Hey everybody. This is my first time posting on here. I hope this is the right place for my questions. I recently married and my new wife has a 96 mustang. She has several issues with her car and I'm attempting to fix them. She has had her mustang for 7 years now.

1st. Every fall since she has owned her car. Her mechanic has replaced the thermostat due to her heat not working. I replaced her thermostat tonight and hope this issue is fixed. Still waiting to see though.

2nd. Between 55 and 62 her car shakes badly. I do not know of this is in the front or rear. The bearings seem to be in good shape. My thoughts is in the rack and pinion. It's on my to do list to replace it.

3rd. During the summer her ac will run for a bit then quit working. Freezing up is the best way I know to explain it.

Any help will be appreciated.

 

Welcome!
For starters I would look at ball joints, tie rod ends and tires before you replace tge rack bc I can't think of a reason the rack would cause vibration unless its loose. Secondly it should not need a thermostat that often. Has the cooling system been flushed and coolant changed everytime? Next time try just disconnecting the two hoses going to the heater core and flushing them with a hose then blow air threw them to get the water out. I had a 95 that would have the temp gauge jumping and heat would work on and off. Just flushed heater core and it took care of the issue. Seems sone of them had issues with blockage don't know why. Third next spring take it to a good mechanic for the a/c issue. Have them check for leaks to make sure its sealed correctly then refill with exact amount of freon. To much and to little can cause issues.

 

Yearly T-stat replacement sounds wrong. If you still have the old one stick it in a pan with some water and boil it. If it opens when the water boils and then closes when cooled it is still good.

My first guess on the steering wheel shake would be a tire out of balance. Try moving one of the front tires to the rear and of course the rear tire up front and take it for a drive. If it still has the problem move the other front tire to the rear and take it for another drive. let us know how that works out.

Post some pics!!

 

+1 to checking the ball joints, tie rods and tires.

after my (most recent lol) accident I noticed a ton of problems with my front end shaking. everything "worked" but nothing worked well. after the balljoints, tierods and bearings (and i know, you already checked those) my car felt good as new.

 

Is the A/C draining? One thing about these cars is the heat is HOT and the A/C is COLD! IF they can work properly. I do have trouble with my A/C drain hose getting clogged with pollen and junk in the spring. Run some wire up there to get the water running freely and I don't have any issues.

 

Agreed! I think ford has the best heat and a/c at least in the stangs. So hot u have to turn it down and so cold u turn it down or off after awhile. Worked at a chevy delaership and even brand new chevys don't get as hot and cold as my stangs do and mine are a decade old and never had the freon touched in them!