filled with debris
(sawdust). I had a plastic bag blow into my radiator and it blocked
the cooling air, but at a stop light it fell down and the engine
cooled off.
A clogged AC condenser could raise the engine temp if the AC is used.
If they are all clear, I would suspect a thermostat is sticking. They
are relatively easy to replace and cheap. Good Luck tracking down the
problem.

On 16 Aug 2006 12:38:47 -0700, "TTU" > wrote:

>Hello.
>
>Okay so this started yesterday night. My wife and I were on vacation
>and had our 2001 Explorer parked over at a friend's house after being
>dropped off at the airport. We came back and it was covered with
>sawdust (my friend had been doing a little wood cutting).
>
>So, we get in and drive home. About 1/4 home I notice that the temp
>gauge warning light comes on and the gauge itself it just about over as
>far as it can go. Now, I'm just about to look for a place to pull over
>when the thing starts dropping back down to the middle range.
>
>Okay, that was weird. It stayed there the rest of the way home (about
>another 30 minutes or so). So, this morning I get up to drive to work
>and about 4 miles from home it begins it's climb again. This time I'm
>watching it pretty carefully, of course. It hits the same point and
>after staying there about a minute, drops back down to the middle and
>stays there for the rest of the trip to work.
>
>It does climb a little when stopped at a light or something, so I'm
>guessing the wind from driving on the highway is cooling it a bit.
>
>So, my question is: Why does it climb to the high point in the first
>place?
>
>Sawdust? I'm guessing that's most likely the case and will clean it
>when I get home, but could the temp sensor?
>
>Any ideas suggestions are greatly appreciated.
>
>Thank you.

Engine running hot (or temp gauge showing it is)
 

Low on coolant or sticky t-stat


"TTU" > wrote in message
oups.com...
> Hello.
>
> Okay so this started yesterday night. My wife and I were on vacation
> and had our 2001 Explorer parked over at a friend's house after being
> dropped off at the airport. We came back and it was covered with
> sawdust (my friend had been doing a little wood cutting).
>
> So, we get in and drive home. About 1/4 home I notice that the temp
> gauge warning light comes on and the gauge itself it just about over as
> far as it can go. Now, I'm just about to look for a place to pull over
> when the thing starts dropping back down to the middle range.
>
> Okay, that was weird. It stayed there the rest of the way home (about
> another 30 minutes or so). So, this morning I get up to drive to work
> and about 4 miles from home it begins it's climb again. This time I'm
> watching it pretty carefully, of course. It hits the same point and
> after staying there about a minute, drops back down to the middle and
> stays there for the rest of the trip to work.
>
> It does climb a little when stopped at a light or something, so I'm
> guessing the wind from driving on the highway is cooling it a bit.
>
> So, my question is: Why does it climb to the high point in the first
> place?
>
> Sawdust? I'm guessing that's most likely the case and will clean it
> when I get home, but could the temp sensor?
>
> Any ideas suggestions are greatly appreciated.
>
> Thank you.
>

Engine running hot (or temp gauge showing it is)
 

Well, I washed the thing and the engine looked fine, so sawdust or
anything other than a few bugs there. With the vehicle stopped and
running I put my hand in front of the radiator and there was some
pretty good suction going on there, so I'm guessing it's most likely
the thermostat.

I picked one up and will install it this weekend when I have enough
time. Will let everyone know how it goes.

Thanks for the help.

Engine running hot (or temp gauge showing it is)
 

Okay. I replaced the termostat and it works perfectly now. It took
all of about 30-45 minutes. Nice.

Thanks for the help.

Engine running hot (or temp gauge showing it is)
 

"TTU" > wrote in message
ups.com...
> Okay. I replaced the termostat and it works perfectly now. It took
> all of about 30-45 minutes. Nice.
>
> Thanks for the help.

Thanks for the reply. I'll replace mine next week after I get it back from
the body shop. The wife was driving too close to someone last week when he
stopped suddenly in rush hour traffic and she was fumbling with her purse .
It will never be the same!
$4000 worth of repairs and it didn't even touch the engine components.
'03 EB