radiator not circulating but temp gauge is not going to hot

[thehunterhome]

Hello, I am stumped and am at a loss. The radiator on my explorer is not circulating so I intially thought it was the thermostat and changed it. That didn't work so I also flushed the radiator. Still the same issue. When you turn the car on with the radiator cap off you can hear the car change rpm when it should be warm but the radiator only pushes fluid out the top and doesn't circulate. The temp gauge doesnt go past 3/4 toward the hot. The car gets so hot though that it doesn't want to start back up after running for a bit. From what I have read it seems that the water pump is working. What else can I try?

 

[my98nnj]

The engine needs to get up to 170 - 180 degrees before you'll see the t-stat open and flow starts. You may need to burp the engine to get the air out too. Keep the idle speed high and the front end up if you can with cap off. The air should come out as the t-stat opens.