mk 4 fiesta encore temperature guage

do you think this is still the sensor as im not so sure ?

what symptoms would pump or thermostat be ?
 
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update

i replaced the cap and left the car running for ages on tick over, just before the temp guage hit the red the fan cut in no problem, i continued to leave the car running for over 45 minutes and the fan cut in overytime

the expansion tank was hot but not boiling
 
Pump problems are rare on these engines (driven by the alternator belt) and its also to be expected that the fluid in the expansion bottle would boil once pressure is released....after all, the pressure prevents the coolant at boiling at 100 deg C and heads it more towards the 120 degree mark.
If it was my vehicle, I'd replace the thermostat (2 nuts and a gasket) as well as the temperature sender.
The chances are you wouldn't lose much coolant anyway!
John :)
 
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From experience, thermostats on cars lose their accuracy over time without you fully realising, and I'd advise changing yours if they coolant is due anyway and the car is over 10 years old.

Tell-tale signs are the gauge reading slightly higher on the motorway than town driving.

To make sure you get the right part, go to your Ford dealer. Ford's definition of the correct temperature varied a lot on the push-rod engines between the 1980s and 1990s. I know on the Ka they should all be the same but I'd rather you be on the safe side. These thermostats are relatively cheap as they don't come fused into the housing, as many new ones do, so you should get change from a tenner.

I had an Escort once that I ran from 13 years to 19 years. The gauge characteristics were as described, fell into NORMAL each time and rose slightly on motorways and this never changed, but when I fitted a new one the difference was immense and the car heated up a lot quicker.
 
would you say that this is more of a thermostat problem rather than a fauly gyage sender ?

would the thermostat have caused the temp guage to go very high on 2 occasions

the car seems fine now but im going to definately change the thermostat but not sure about the sender
 
All I'm saying is the thermostat's getting old and I'd do it anyway, regardless of this fault or not. It's also the only one of the two parts that could actually cause the car to overheat; the sender's just pretending ;)

I've seen senders fail open (i.e. cold gauge) but not shorted (i.e. hot gauge). The only other thing that might cause that would be a bad engine earth, so it might be worth unscrewing these and putting them straight back.
 
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