95 ford explorer overheating

[--Alex--]

i recently replaced my instrument cluster in my explorer because the only two gauges that really worked right were my oil pressure and voltage. when i replaced it, i noticed my car was running really hot and actually overheating up big hills. i replaced the thermostat, checked the water pump, the impeller is fine, no leaks, checked the fan clutch, its fine, flushed and cleaned the whole system and replaced the water temp sensor and it still looks to be running hot. the only thing left for me to do is replace the radiator. but before i do i wanted to know what temperature it should be running at so i can see if it is actually overheating or if its just my gauge. it shows no signs of overheating except for maybe a slight loss of power but that could just be me being paranoid. i drive a 1995 ford explorer sport 4.0. its 4wd. i was told that there is something wrong with the gauge. or there is something wrong between the sensor and the gauge giving me a false reading. i have sprayed out my radiator with both compressed air and water. should i pull the fan out again and take it to the car wash and spray it out with a higher pressure? there are rocks in the radiator, but its not horribly bad. any help or opinions on what i should do would be appreciated.

Thanks,
Alex

 

[Joe Dirt]

What year cluster did you put into your truck? The '95 gauges have resistors on them, where the later ones don't. They will fit, but will read incorrectly or peg.

 

[SoNic67]

You can ask a shop to read the temperature with a scanner that can do that (with running engine). There is another temperature sensor that actually "feeds" the CPU with that info - that's more accurate.

 

[--Alex--]

i think that you are both right. i just got back from the shop to get the actual temp reading. and its fine. the gauge is just off. all the other gauges are actually more accurate than my old cluster. as far as speed and fuel goes anyway. i replaced it with one that had a purple back side to it instead of a green one. i did notice that it doesn't have a check engine light on it. it has a check suspension instead. should i search for another cluster to put in it?

thanks for the help,
Alex

 

[Joe Dirt]

If you have both yet, you can swap the gauges themselves- put your original gauge into the new cluster... Pull the black cluster sections out (side gauges first) and look at the backs of the gauges- you'll see the ones that have resistors...

 

[swetrid]

Back in the day Ford had a service pack that included new calibrated sending unit with new gauge.

 

[--Alex--]

i dont have the old one anymore. i took it all apart piece by piece to check it all out haha. i herd that my gauge might be acting funny because of an air bubble that is stuck behind the thermostat. i tried my best to bleed "the bubble" out through the sensor could this be my problem?