We changed the thermostat flushed the radiator and checked the oil for a a funny color. it all seems normal.
I bought my son a 2000 ford focus and while his car sits and idles it start to overheat.?
You didn't mention if the cooling fan/s behind the radiator come on when the engine temp begins to overheat. If not, it could be the fan, or the thermostat that controls the fan. If it doesn't come on, try running a direct line wire from the fan to the battery. If the fan comes on then, it's the thermostat for the fan. It's not low on coolant is it? Slight possibility, water pump might be bad. Get a Chilton's or Haynes Service Manual for your Ford, they have a great trouble shooting section, and will give step by step instructions to repair most problems. Good luck with it.
I bought my son a 2000 ford focus and while his car sits and idles it start to overheat.?
sounds like it could be a head gasket...if the car has white smoke comming from the tail pipe it may be a head gasket, try starting the car without the radiator cap off if the radiator fluid pushes out of the radiator then i would think its the head gasket or maybe your rad is blocked somewhere
I've never had a radiator flush do any good, and it wouldn't have helped my friend's 2000 Focus. The radiator was plugged nearly solid, the result of using water from the Phoenix tap for a coolant change. It wasn't hard to diagnose - I pulled the lower hose off the radiator and the upper hose off the thermostat housing, then ran a hose into the upper hose. A tiny trickle came out. I couldn't even blow through the radiator! A new radiator was about $120 aftermarket and was a moderate challenge to put in (it came out through the bottom). Life is good.
Check your fluids again. Look at the oil and make sure it's not ( milky) looking. Also look at tail pipe and make sure you see no white smoke coming out, if so it could be a blown head. Another indicator of a blown head can be a sweet smell coming from the car, sounds strange but let's hope none of these things is a problem.
Yea check the fan, those wires come disconnected a lot. Other wise check for blocks in the cooling system. lastly look for any odd color smoke coming out of the tail pipe. White smoke is not good, means a cracked block. If your oil looks like a milkshake then that real bad. means water got in the oil
