So here was my situation. When I purchased the car the owner said that it tends to run warm over 55 MPH. Being new to Mustangs I did not really realize what that meant. On the drive home it was fine. It was fine through most of the summer until it started getting hot and we started driving it on the highway.

The car would stay cool at idle and at speeds up to 45 MPH at which point the gauge would start really moving up. Here is how I attempted to fix it.

First thing I replaced was the thermostat. I removed the original thermostat to find that it was jammed open and also would not open fully at temperature. That could explain the fact that the car took a long time to warm up and also why it overheated. I thought I was going to get out easy.

I replaced the thermostat with a new 180 degree thermostat. Took it out for a test drive...no luck...still overheated above 55 MPH.

Back to the drawing board.

MORE AIR!!!

So my next step was to re check my timing. My timing was still right on so I knew that was not the problem. I then decided to buy a flex fan for my car. I also liked the look of the flex fan along with the idea of more air flow across my radiator.

So I made my next purchase.

Installation was easy enough. Remove the Radiator. Pull the old fan off and put the new fan on. Took more time to drain the radiator then it took to put the fan on. I checked the fan spacing at it was fine.

I fire the car up and was a little startled by the sound of the flex fan. But I went for another test drive.

The car stayed a little cooler but was still running too warm for my taste at high way speeds. Time was running out for me. I had to get this car highway driveable in less then 2 weeks for my wedding. Tick-Tock...

MORE WATER!!!

So the next obvious thing. Water pump.

I purchased a new water pump from Autozone. I figured if I was going to go through with remove my old pump I might as well put a new one and not a rebuilt one back in. It was only a $20 difference and has a lifetime guarantee on it.

Once again I thought I was finally solving it. I remove my old water pump and much to my dismay...

IT WAS GOOD!!!!

Well I had gone this far I might as well put my new pump in.

Again...no love for me. Did not change a thing. At this time I also replace my cap and hoses just to rule out that possibility.

I also decided to but a mechanical temperature gauge just to make sure my wiring was not acting up. My wiring was fine. My highway speeds were above 230 degrees...with a 180 thermostat.

ONLY ONE MORE THING!!!

Yup...what I thought it was at first...the radiator. From the 5-6 times I drained and flushed the radiator I kept noticing that more sediment would come out. I knew I had a problem somewhere but I didn't figure it out soon enough. My only hope was that it was not a block problem.

I made a trip to Mustangs Unlimited in Connecticut one weekend (the weekend before I had to drive the car for 300 miles) to get a new 3 cor radiator. I love that store.

I got home. Installed it that night. Unfortunately I was unable to test drive it since it started raining and I did not want to drive my car out in the rain. So I waited a few days and then tested it.

I ran the car up to 80 MPH for 5-10 minutes (hoping for no cops and luckily the one I did see did not pay me much attention). Results:

175 DEGREES!!!!!

I had finally solved my cooling problem. I spent a lot of extra time and money on the cooling system to get there but at least now I know that my ENTIRE cooling system is new and that I should not have any more problems for awhile.

GRAND TOTAL ($): $300 for all the parts/equipment.