1996 Mercury Sable running hot?
 

These are the things that have been replaced: radiator & thermostat. The only thing that we didn't replace was the heater cord and water pump. The car runs hot in a matter of 5 to 10 minutes when driving. If I site idle with the car started it takes about 15 to 30 minutes before the gauge runs up to hot. The little plastic tank in which you put the coolant is bubbling, the hoses are hot and keeps making a popping sound( I figure that's just he built up pressure). But if you open the nob at the bottom of the radiator and let the coolant drain; it is cold. If I turn on the heat; the air is not hot, and I turn it up to 90 and full blast. So my question is what else can I replace? Or what could still be making it run hot?

My mechanic friend has done the work so far and at this point he is stumped. He said, it could also be a bad head gasket; and that could make a car run hot. But I always thought you would see white smoke coming out the pipes?

Thank you in advance.

sounds like there's a crack in the head gasket from the combustion chamber in a cylinder to a coolant line. the bubbles in the coolant recovery tank are probably exhaust. It appears it would be a small crack since you're not having issues with the car running. This will however totally screw up the ability of the engine to cool/heat properly since gases are being forced through the system. And you only see white smoke when the coolant is able to pressurize and blow into the cylinder. Your issue seems to be the cylinder blowing into the coolant lines.

Thanks Slymer
 

So what is that about $600 or $700 dollars to fix? That was the price quoted at Firestone for putting in a radiator. But like I said, my friend who is the neighborhood mechanic put the thermostat and radiator for $65.00. But I know engine work takes a bit more labor.

Thanks again

it would require sending the head(s) to be machined to make sure they're completely flat and not warped at all and then reinstalling them with the new gaskets. the parts are cheap. the labor and machining is what will get you. look at the price to be anywhere between $500 and $1500 at a shop (if they can figure out which side it is and replace just that side, it'll be less, but it's always a good idea to do both at the same time so you're not dealing with something soon after from the side that wasn't touched).

Okay
 

I guess it wouldn't hurt to try and replace the water pump first. Since it's the cheapest and since I have replaced everything else that deals with making a car hot. If worse comes to worse; then I will move on to the head gasket and see if my friend has time to do a big project like that; because getting a radiator was enough headache in a Sable.

Thanks again.

Is your oil white or light grayish? I say change the w.p. the impellers could be beat or corroded. what kind of shape was the coolant in before any work was done? as for the bubbling expansion tank after the coolant hits its boiling point it has a free path to relieve the pressure and the bubbles could be fom all the air the overheated coolant is making. that is why the expansion tank is there to leave room for expansion. up-side down thermo?

Hello Conan312
 

The oil is the normal black. Coolant is still normal color. You can only drive about 5 to 15 min before the gauge is on hot. And the baffling part for me is that why is it boiling in the coolant tank - pipes hot- and coolant cold in radiator? And of course if I turn on the heat it is just blowing warm air.

I know from a car in the past when I had something wrong with my head gasket it was blowing white smoke out the pipes. I spoke to my next door neighbor this morning; and he said, his Acura was blowing white smoke to; when he had a cracked head gasket.

Yipee problem solved
 

After all the hard work. It ended up being the water pump.

Thanks folks.

well it could have been worse. glad everything is cool. get it? cool? ha ha!