Love this car and especially love that you make content with it, definitely think it deserves to keep living one way or another, I would just make sure whatever happens, it’s not junked. These cars are cool, unique and too rare now to send that pretty clean one away just yet. Hope she finds her way back on the road
@@HelloRoad If it needs a motor, just throw a Ford Taurus 3.0L Duratech in it! should run off the same ECU and give an extra 30 HP and torque! Plus those engines are more plentiful/cheaper.
@@raleighchampion8089 there was only ever one conversion on a 2nd Gen PGT to a V6. WAY too much work when the Japanese KLZE is a direct fit, and takes these right near 200hp vs the KLDE's 160hp.
Swap the engine. Please keep this car alive! Huge fan of these cars, owned 3 so far myself. They're very tempermental cars, but they are definitely worth holding on to and keeping around. I was looking to buy a 4th a while ago, good luck finding on, like at all. I think after literal days of searching i found 2-3 manual 2g probes online in the country. If a ze swap is what it takes: do it. You'll also gain a little power, and with some slight tinkering the car should be around 170-180 whp with little modification. The bearings, suspension, and wheelbase, on these cars is insane. They really do handle like sport cars when they're in good condition (despite having an suv steering wheel). If you do right by this car, you wont regret it. The car was begging to be rwd, the valve covers always have problems, the v6 especially is tempermental, and the wiring is a nightmare. Still worth the effort. This car is mazdas (and kind of Ford's, i guess) eclipse. It's a paine, and high maintenance, but it'll outperform cars it shouldn't have a chance against on paper. The "Ford" Probe us basically the anime protagonist of 90s cars.
Well said! I mothballed by 24V Probe II 10 years ago in my grandma's garage because I couldn't afford the maintenance - now that I'm making money I'm thinking of restoring it. It was such a cool car ❤
Don't jump to conclusions on the ticking. I've had the same happen on mine, it was actually a bad timing belt tensioner (which was just replaced so I didn't suspect it). As for the overheating, do a comp test as you said. I would hate for you to sell this car, I love seeing it on your channel, but if it does indeed need an engine $1500 is hard to beat.
I have blown out the tensioners myself when compressing them too fast. They need to be compressed at a rate of like 1mm /5 mins. On my clamp, 10 degrees rotation, count to 10
Hey Ethan, I have a few suggestions: -get an aftermarket temp gauge and make sure that the stock one is reading correctly -make sure your radiator fan is turning on. If it isn't, if you have AC, you may be able to manually turn it on by turning on the AC. This is a common thing to do on 80s GM cars. -As you said, run a compression test and find out if one or both of the head gaskets are blown. -check any and all of the hoses that pump coolant. I had work done on a Toyota Corona recently, which included a new radiator hoses, water pump, etc. and two weeks later the carb preheat hose burst and it almost overheated. Heater cores and the hoses attaching to them can also be a culprit for leaking coolant. Does the car leak coolant when it's parked? The coolant is going somewhere, you just have to find out where that is. -See if you can figure out what part of the engine bay that metal sound is coming from. Hopefully it's just your tensioner, but could also be bad bearings, or a number of other expensive problems, especially if it wasn't coincidental to you overheating. Good luck! I love seeing this car and all the videos you make of it, but understand if it's time to throw in the towel on this one.
The engine noise is just the hydraulic lash Adjusters. Really easy swap. Won't fix the head gaskets. But if they are intact it will fix your engine noise
I chased a ticking noice on my probe for a year swapped the hlas with brand new ones and got oil through them and everything led to it being top end, turned out it was rod knock so still be carefull
I almost gave up on my contour svt but so happy I decided to keep and invest time and money. Going to fully restore her this year. Love how similar these cars are.
You've done more than most people to keep a Ford Probe GT on the road these days! Loved seeing it driving through the mountain twisties while it lasted, and this really is a great spec: rear wiper, spoiler, leather, and obviously, purple. A KLZE would be awesome as hell, but also probably a pain in the ass 😬 Edit: it warms my heart to see all these Probe GT enthusiasts in the comments!
Given your level of frustration, the $1500 offer is pretty darn tempting. It depends on how emotionally invested you are in returning this Probe to a functional state and getting to enjoy time behind the wheel yourself. Getting to the root of the engine/coolant problem is going to take time, patience, and money. Is the end goal worth the effort? I love the Probe and I'd love to see you get the old girl back to be (Hello) road-worthy. The good news is the struggle to repair the Probe makes for riveting viewing by your audience. We are cheering for your success with the Probe.
I had the 97 MX-6, Mazda's version of the Probe. The first of my problems with it was the timing belt tensioner. It sounded just like yours does now. I'm sure I must have had problems with the engine overheating because I had that thing at the shop more than I had it in my driveway. When my mechanic locked up at night he would cross his fingers that it wouldn't be parked in front of is shop in the morning. Finally it threw a rod and I sold it for $500 to a guy who did an engine swap. The big problem with these cars is that they are so entertaining to drive when they work. So fun when you get the engine in the higher revs. So hard to keep them healthy.
If I could find a 93 to 97 Probe GT or a 93 to 96 MX6 in manual and good shape I'd love to have one. Always liked those cars. Or an SVT contour. The Cougar is the same drivetrain but I like the looks of the other 3 better.
My step mom had a 4cyl auto version of this. Was fun to drive but gutless. Friend of mine had a special edition GT with the manual and the v6. It was so silky smooth. Definitely a cool car. If your heart isn’t into it anymore, then let it go to someone who can appreciate it. Like you said - plenty of other projects. If you want to continue, go rent a coolant tester to see if there are exhaust gases in the coolant. They are pretty easy to use and should be at any local auto parts store.
Dude don't be too hard on yourself your content is great intriguing and people learn from it. This purple probe looks like a Hot Wheel car I hope whatever you do the person who buys it from you will continue to create a TH-cam channel and see it in its next life please suggest that maybe you could work with him Thank you so much for the content. Be well.
Keep it alive man, this car deserves it and as you said - you saved it from the junkyard, you cant possibly think of turning your back on it now. Dig under the hood, check the HLAs, the scary noise sounds like it could be them.
I’m really sorry to hear about the probe. If you do decide to part with it, I’m still here! I just have to get my new 4Runner going. My 99 had a ton of issues, and I traded it on a Nissan Juke. Six months later, I see an 02 runner with a blown head gasket for 1200 dollars. I planned to flip it once fixed, but I’m probably going to keep it.
Oh man it happens. Maybe you didn't bleed the system probably? Temp bouncing up and down sounds like an air pocket to me. i did the same to my LS400 but the difference is that mine handled it like a champ. Anyways, pour some blue devil head gasket treatment, I've seen good results online and if you are going to throw the engine anyway i think it's worth the shot, i love your channel man, I've been following you almost since you started, keep it up!!!
By the way, Ethan. I bought a 1984 Datsun/Nissan 200SX AKA an S12 for $300 and thought immediately of you! The interior is so rad, you would love it. Runs like a top, but needs a lot of TLC and needed some major rodent nest and food store eviction.
I'll be honest, that sounds identical to two of the three probes I own, one of them being our endurance race car. Once it's at race temp the lifter ticks go away. The current motor has 6 or 7 races on it and is kept at 5K+ RPM for 14+ hours straight and still going very strong. We run 5W-50 Red Line oil (thin when cold to charge up the lifters and thick when hot to keep them charged up). As for the fluctuating water temp, seems like there is air in the system. The only way we can bleed our probe is to jack the front as high as it will go, point it to the sky, and fill up the system while running for a while. You may not have a leak. If you push the car a bit, then the low pressure radiator cap opens up and dumps coolant into the overflow, gets air in the system, which then gets you that erratic temp gauge. Up the cap to 16psi and that'll let you push the car a little harder without loosing coolant. If I were you, I'd just run it. If you have spare time on your hands, then swap out the lifters. Our probe: th-cam.com/video/HaMU5XFlLx0/w-d-xo.html&pp=ygUMcHJvYmUgbGVtb25z
Charles the Probe owner here again. I don't know how badly you damaged the engine but I am willing to bet that the original source of the overheating was the radiator. I had the same problem with mine-- new thermostat, new water pump, new radiator cap, etc. (Those radiator caps are very sensitive BTW and have to be replaced fairly frequently. Every time you take it off and put it back on you wear the gasket). Then I finally replaced the radiator and it hasn't overheated for the past ten years.
A coworker of mine has the identical car right down to the color. She was married to a surgeon and never learned to drive or worked outside the home until he passed away. She decided she needed a job, not for the money but for something to do, and learned how to drive at 48. She saw her Probe sitting on the lot while shopping with her sister. They stopped by to look at it and she ended up buying it . Paying with her debit card because the bank had already closed for the day and she didn't want to wait. She has meticulously maintained it and when you look at it you swear it had 18k instead of 180k.
My first car was a purple 1994 Ford Probe GT 5 speed manual, the same as this car. Mine had racing decals down both sides of it. It was named "The Purple Prober." I also took my very first driver's test in it back in 1996. I miss that car.
Ethan could it possibly be the hydraulic lifters being stuck? The Miata is notorious for this noise, and being a Mazda engine I'm sure it's built the same exact way. You can even search "8 hours of Miata lifter tick" because of how common it is. Usually it goes away if the correct oil level is in it or after it warms up but yours could have a stuck one. So the engine could be alright
This is a tough one. The tensioner of the timing belt went bad and stopped turning the water pump properly???? Do that head gasket test that samcrac and legit street cars did recently. I guess with multiple overheats the head gasket could go?? Yet, Even with cruddy tires, you were keeping up, go Probe!!
The water pump is spun by the one of the accessory belts. And yeah, the tensioners are noitorious even if new (most likely not oem) to take a dump. I had a similar issue on a celica of mine where it would just overheat if i gave it the beans but was fine everywhere else, certainly wasn't my bigger radiator that's for sure...
I can relate to the reluctance to give up on a project that once held so much promise. But realistically... each of us has only so much time, money and energy. You have a lot of other worthy projects to which those resources could be devoted. If your heart's no longer fully into this one, and there's an opportunity for it to move to a good home where it will be appreciated, it's time to let it go. OTOH, I like the Probe a lot, I've enjoyed seeing it on the channel, and I'll be happy to see it stick around if that's your decision.
Once you get this car figured out you will love it more. Sounds like lifter tick and you gotta check your radiator caps/and re bleed the cooling system for overheating problems. I own 3 mx6s and they are the same cars and I never have any issues besides the lifter tick. I would love to see you keep the car and put a klze with boltons to really see the potential of the car.
Yeah a few others have said lifter tick. Radiator caps are new, and I did bleed the cooling system a couple times. But maybe there was an air bubble trapped, I'm not sure. KLZE would be nice! Still not sure what I'm going to do :)
@@HelloRoad is the radiator new? It could be clogged up. Also replacing the radiator is very easy on these cars. Yeah it looks terrible but the radiator can be done in a hour or less.
Back again. Guy who said your series brought back PTSD of owning this. Mine had your noise symptom before it finally jumped a belt tooth. My case was specifically a washer between the top timing gear and cam shaft that goes flat when it hsould be curved. That is the noise and I drove it for two years this way (during fast & furious days mind you). Make sure the thermostat works, the temp sensor should work, always get a 2nd gauge to read the coolant, and KLZE does not hurt although Im not sure you can pass inspection due to erg or something. Also verify the VRIS system works properly for max power.
Also I went to 3 series bimmers after the probe and would never look back. Probe = v6 165hp rev happy garbo engine 25mpg tops, 3 series i6 torquey 31mpg hwy RWD< rwd bests fwd always.
If noise doesn’t reduce with an oil change (lifters). And doesn’t go away over 2k RPMs (cam friction gear), then most likely it is the timing belt tensioner for sure. All three are easy and no reason to trash car. Good luck 👍. (Was it replaced when they did timing belt? Or did they use a cheap one.)
@@HelloRoad Ok one last comment, See my Ep16, I had similar sound, that was reduced greatly after running some MMO in it, then a fresh oil change, hence could be oil pressure, oil, lifter related as well. As for tensioner, my Mazda repair shop always used OEM parts for timing belt replacement, he said aftermarket parts always failed????
Lol we all get too deep in projects. I would’ve rather gone all in on that GS rather than the probe. But sometimes we gotta know when to fold em. Cheers man! if you enjoyed it at all, no regrets
I'm not saying that it's not blown up...but the timing belt tensioner could make a similar noise if it failed. Was it replaced when the timing belt was? Either way, it's definitely worth saving. If you can find a Probe fanatic in your area to help work on it, that would be ideal.
TIMING GEAR TENSIONER. It's the toothed cam gear not the hydraulic tensioner for the belt. That's my diagnosis. The extra heat is a failing distributor. Random episodes of extreme heat. Been there done that.
As a former PGT owner, and still a huge fanatic and still active in the community, KLZE swap it. Make sure it is real, and not a Millennia engine either. Or, a shady seller trying to pass off an MX3 V6 as a ZE. Keep it alive.
KL31 stamp on head, no vin tag on real ze's, 200-220 good compression 180-200 might be a de/de pistons. Check front cams for ze numbers. Straight neck kl31 KLZE is what you want.
A friend of mine would let me drive his when i was in college. The car would take to redline with no problems at all. Liked it so much, bought it's successor. Contour Svt. Still have it. And yes, love to drive it, hate to work on it.
I so root for this thing. Having zero skills, I'd have been forced to take the random 1,500. Love all the hopeful comments, but I've learned that 'glass half full' means about a 25% success rate once you've seriously baked in all the realities. Very best of luck.
Engine swap, then take it for a redemption drive on those same roads that killed it last time. Ford Probes are awesome, this one deserves some love, and if she needs a new engine, then so be it, she gets a new engine. (I know a friend of mine used to have a black Ford Probe GT with a V6 that he turbocharged. I don't know what V6 it was, but... That sucker was brutal.)
@@HelloRoad Think about taking a "Neo Mustang" to Radwood. You could dress up in a future of yesterday outfit. I don't think people even remember that the Probe was supposed to be the new Mustang and you could do an episode on that. Okay enough of that from me.
I would love to see how you fix the noise if you do. I have the same car and it's making the same noise. I got it up and running and then let it sit for a few months then when I started it up again the clicking noise started.
Very beautiful scenery at the canyon road :) Hard to say what's wrong with the car, but it kind of brings valve lifter noise in mind, if it has hydraulic lifters, perhaps one or more of them are not working and there's too big gap, causing the noise? Check Engine -light seems to be on, maybe reading the codes could give some direction?
I remember a metal tube coolant wich located between intake manifold and block, they rust some times and leaks bit other times the seal Wich connect to the block leaks too, overall you never notice cuz the heat evaporated quick the leak, hope you can save it.
If it isn't impossible I would find a rusted out SHO Taurus V6 from the same year that has a good engine and swap it in to include all the electrical harness's and fuel systems. Now that would give the car more torque and a reliable engine. You will still need to diagnosis why it overheated. Was it it the cooling system or was it the engine cylinder head gaskets?
I owned a 95 SE. It was a great driving car, but I do not miss it at all. Lack of aftermarket was a killer also. Sell it for 1500 and start with a better platform.
Bad part about that long arm intake is that they suck in water really easily. That’s how I throw a rod in might. Two months after KLZE swapping it. Lol I still have a radiator fan and a side skirt for my old GT sitting around. Vacuum lines are a bitch as well.
You and I have very different mentalities when it comes to cars but we both love cars that have been unloved and neither of us like to give up. So my answer would be do you want this to become the Probe repair channel for the next couple of months? If not consolidate the collection a bit and get yourself an exciting ownership experience.
$1500 is a SOLID offer, unless you have way more than that into it already I'd take the money. You could probably buy another running Probe for that money.
Hey man, that $1,500 sounds super sweet right now, plus it allows you to buy 5 other $300 hoopties just like your Probie. And just like the Steve Miller band once said: "Hoo-hoo-hoo, go on, take the money and run"!
That drive was in March?!? Man, 2021 is flying by. As far as the Probe goes, I think it might be time to cut your losses and pass it on to the next victim! You've given that car a ton of love and it feels like it hasn't returned the favor. $1500 is tough to pass up, and I'm sure the rest of the Hello Road fleet could find ways to spend that extra cash for you.
@@HelloRoad In your head, you know that's the right thing to do, sell it, cut your losses and move on. I wouldn't mind seeing a different car on your channel anyways.
Hey man, i recently bought a probe (1997), but my abs light is on, like yours, i tried to identify the code for the problem, but the light just constantly stays on. Did you find anyting to fix that problem ? I also have another abs control unit and a whole abs hydraulic block at home. I would really appreaciate some help. Greatings from Germany :)
If coolant was leaking out, maybe air got into the system causing the temp gauge bouncing up and down? If the sensor is reading air instead of coolant it could get some pretty wrong measurements.
Yeah I was thinking that, I had even bled and burped the system several times in a previous video. Car is at the shop now, hope to find out what's up with it!
Love your channel! Temp bouncing around like that may mean there is air in the system. Every time you filled it with coolant, did you thoroughly burp the system? Air doesn't conduct heat as well as water does (try feeling 180 degrees in water vs. 180 degrees in your oven), and so every time the air pocket goes over the sensor, the temperature drops. The entire time, you may have just had low coolant because the system wasn't filled up all the way. An air pocket is literally like a solid object in a pressurized system, which will make it seem like you filled it up when you actually didn't. After you fill the car with coolant, you need to burp it by letting it idle with the radiator cap removed and the heater on full for up to an hour to let all the air burp out, filling it with coolant as the level lowers (which is air escaping). And I hate to say it, Ethan, but that terrible sound seems more to me like rod knock. Do you have an oil pressure gauge or is the oil pressure light going off?
I know this sound all too well. Repaired this on mine. 10k miles later blew the trans leaving only 1st and 5th…. Such a LOVE HATE car. Have owned some real cars since and still miss it at its prime. Side note…in the snow it was the most incredible vehicle I ever drove.
Get a proper diagnosis before moving on anything. It should get a compression test and coolant can be tested for presence of exhaust gases too. Motor swap isn't worth it though. To much labor.i also agree the timing tensioner may be at fault. My 626 with the same motor sounded like that when it went .
Well, I really clearly identify with you regarding the emotions that my "temperamental" (=unreliable) Probe provoked... I spend SO MUCH effort (& money) on it, and sometimes it drove nice and sometimes it developed weird and annoying failures. So, once it has been running well for a while, I tried to avoid what has happened to you and sold it for a fair amount a couple of months ago (for almost double of what it costed to me, but not enough to cover even 50% of the repair expenses). So in a nutshell, I lost about 2500 euro on it, 2 years of work, but learned quite a bit and really enjoyed it for perhaps a couple of hours on the road in total. Even so, I really had some feeling of regret when the new owner took it away (it looked and sounded really nice!) I have just moved to a more practical and theoretically reliable (but much less exclusive) car: an Audi TT.
Oh mein Gott! What have you done? My heart is aching. Naaa, jokes aside, this reminds me of my 97 Probe ECP V6 which made strange noises at 163.000 kilometers. Maybe some defective oil control rings scraping on the inside of the cylinders. I had a couple of things not fixed on that car so I gave it away and bought the 4-cylinder 116hp Probe II, lowered the suspension, put new shock absorbers in, added a dome brace for even more rigidness while steering and in curves, changed waterpump and timing belt, and since 3 years I enjoy driving it on 17inch BBS aluminium rims. Of course its not the fastest car with 0 to 100 km/h in 10 seconds but its much cheaper to maintain. Spare parts are cheaper than the V6 ones plus the motor is less likely to overhead (of course the old coolant rubber tubes should be checked for perforations and waterpump should have no leakage as well). In the V6 I needed 10 liter on 100 km. Back in the day 1 liter costs 1,25 €. But today prices are rising and 1 Liter costs 1,63 €. So its good that the 4-cylinder only swallows 8 liter on 100 km. From the 7 cars I owned and many other cars I drove in my life this is the one I want to keep and drive. The main reasons are handling, costs and looks. It is sporty, reliable, economically, has a big trunk, etc. But I have to admit. Sometimes I miss the V6 cause the motor had a good sound and did the 0-100 km/h in only 7 seconds. So dear Mr. Tufts I wish you well however your decisions you take with this and your other cars. Good luck!
Once when my headgasket failed, air/gas from the cylinders (or from coolant boiling) reached the temp sensor giving a normal reading while it was infact overheating as hell :/
A good friend of mine had multiple projects simultaneously including a full restoration. At a certain moment of time he realized that no matter what efforts he is putting into the cars he will not be able to enjoy them all. So he cut back on the projects selling some of his collection (the ones he was not connected strongly) to dedicate more time and love to his family and the remainder of the cars. If you feel so connected to this car, work out what is wrong, fix it, then enjoy :) On the technicalities I cannot give any advice unfortunately.
Awww too bad. I have a 1993 Ford Probe GT Rio Red in almost showroom condition, she is a museum car, I never drive her. Then I have 1996 GT in Purple, exactly like yours that I bought last September to build into a race car/show car. After one full year of a lot of work, time, money, looking for mechanics, I have decided to part her out, too many imperfections. If anyone wants any parts, let me know.
Well, I was just given my Grandpa's 91 Probe with 11,000 miles, that as far as I know just needs fluids battery and tires...hopefully it treats me better
Ethan you need to listen to this pin this if so for other owners of this problem i say its probably the belt tensioner hydraulic tensioner my mazda mx6 sounded the same but worse it was heading for the scrap yard and i saved it by putting a tensioner in it and it runs like a sweet dream now its a huge fault with these cars and please try not get rid of the probe try this suggestion before you do anything to it thanks.
Send it to chrisfix and do a collaboration, or see if he will buy it from you
That would be worlds colliding yet it would be excellent
Would be awesome
I think you're on to something here...
Ive got a Probe. Please let Chris Fix work his magic
@Scotty secretly loves Chryslers how so scotty?
$1500 for an engine is VERY hard to beat. I love this car I’d hate to see it go so quickly
Love this car and especially love that you make content with it, definitely think it deserves to keep living one way or another, I would just make sure whatever happens, it’s not junked. These cars are cool, unique and too rare now to send that pretty clean one away just yet. Hope she finds her way back on the road
For sure. Not sure what I'm going to do yet but I will make sure it absolutely does not get junked!!
@@HelloRoad If it needs a motor, just throw a Ford Taurus 3.0L Duratech in it! should run off the same ECU and give an extra 30 HP and torque! Plus those engines are more plentiful/cheaper.
@@raleighchampion8089 there was only ever one conversion on a 2nd Gen PGT to a V6. WAY too much work when the Japanese KLZE is a direct fit, and takes these right near 200hp vs the KLDE's 160hp.
@@raleighchampion8089 I agree. 100%
@@raleighchampion8089 the v6 on the second gen ford probe is mazda sourced there is no compatibility with a duratec on stock electronics
Swap the engine. Please keep this car alive! Huge fan of these cars, owned 3 so far myself. They're very tempermental cars, but they are definitely worth holding on to and keeping around.
I was looking to buy a 4th a while ago, good luck finding on, like at all. I think after literal days of searching i found 2-3 manual 2g probes online in the country.
If a ze swap is what it takes: do it. You'll also gain a little power, and with some slight tinkering the car should be around 170-180 whp with little modification.
The bearings, suspension, and wheelbase, on these cars is insane. They really do handle like sport cars when they're in good condition (despite having an suv steering wheel).
If you do right by this car, you wont regret it.
The car was begging to be rwd, the valve covers always have problems, the v6 especially is tempermental, and the wiring is a nightmare.
Still worth the effort. This car is mazdas (and kind of Ford's, i guess) eclipse. It's a paine, and high maintenance, but it'll outperform cars it shouldn't have a chance against on paper.
The "Ford" Probe us basically the anime protagonist of 90s cars.
👍👍👍
Damn I’ve been on the fence on getting rid of mine because of electrical gremlins. This motivational speech give me hope.
@@julianjones3976 If you sell it, hold out for top dollar. They are just too rare now.
@@ford_probe_garage_studio help him save this treasure please. I miss mine dearly.
Well said!
I mothballed by 24V Probe II 10 years ago in my grandma's garage because I couldn't afford the maintenance - now that I'm making money I'm thinking of restoring it. It was such a cool car ❤
Don't jump to conclusions on the ticking. I've had the same happen on mine, it was actually a bad timing belt tensioner (which was just replaced so I didn't suspect it). As for the overheating, do a comp test as you said. I would hate for you to sell this car, I love seeing it on your channel, but if it does indeed need an engine $1500 is hard to beat.
Cam gear tensioner or HLA's. Cam gear knocks louder.
I have blown out the tensioners myself when compressing them too fast. They need to be compressed at a rate of like 1mm /5 mins. On my clamp, 10 degrees rotation, count to 10
Yeah, its just the timing belt tensioner arm. Do the timing belt and you'll be golden.
It sounds like lifters. I recommend you do an oil psi test.
Same here.
Hey Ethan, I have a few suggestions:
-get an aftermarket temp gauge and make sure that the stock one is reading correctly
-make sure your radiator fan is turning on. If it isn't, if you have AC, you may be able to manually turn it on by turning on the AC. This is a common thing to do on 80s GM cars.
-As you said, run a compression test and find out if one or both of the head gaskets are blown.
-check any and all of the hoses that pump coolant. I had work done on a Toyota Corona recently, which included a new radiator hoses, water pump, etc. and two weeks later the carb preheat hose burst and it almost overheated. Heater cores and the hoses attaching to them can also be a culprit for leaking coolant. Does the car leak coolant when it's parked? The coolant is going somewhere, you just have to find out where that is.
-See if you can figure out what part of the engine bay that metal sound is coming from. Hopefully it's just your tensioner, but could also be bad bearings, or a number of other expensive problems, especially if it wasn't coincidental to you overheating.
Good luck! I love seeing this car and all the videos you make of it, but understand if it's time to throw in the towel on this one.
That said, I hope you end up getting to put it back on the road! I can tell you really love this one
It almost sounds like the hydraulic lifters collapsed. Do you think it’s got low oil pressure?
Awesome comment!
The engine noise is just the hydraulic lash Adjusters. Really easy swap. Won't fix the head gaskets. But if they are intact it will fix your engine noise
I was wondering that too. Maybe oil pressure issue?
I chased a ticking noice on my probe for a year swapped the hlas with brand new ones and got oil through them and everything led to it being top end, turned out it was rod knock so still be carefull
I almost gave up on my contour svt but so happy I decided to keep and invest time and money. Going to fully restore her this year. Love how similar these cars are.
Had one of them, never again
Keep it alive!!! New motor, more canyon roads!
As a closet Ford Probe fanatic, I say keep it! It's how I first found your channel.
Bought mine in 92, it was a 91 model Sadly got in a hit and run and had to scrap it. Was a good car for me.
Fix it love this car ,it’s worth you’ll have so much fun with it once it’s completed
You've done more than most people to keep a Ford Probe GT on the road these days! Loved seeing it driving through the mountain twisties while it lasted, and this really is a great spec: rear wiper, spoiler, leather, and obviously, purple. A KLZE would be awesome as hell, but also probably a pain in the ass 😬
Edit: it warms my heart to see all these Probe GT enthusiasts in the comments!
ZE swap is bolt in, easy peasy. Oh and the old engine isn't done.
These are one of My Favorite Cars of The 90’s! Beautiful Design!💜
Really excited to see what you will do with it. Hoping for more Probe videos soon !!
Given your level of frustration, the $1500 offer is pretty darn tempting. It depends on how emotionally invested you are in returning this Probe to a functional state and getting to enjoy time behind the wheel yourself. Getting to the root of the engine/coolant problem is going to take time, patience, and money. Is the end goal worth the effort? I love the Probe and I'd love to see you get the old girl back to be (Hello) road-worthy. The good news is the struggle to repair the Probe makes for riveting viewing by your audience. We are cheering for your success with the Probe.
Take the $1500 and run..I love this car but it's time for someone else to lose some blood, sweat, tears, and money on
agreed
Amen
I had the 97 MX-6, Mazda's version of the Probe. The first of my problems with it was the timing belt tensioner. It sounded just like yours does now. I'm sure I must have had problems with the engine overheating because I had that thing at the shop more than I had it in my driveway. When my mechanic locked up at night he would cross his fingers that it wouldn't be parked in front of is shop in the morning. Finally it threw a rod and I sold it for $500 to a guy who did an engine swap. The big problem with these cars is that they are so entertaining to drive when they work. So fun when you get the engine in the higher revs. So hard to keep them healthy.
If I could find a 93 to 97 Probe GT or a 93 to 96 MX6 in manual and good shape I'd love to have one. Always liked those cars. Or an SVT contour. The Cougar is the same drivetrain but I like the looks of the other 3 better.
KL-ZE swap for sure. Would love to see that. MX-6 with a KL-ZE swap is one of my dream cars.
My step mom had a 4cyl auto version of this. Was fun to drive but gutless. Friend of mine had a special edition GT with the manual and the v6. It was so silky smooth. Definitely a cool car.
If your heart isn’t into it anymore, then let it go to someone who can appreciate it. Like you said - plenty of other projects. If you want to continue, go rent a coolant tester to see if there are exhaust gases in the coolant. They are pretty easy to use and should be at any local auto parts store.
Its worth fixing Ethan especially you invested time and money, those are rare cars to find especially in your condition, yours in top shape.
Dude don't be too hard on yourself your content is great intriguing and people learn from it. This purple probe looks like a Hot Wheel car I hope whatever you do the person who buys it from you will continue to create a TH-cam channel and see it in its next life please suggest that maybe you could work with him
Thank you so much for the content. Be well.
KLZE Engine Swap! Keep the purple Probe alive!
Keep it alive man, this car deserves it and as you said - you saved it from the junkyard, you cant possibly think of turning your back on it now. Dig under the hood, check the HLAs, the scary noise sounds like it could be them.
Definitely save it! I had a 94 Probe GT in high school and regret still that I sold it.
I’m really sorry to hear about the probe. If you do decide to part with it, I’m still here!
I just have to get my new 4Runner going. My 99 had a ton of issues, and I traded it on a Nissan Juke. Six months later, I see an 02 runner with a blown head gasket for 1200 dollars. I planned to flip it once fixed, but I’m probably going to keep it.
Oh man it happens. Maybe you didn't bleed the system probably? Temp bouncing up and down sounds like an air pocket to me. i did the same to my LS400 but the difference is that mine handled it like a champ. Anyways, pour some blue devil head gasket treatment, I've seen good results online and if you are going to throw the engine anyway i think it's worth the shot, i love your channel man, I've been following you almost since you started, keep it up!!!
By the way, Ethan. I bought a 1984 Datsun/Nissan 200SX AKA an S12 for $300 and thought immediately of you! The interior is so rad, you would love it. Runs like a top, but needs a lot of TLC and needed some major rodent nest and food store eviction.
I'll be honest, that sounds identical to two of the three probes I own, one of them being our endurance race car. Once it's at race temp the lifter ticks go away. The current motor has 6 or 7 races on it and is kept at 5K+ RPM for 14+ hours straight and still going very strong. We run 5W-50 Red Line oil (thin when cold to charge up the lifters and thick when hot to keep them charged up).
As for the fluctuating water temp, seems like there is air in the system. The only way we can bleed our probe is to jack the front as high as it will go, point it to the sky, and fill up the system while running for a while.
You may not have a leak. If you push the car a bit, then the low pressure radiator cap opens up and dumps coolant into the overflow, gets air in the system, which then gets you that erratic temp gauge. Up the cap to 16psi and that'll let you push the car a little harder without loosing coolant.
If I were you, I'd just run it. If you have spare time on your hands, then swap out the lifters.
Our probe: th-cam.com/video/HaMU5XFlLx0/w-d-xo.html&pp=ygUMcHJvYmUgbGVtb25z
Engine Swap! Keep that thing alive for now.
Charles the Probe owner here again. I don't know how badly you damaged the engine but I am willing to bet that the original source of the overheating was the radiator. I had the same problem with mine-- new thermostat, new water pump, new radiator cap, etc. (Those radiator caps are very sensitive BTW and have to be replaced fairly frequently. Every time you take it off and put it back on you wear the gasket). Then I finally replaced the radiator and it hasn't overheated for the past ten years.
Hey there! Yeah the radiator was basically the only cooling system component that I hadn't replaced. You could be right!!!
A coworker of mine has the identical car right down to the color.
She was married to a surgeon and never learned to drive or worked outside the home until he passed away.
She decided she needed a job, not for the money but for something to do, and learned how to drive at 48.
She saw her Probe sitting on the lot while shopping with her sister.
They stopped by to look at it and she ended up buying it .
Paying with her debit card because the bank had already closed for the day and she didn't want to wait.
She has meticulously maintained it and when you look at it you swear it had 18k instead of 180k.
My first car was a purple 1994 Ford Probe GT 5 speed manual, the same as this car. Mine had racing decals down both sides of it. It was named "The Purple Prober." I also took my very first driver's test in it back in 1996. I miss that car.
Ethan could it possibly be the hydraulic lifters being stuck? The Miata is notorious for this noise, and being a Mazda engine I'm sure it's built the same exact way.
You can even search "8 hours of Miata lifter tick" because of how common it is. Usually it goes away if the correct oil level is in it or after it warms up but yours could have a stuck one. So the engine could be alright
This is a tough one. The tensioner of the timing belt went bad and stopped turning the water pump properly???? Do that head gasket test that samcrac and legit street cars did recently. I guess with multiple overheats the head gasket could go?? Yet, Even with cruddy tires, you were keeping up, go Probe!!
The water pump is spun by the one of the accessory belts. And yeah, the tensioners are noitorious even if new (most likely not oem) to take a dump. I had a similar issue on a celica of mine where it would just overheat if i gave it the beans but was fine everywhere else, certainly wasn't my bigger radiator that's for sure...
I can relate to the reluctance to give up on a project that once held so much promise. But realistically... each of us has only so much time, money and energy. You have a lot of other worthy projects to which those resources could be devoted. If your heart's no longer fully into this one, and there's an opportunity for it to move to a good home where it will be appreciated, it's time to let it go. OTOH, I like the Probe a lot, I've enjoyed seeing it on the channel, and I'll be happy to see it stick around if that's your decision.
Once you get this car figured out you will love it more. Sounds like lifter tick and you gotta check your radiator caps/and re bleed the cooling system for overheating problems. I own 3 mx6s and they are the same cars and I never have any issues besides the lifter tick. I would love to see you keep the car and put a klze with boltons to really see the potential of the car.
Yeah a few others have said lifter tick. Radiator caps are new, and I did bleed the cooling system a couple times. But maybe there was an air bubble trapped, I'm not sure. KLZE would be nice! Still not sure what I'm going to do :)
@@HelloRoad is the radiator new? It could be clogged up. Also replacing the radiator is very easy on these cars. Yeah it looks terrible but the radiator can be done in a hour or less.
@@Dangsta080489 Radiator is the only cooling system item that wasn't replaced. For sure, could be a bad radiator!
Back again. Guy who said your series brought back PTSD of owning this. Mine had your noise symptom before it finally jumped a belt tooth. My case was specifically a washer between the top timing gear and cam shaft that goes flat when it hsould be curved. That is the noise and I drove it for two years this way (during fast & furious days mind you).
Make sure the thermostat works, the temp sensor should work, always get a 2nd gauge to read the coolant, and KLZE does not hurt although Im not sure you can pass inspection due to erg or something.
Also verify the VRIS system works properly for max power.
Also I went to 3 series bimmers after the probe and would never look back. Probe = v6 165hp rev happy garbo engine 25mpg tops, 3 series i6 torquey 31mpg hwy RWD< rwd bests fwd always.
If noise doesn’t reduce with an oil change (lifters). And doesn’t go away over 2k RPMs (cam friction gear), then most likely it is the timing belt tensioner for sure. All three are easy and no reason to trash car. Good luck 👍. (Was it replaced when they did timing belt? Or did they use a cheap one.)
Thanks for the info. :) Timing belt tensioner was replaced, but it may have been a cheap one.
@@HelloRoad Ok one last comment, See my Ep16, I had similar sound, that was reduced greatly after running some MMO in it, then a fresh oil change, hence could be oil pressure, oil, lifter related as well. As for tensioner, my Mazda repair shop always used OEM parts for timing belt replacement, he said aftermarket parts always failed????
i want to see more videos of this purple probe , please save this car , i want to see this car on the road again ......
That Previa looks pretty tasty, I could use a third one on my channel...lol
My probes cooling has been so amazing for me and I've drag raced at the track with it multiple runs
How is that helpful? He's genuinely asking for help and suggestions.
Save it rebuild the top end with the kl-ze that would be so fun honestly there great and powerful and get the turbo kit
Lol we all get too deep in projects. I would’ve rather gone all in on that GS rather than the probe. But sometimes we gotta know when to fold em. Cheers man! if you enjoyed it at all, no regrets
The GS is my fav 😍
I'm not saying that it's not blown up...but the timing belt tensioner could make a similar noise if it failed. Was it replaced when the timing belt was?
Either way, it's definitely worth saving. If you can find a Probe fanatic in your area to help work on it, that would be ideal.
True, it is one of three things. Most likely timing belt tensioner.
TIMING GEAR TENSIONER. It's the toothed cam gear not the hydraulic tensioner for the belt. That's my diagnosis. The extra heat is a failing distributor. Random episodes of extreme heat. Been there done that.
Ethan, I think the term 'mercy killing' would be appropriate.
Tommy Wiseau´s "Do you understand life, do you?" would be appropriate.
I think you should fix it. If not sell it to the guy and use the money for the other projects. But I love the Barney Probe
Watching hello road helps me avoid project cars
Glad I could help
Nice mix of cars on your cañon run. You were missing a SHO.
As a former PGT owner, and still a huge fanatic and still active in the community, KLZE swap it. Make sure it is real, and not a Millennia engine either. Or, a shady seller trying to pass off an MX3 V6 as a ZE. Keep it alive.
KL31 stamp on head, no vin tag on real ze's, 200-220 good compression 180-200 might be a de/de pistons. Check front cams for ze numbers. Straight neck kl31 KLZE is what you want.
A friend of mine would let me drive his when i was in college. The car would take to redline with no problems at all. Liked it so much, bought it's successor. Contour Svt. Still have it. And yes, love to drive it, hate to work on it.
I so root for this thing. Having zero skills, I'd have been forced to take the random 1,500. Love all the hopeful comments, but I've learned that 'glass half full' means about a 25% success rate once you've seriously baked in all the realities. Very best of luck.
Nobody wanted those things when I was a young punk. Now they're hard to find and people love em.
Engine swap, then take it for a redemption drive on those same roads that killed it last time. Ford Probes are awesome, this one deserves some love, and if she needs a new engine, then so be it, she gets a new engine.
(I know a friend of mine used to have a black Ford Probe GT with a V6 that he turbocharged. I don't know what V6 it was, but... That sucker was brutal.)
Time to turn this into the next Mustang that it was supposed to be. Put a 5.0 or 4.6 into it.
Agreed
🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔
@@HelloRoad Think about taking a "Neo Mustang" to Radwood. You could dress up in a future of yesterday outfit. I don't think people even remember that the Probe was supposed to be the new Mustang and you could do an episode on that. Okay enough of that from me.
@@WayneMoyer Haha that's great!
she has seen better days. sorry for being gone for too long. i was busy with other stuff.
I would love to see how you fix the noise if you do. I have the same car and it's making the same noise. I got it up and running and then let it sit for a few months then when I started it up again the clicking noise started.
Fix it! I love mine and need to get it running again!
Very beautiful scenery at the canyon road :) Hard to say what's wrong with the car, but it kind of brings valve lifter noise in mind, if it has hydraulic lifters, perhaps one or more of them are not working and there's too big gap, causing the noise? Check Engine -light seems to be on, maybe reading the codes could give some direction?
I did a KLZE swap on mine back in the day and it only cost about 800 bucks. I bet you can get them cheaper now
I remember a metal tube coolant wich located between intake manifold and block, they rust some times and leaks bit other times the seal Wich connect to the block leaks too, overall you never notice cuz the heat evaporated quick the leak, hope you can save it.
Would be sad to see it go! Love the Ford probe. But understandable if you got rid of it
Love there cR. Used to have the same color in 1998
If it isn't impossible I would find a rusted out SHO Taurus V6 from the same year that has a good engine and swap it in to include all the electrical harness's and fuel systems. Now that would give the car more torque and a reliable engine. You will still need to diagnosis why it overheated. Was it it the cooling system or was it the engine cylinder head gaskets?
Back in the day I liked Both The Ford Probe And The Vauxhall Calibra..The Calibra Is So Good Looking and better Though
I owned a 95 SE. It was a great driving car, but I do not miss it at all. Lack of aftermarket was a killer also. Sell it for 1500 and start with a better platform.
Bad part about that long arm intake is that they suck in water really easily. That’s how I throw a rod in might. Two months after KLZE swapping it. Lol I still have a radiator fan and a side skirt for my old GT sitting around.
Vacuum lines are a bitch as well.
You and I have very different mentalities when it comes to cars but we both love cars that have been unloved and neither of us like to give up. So my answer would be do you want this to become the Probe repair channel for the next couple of months? If not consolidate the collection a bit and get yourself an exciting ownership experience.
$1500 is a SOLID offer, unless you have way more than that into it already I'd take the money. You could probably buy another running Probe for that money.
Hey man, that $1,500 sounds super sweet right now, plus it allows you to buy 5 other $300 hoopties just like your Probie. And just like the Steve Miller band once said: "Hoo-hoo-hoo, go on, take the money and run"!
Hahaha!!
That drive was in March?!? Man, 2021 is flying by.
As far as the Probe goes, I think it might be time to cut your losses and pass it on to the next victim! You've given that car a ton of love and it feels like it hasn't returned the favor. $1500 is tough to pass up, and I'm sure the rest of the Hello Road fleet could find ways to spend that extra cash for you.
I know right? Seemed like it wasn't that long ago. Yeah... this one may end up getting sold.
@@HelloRoad In your head, you know that's the right thing to do, sell it, cut your losses and move on. I wouldn't mind seeing a different car on your channel anyways.
Hey man, i recently bought a probe (1997), but my abs light is on, like yours, i tried to identify the code for the problem, but the light just constantly stays on. Did you find anyting to fix that problem ? I also have another abs control unit and a whole abs hydraulic block at home. I would really appreaciate some help. Greatings from Germany :)
Man if you’re in Southern California I have two probes in my driveway as projects, you can have one of them if you’d like, but have working motors.
If coolant was leaking out, maybe air got into the system causing the temp gauge bouncing up and down? If the sensor is reading air instead of coolant it could get some pretty wrong measurements.
Yeah I was thinking that, I had even bled and burped the system several times in a previous video. Car is at the shop now, hope to find out what's up with it!
Love your channel!
Temp bouncing around like that may mean there is air in the system. Every time you filled it with coolant, did you thoroughly burp the system? Air doesn't conduct heat as well as water does (try feeling 180 degrees in water vs. 180 degrees in your oven), and so every time the air pocket goes over the sensor, the temperature drops. The entire time, you may have just had low coolant because the system wasn't filled up all the way. An air pocket is literally like a solid object in a pressurized system, which will make it seem like you filled it up when you actually didn't. After you fill the car with coolant, you need to burp it by letting it idle with the radiator cap removed and the heater on full for up to an hour to let all the air burp out, filling it with coolant as the level lowers (which is air escaping).
And I hate to say it, Ethan, but that terrible sound seems more to me like rod knock. Do you have an oil pressure gauge or is the oil pressure light going off?
I had two probes. I did the KZLE swap after I overheated it = new life.
That said, did you check the thermostat (or check it again?)
Oh nice! I had just put a new thermostat in several months back. Who knows, maybe it went bad. 🤷♂️
Sounds like timing tensioner or just lifters to me. May be an easy fix. Does not sound like bottom end.
Def still may need a head gasket though.
It’s a great candidate for an engine swap.
Ford’s new three cylinder turbo!
Now that'd be badass. But it'd probably be easier and cheaper to get an entire fiesta st
My mom's Ecosport has the ecoboost 3 cyl, cool little engine, sounds interesting haha. Hopefully it holds up, only 8k miles so far.
JDM KLZE!!(make sure you put a good clutch in at the same time)
Pleeeeease keep her Ethan! This girl is what keeps me coming back. (P.s. going to Radwood Austin on 10/9)
I have been looking for one of those for months!
Update: found a really nice one last weekend and now it’s making the same noise 😐
Oh sweet usual kl-de stuff. If i would be in north america i would buy it and rebuild it.
I'm just supriced that 97' done same thing as pre 96 engines
I know this sound all too well. Repaired this on mine. 10k miles later blew the trans leaving only 1st and 5th…. Such a LOVE HATE car. Have owned some real cars since and still miss it at its prime. Side note…in the snow it was the most incredible vehicle I ever drove.
2JZ swap it, maybe?
Get that Cash!!! I had to sacrifice cars to improve other JDM!
Thank you for rescuing that car. Also I have no idea what u should do with it
Get a proper diagnosis before moving on anything. It should get a compression test and coolant can be tested for presence of exhaust gases too. Motor swap isn't worth it though. To much labor.i also agree the timing tensioner may be at fault. My 626 with the same motor sounded like that when it went .
Psh, bring it to NC and toss me a camera I'll fix it 😂
Well, I really clearly identify with you regarding the emotions that my "temperamental" (=unreliable) Probe provoked... I spend SO MUCH effort (& money) on it, and sometimes it drove nice and sometimes it developed weird and annoying failures. So, once it has been running well for a while, I tried to avoid what has happened to you and sold it for a fair amount a couple of months ago (for almost double of what it costed to me, but not enough to cover even 50% of the repair expenses).
So in a nutshell, I lost about 2500 euro on it, 2 years of work, but learned quite a bit and really enjoyed it for perhaps a couple of hours on the road in total. Even so, I really had some feeling of regret when the new owner took it away (it looked and sounded really nice!)
I have just moved to a more practical and theoretically reliable (but much less exclusive) car: an Audi TT.
Oh mein Gott! What have you done? My heart is aching.
Naaa, jokes aside, this reminds me of my 97 Probe ECP V6 which made strange noises at 163.000 kilometers. Maybe some defective oil control rings scraping on the inside of the cylinders.
I had a couple of things not fixed on that car so I gave it away and bought the 4-cylinder 116hp Probe II, lowered the suspension, put new shock absorbers in, added a dome brace for even more rigidness while steering and in curves, changed waterpump and timing belt, and since 3 years I enjoy driving it on 17inch BBS aluminium rims.
Of course its not the fastest car with 0 to 100 km/h in 10 seconds but its much cheaper to maintain. Spare parts are cheaper than the V6 ones plus the motor is less likely to overhead (of course the old coolant rubber tubes should be checked for perforations and waterpump should have no leakage as well).
In the V6 I needed 10 liter on 100 km. Back in the day 1 liter costs 1,25 €. But today prices are rising and 1 Liter costs 1,63 €. So its good that the 4-cylinder only swallows 8 liter on 100 km.
From the 7 cars I owned and many other cars I drove in my life this is the one I want to keep and drive. The main reasons are handling, costs and looks.
It is sporty, reliable, economically, has a big trunk, etc.
But I have to admit. Sometimes I miss the V6 cause the motor had a good sound and did the 0-100 km/h in only 7 seconds.
So dear Mr. Tufts I wish you well however your decisions you take with this and your other cars.
Good luck!
Best thing to do is import a barra turbo from down under :)
Once when my headgasket failed, air/gas from the cylinders (or from coolant boiling) reached the temp sensor giving a normal reading while it was infact overheating as hell :/
Yeah, I was wondering if maybe that is what happened...
Put a jdm Mazda engine on it
A good friend of mine had multiple projects simultaneously including a full restoration. At a certain moment of time he realized that no matter what efforts he is putting into the cars he will not be able to enjoy them all. So he cut back on the projects selling some of his collection (the ones he was not connected strongly) to dedicate more time and love to his family and the remainder of the cars.
If you feel so connected to this car, work out what is wrong, fix it, then enjoy :) On the technicalities I cannot give any advice unfortunately.
Awww too bad. I have a 1993 Ford Probe GT Rio Red in almost showroom condition, she is a museum car, I never drive her. Then I have 1996 GT in Purple, exactly like yours that I bought last September to build into a race car/show car. After one full year of a lot of work, time, money, looking for mechanics, I have decided to part her out, too many imperfections. If anyone wants any parts, let me know.
Keep it please I had a 1993 Ford Probe GT wish I still had it.
Well, I was just given my Grandpa's 91 Probe with 11,000 miles, that as far as I know just needs fluids battery and tires...hopefully it treats me better
Ethan you need to listen to this pin this if so for other owners of this problem i say its probably the belt tensioner hydraulic tensioner my mazda mx6 sounded the same but worse it was heading for the scrap yard and i saved it by putting a tensioner in it and it runs like a sweet dream now its a huge fault with these cars and please try not get rid of the probe try this suggestion before you do anything to it thanks.
I think drop the engine, put something else in there, and get a new purple paint-job done for it :)