Engine overheat

my 97 taurus overheated yesterday and i can't figure out why. Antifreeze was leaking from the cap so i replaced the cap, but the engine is still getting hot pretty fast. What are some possible reasons for this? If it helps any, the weather has brought temperatures of around 5 degrees lately so it's been pretty cold but i don't know if this has anything to do with the car...

any help would be appreciated.

Sounds like it might have a stuck thermostat. Is the upper radiator hose still cool after the car has been running a while and is starting to eject coolant? If so the thermostat is probably bad. That would be the first thing I would change.

There have been a lot of posts on this forum related to the impeller blades on the water pump failing, causing the car to overheat.

Please try the "Search this forum" feature from the Taurus forum main page for more details.

-Rod