Overheating taurus

[Ofnarcr]

My brothers 1993 Tauaus 3.0 engine is overheating. I can turn it on and let it idle for 5 minutes and it will already be past operating temp. If i let it sit any longer it overheats. Could this be a water pump? I dont think its just a bad thermastat because it gets too hot too fast but the fan also doesn't come on. If it isn't a water pump could the system be clogged somewhere?

[KimMG]

Possible causes:
low coolant level
low oil level
stuck thermostat (won't allow hot water into radiator and if the thermoswitch for the fan is in the radiator, it won't get hot and allow the fan to come on)
clogged radiator
vanes on water pump worn
collapsed radiator hose(s)

Does the heater work?

[shorod]

Could also be a bad sensor to the guage. After 5 minutes of running, do the hoses feel hot when the guage shows the car is hot? Do you have an IR temperature guage so you can read the temperature of the thermostat housing? If you turn on the A/C, does the cooling fan run? Does the temp guage start to decrease with the A/C on (assuming the fan is running)? The guage in the instrument panel probably has a separate temperature sending unit from the cooling fan.

With the engine cool and the radiator full of coolant, remove the radiator cap and start the engine. Do you see bubbles in the coolant with the engine running? If the coolant is bubbling like boiling water, you may have a bad head gasket.

-Rod

[Ofnarcr]

WOW ok, u just took it out and noticed that the fan is being binded wtih the headers/bolts. Its the wrong radiator and or fan. The hoses are hot and heat does come out of the bottom but if ac is on it comes out of the top too. When the ac is on the fan doesn't work bc i think it is fried bc its binding. How much would a junkyeard radiator be?