[bdozer90]

My daughter's boy friend has a 97 with the Vulcan he bought when his 2000 FFV blew a head gasket. The car was good for the test drive, but went to the upper end of the normal range on the temp gauge when driving it home. We swapped out the thermostat, but now it is running @ the low end of normal with little to no heat. Some times he will hit a bump and the gauge will jump up to normal and will have good heat. He is not losing antifreeze nor is his oil level rising like he has a blown head gasket. The previous owner did replace the front head in the past year though.
The heater door appears to be moving. Read another thread about a bad water pump, I'm wondering if this could this car's issue ?? Any thoughts ?

 

[danhasenauer]

My daughter's boy friend has a 97 with the Vulcan he bought when his 2000 FFV blew a head gasket. The car was good for the test drive, but went to the upper end of the normal range on the temp gauge when driving it home. We swapped out the thermostat, but now it is running @ the low end of normal with little to no heat. Some times he will hit a bump and the gauge will jump up to normal and will have good heat. He is not losing antifreeze nor is his oil level rising like he has a blown head gasket. The previous owner did replace the front head in the past year though.
The heater door appears to be moving. Read another thread about a bad water pump, I'm wondering if this could this car's issue ?? Any thoughts ?

If it's a Vulcan engine, most definitely could be a water pump issue.
The 2 PDF links in the first post are very good:

98 Ford Taurus Water Pump Problem - TractorByNet.com

 

[wjc]

Yes, sounds like the water pump vanes are now cheese slicers.

 

[sheila]

Maybe also consider the clinton flush and if the h2o pump doesnt remedy your problem, look to the heater core.

 

[bdozer90]

Anybody have any thoughts on why hitting a bump would make the heater and temp gauge work normal ?? :huh:

 

[Dave09882]

I have a 98 vulcan with similar issues. I changed the thermostat and water pump and did a cooling system flush at home but have had no luck. This car only has 80000 miles on it. There seems to be a very small amount of heat coming out the vents and when you change the temperature control you can notice a difference. The coolant was very brown when i changed it so am wondering if i need to change the heater core next?? Any ideas.

 

[01SE]

I have a 98 vulcan with similar issues. I changed the thermostat and water pump and did a cooling system flush at home but have had no luck. This car only has 80000 miles on it. There seems to be a very small amount of heat coming out the vents and when you change the temperature control you can notice a difference. The coolant was very brown when i changed it so am wondering if i need to change the heater core next?? Any ideas.

How long ago did you change coolant? I had brown coolant two month after coolant change. Did 'Clinton flush' that lasted me just over a month. Man up and change the heater core. It's not complicated, just search the threads on this forum or use this one (video included): http://www.taurusclub.com/forum/82-maintenance-repair/160417-heater-core-replacement-ouch.html

 

[bdozer90]

We pulled the hoses off and flushed the heater core both ways. We did get a slug of brown junk one way and the everything was clear the remaining times we flushed and back flushed. We're still not getting the temp gauge to come up and it's not over heating, so still cold air out the vents. Far as the cheese slicer pump, shouldn't we be seeing higher temps?

 

[paker]

What about connecting a scan tool and reading engine temperature? I think it will be a good starting point.