Normal Operating Temp

I got my 91 Escort LX serviced. New replacement engine (from junkyard -- low miles) It runs awesome but one thing that worries me is the fact that when I sit in traffic The temp guage moves up to about 3/4. Is this normal? My old one when the head went the temp guage went completely to H (hot). I also notice there is too much antifreeze in the jug (possible airlock??)

Please help me

"The temp guage moves up to about 3/4. Is this normal?" Probably not typical, certainly not the ideal situation. Presuming your temp gauge sender and display are OK, it indicates a near overheat situation.

Next time it gets hot, pull over and check if the radiator fan is on. There are a number of obscure reasons why it might not be. Report back, does the radiator fan come on when the motor gets hot?

umm, there shouldnt be too much coolant in the reserve tank. But dont worry about that for now. Regularly you want it running to about 1/2 the temp gauge. thats ideal temp, the temp when you are to push the engine hard! past 3/4 and its time to slow down a bit.

Check to see if your fan is coming on, mine blew the head for that same reason. The fan isn't coming on, check 3 things: The Radiator to see if it's clogged, (like mine was), the Thermostat, and the fan itself. My `92 was doing that except I was having to stop at every gas station to put water in it, till I found out one of the sensors going to the fan had gone out, and the fan wasn't coming on. had to strait-wire it.

my fan only comes on when i set it to defrost, any other time it stays off. the fuse in the engine compartment is good. mine also goes kinda high when i sit in traffic and then goes back down when i cruise.

You couldcheck your Engine Coolant Temperature Sensor. On my 95 1.9 its located on a coolant line just under the air intake tube. It's right next to the tmeperature sending unit. They get fouled, so you can clean it up and see if that doesn't help the fan. Quick, easy, and free.

I'm still leaning toward the relays. When my motor would get hot, the relays; under the hood, on top, all the way to the passenger side, (They're little rectangular boxes, 2 of them) They would click, the fan would spin twice, then they would click again, and the fan would stop. Eventually the heat would rise, and the pressure would get so high, the coolant would pour out the resouvour. check it out. Crank up the car, wait to hear the termostat, (that thing that guy was talking about thats under the air filter hose) opens up, then walk to the passenger side of the car and stick your ear right next to the 2 "boxes", and see if they click, and watch for the fan to come on. If it comes on, then wait to see if that box clicks again and the fan to kick back off. If it does, then run to see what the inside temp gauge says. If it is higher than 1/2 way, then that relay, (box) is bad.