Contour Hot and Jerky

1999 Contour 4 cyl. This car has 75,000 miles of trouble free service, but now is acting up. During light to moderate acceleration, the pulling force of the acceleration is unsteady. There is a smooth surge of power, then a smooth decline of power over and over untill crusing speed is attained. This tugging effect is not bumpy but is somewhat intense. Also, just 2 days ago, the air conditioner stopped cooling, and the car has begun to overheat quickly after any load. Driving very easy will allow the temp to decline slightly. The radiator fan is on constantly. Roll down the windows, turn the heater on full hot, and the temp drops drasticly to normal.
Could this be a restricted exhaust, the catalytic converter maybe? How about a restricted or failed thermostat? Is there a reason the AC would stop cooling? Has anyone seen this before?

sound's like the a/c compressor died.

which engine do you have?

says hes got the 4 cylinder.

which engine do you have?


The 4 cyl engine for a '99 contour SE is an overhead twin cam. This one has VCT markings on the cover.

Problems solved!!
The overheating was caused simply by failure of the thermostat to open. Easy.
The cause of the engine surge however, I discovered by accident. While “struggling” with the radiator drain plug I had to get under the car to get to it. While under, I looked around and saw the PCV line had collapsed in a way that was causing an intermittent air flow condition. The hose had re-formed itself into a permanent half-collapsed shape. Otherwise I might have never found the problem.

where is the radiator drain located on the 1996 2.0L?