First Gen Winter Grille Insert

['92Bauer]

I want to purchase a cold front grille insert for my '92 Eddie, and just wondering if there are any companies anyone would recommend? I was thinking about Lund. I would also like to know if any body can find pics of one on a first gen, I tried with no luck. Thanks for your help.

 

[shaggsta]

Check out www.explorerexpress.com I saw one there a few days ago.

 

['92Bauer]

Thanks for the reply. But I am actually looking for a pic of a first gen with a cold front, so I have an idea of what mine would look like. So does anybody have a pic of a first gen with one, or know where to get one. It would be much appreciated.

 

[EBInterceptor]

Just out of curiousity, do those really help a lot? Maybe it's something that I should look into too.

 

['92Bauer]

Not really sue if they do, but I figure it is worth a try. Because my Eddie's temp gauge never moves past then N in normal and last winter I had no heat because the explorer ran way too cool when I was stuck in traffic in a few of the storms.

 

[DCider]

A couple of years ago when I was driving back from Jackson Hole to CA at night, I stopped at a gas station and put duct tape over the front grill and it made a huge difference in 10 degree weather. It went from not movings. At all. to moving to the first hash mark. I actually got some heat from the heater instead of cool air.

IMHO, if you are not constantly on the highway and the weather is above 20 degrees, I would not worry too much about the front grill insert. If on the other hand you live in Montana, then by al means get the insert. They all look like crap. IMHO. YMMV.

 

[Brock94]

[QUOTE='92Bauer]Not really sue if they do, but I figure it is worth a try. Because my Eddie's temp gauge never moves past then N in normal and last winter I had no heat because the explorer ran way too cool when I was stuck in traffic in a few of the storms.[/QUOTE]

I've taken my X out in very cold weather-- -20F and have always had plenty of heat. Are you sure your thermostat isn't stuck open?

 

['92Bauer]

T-stat just replaced about two months ago. As far as I can tell the X just runs cool. I also do a lot of highway driving between my house, work and school and don't want to get stuck sitting on a highway in a blizzard again with no heat. Heat seems to be fine just with cold weather and highway driving the gauge does not go past the 'N'.
And Dcider that is why I am asking for a first gen pic, so I know if it will look good, but in freezing weather I might not care for looks.

 

[Ford_Racing_Guy]

i was thinking about doing that last year but decided against it since i would rather have the tranny cooler exposed

 

['92Bauer]

From what I understand some of them just clip in to place and sections can be removed for partial airflow so I will just put them when I need them. I also believe I read they can be painted to match, so I think that will help with looks wise.

 

[alexefron]

or you could just be lazy and put a slab of cardboard in front of part of the radiator, my ex runs cool too.

 

[F14CRAZY]

I agree with the cardboard. I kept it in until it got about 50 outside (cooling fan spun)

 

[Jason94sport]

Replace you coolant temp sensor. The guage should read normal again. It's to the left of the t-stat housing. Very easy to replace. Check your heater core might be plugged up. Also easy to replace.
Those cold screen things are a waste. Fix the problem that's causing it.

[QUOTE='92Bauer]T-stat just replaced about two months ago. As far as I can tell the X just runs cool. I also do a lot of highway driving between my house, work and school and don't want to get stuck sitting on a highway in a blizzard again with no heat. Heat seems to be fine just with cold weather and highway driving the gauge does not go past the 'N'.
And Dcider that is why I am asking for a first gen pic, so I know if it will look good, but in freezing weather I might not care for looks.[/QUOTE]

 

['92Bauer]

IF i remember correctly the coolant temp sensor was also replaced, I believe it was like only for 7 bucks. Does anyone have details about the heater core and how I see if its plugged, and prices would help. I seem to have plenty of heat and i thought that the X might just run cold, does this seem usually for an first gen X.

 

[EBInterceptor]

I didn't read the last few posts completely, but do the 1st gens also have a temp sending unit? I busted mine which killed my gauge. Part was about $22 from fordpartsnetwork and good as new (well not quite, but I'm not going to get into that right now).

 

[Jason94sport]

Confused?? You have plenty of heat? So why would you want a cold screen? Or is your worry that your X is running cold? Your gauge could just be inaccurate. I know mine is. It reads high in the a in normal. But I checked the coolant temp with an external gauge & it's right at 190-195 which is within spec.
The heater core is under the glove box. It's a $40 part (maybe less)
Take the glove box door out. Drain coolant. Disconenct the 2 hoses going into the passanger side firewall above the blower motor. Get under passanger dash unbolt the heater core housing bolts. Lift off housing. Pull heater core rearward & down to release it. It's only a hour of work at most.

[QUOTE='92Bauer]IF i remember correctly the coolant temp sensor was also replaced, I believe it was like only for 7 bucks. Does anyone have details about the heater core and how I see if its plugged, and prices would help. I seem to have plenty of heat and i thought that the X might just run cold, does this seem usually for an first gen X.[/QUOTE]

 

['92Bauer]

Sorry for any confusion, I do have heat, but my gauge rarely ever moves past the ‘N’ in normal, even in the summer. I have replaced the T-stat and I believe the coolant temp sensor. My concern is in the fact last year during one of the blizzards that we had, I got stuck on the highway in slow moving traffic with freezing weather and the x wasn't giving out any heat. I think because of the cold weather that the x wasn't getting warm enough and so wasn't able to give heat. So I was thinking that with winter coming or when a blizzard is approaching I was thinking the cold grille insert would help.

 

[Brock94]

I really don't see why it would not produce enough heat. Even at idle the engine produces tons of heat. When I had it out in -20 (-60 including wind-chill), I left it idling until the inside warmed up. It got very warm inside the passenger compartment. Two possibilities:

1) Your engine is, in fact, running cold. That would likely be due to an incorrect thermostat (or a new thermostat that is defective and opens at too low of a temperature). With the engine completel cold, take of the radiator cap and let it run for a while to completely warm up-- 20 minutes should do. Use a meat thermometer (I have a digital one I got for $5 at a grocery store) and see how hot the coolant in the radiator is. It should be around 190-- the factory service manual says it should be at least 170.

2) Your engine is running at the proper temperature, but your heating system is defective. This could be a clogged heater core, which you could back-flush or replace. It could be a problem with the air blend door. Not sure if your's has it, but my 94 has a water valve that can shut off the flow of hot coolant into the heater core-- that could be the problem.

 

[EMG7895]

I had a similar problem and i replaced the thermostat and now the heat works better than ever, I can warm up the entire car in about 5 minutes.

 

[Brock94]

[QUOTE='92Bauer]Not really sue if they do, but I figure it is worth a try. Because my Eddie's temp gauge never moves past then N in normal and last winter I had no heat because the explorer ran way too cool when I was stuck in traffic in a few of the storms.[/QUOTE]

This comment made me keep an eye on my temp guage on the highway-- mine pretty much stays around or below the "N" in "Normal" too. I don't think it's a problem-- the temp at the radiator filler cap reads around 190 so its fine. Maybe you have a problem with your heating system after all.