1994 Ford Tempo GL from North America - Comments

I have a '94 Tempo GL with 113,000. It's making a noise at idle. It is an erratic pinging sound. Something like bad gas, or retarded timing on acceleration. The noise sounds like it is coming from behind the timing cover. Could it be the belt/chain, or perhaps the harmonic balancer on the crank pulley. No metal in the oil. I replaced all the ignition parts. Has anyone had this problem? jpjohnsons@verizon.net.

I recently inherited a 1994 Ford Tempo. As to this date, I have had to replace the front passenger side tire due to a worn ball joint on that side. Tempos seem to eat tires if the joints are worn.

I've replaced the front disk pads, and it was easy as my old Ford Taurus.

Now, there is an annoying chatter (not from the brakes) when the car is idling. When the car is in drive or reverse the sound goes away. When I come to a stop sign it begins "ticking" again. Oil level is fine.

What's up?

Check out the crankshaft pulley and the heat shield for the cat converter. Both of these will cause the chatter. If the chatter disappears when you put it in neutral, it is the heat shield. If it gets worse upon acceleration, it is the crankshaft pulley. How many miles are on the car?

I have a 92 Ford Tempo on 47,000 when I was driving it today it just shut off for no reason and when I tried to start it again it would turn over, but wouldn't start. Any thoughts about this would be great.

WOW!!! This car survey site has become a whole Tempo owners group website!!

I have a '93 (that I love) and a funny rattling noise had me running to replace my air conditioning pump (it fooled the mechanic too) but now I get it... ITS THE HARMONIC BALANCER!!! Now that I listen to the rattle (at idle, pretty loud), I can hear that it is coming from the crank, not the pump.

Thanks for all the info. Now, I will get that replaced.

What a great, great little car. I love driving it, and the fact that it never lets me down is just amazing. I also like the fact that it is the easiest car to drive around town I have ever owned, AND that little 2.3 can climb hills and hold its own on the highway too. It is like a second generation Ford Model T.

VIVA TEMPO!!!

WOW!!! This car survey site has become a whole Tempo owners group website!!

I have a '93 (that I love) and a funny rattling noise had me running to replace my air conditioning pump (it fooled the mechanic too) but now I get it... ITS THE HARMONIC BALANCER!!! Now that I listen to the rattle (at idle, pretty loud), I can hear that it is coming from the crank, not the pump.

Thanks for all the info. Now, I will get that replaced.

What a great, great little car. I love driving it, and the fact that it never lets me down is just amazing. I also like the fact that it is the easiest car to drive around town I have ever owned, AND that little 2.3 can climb hills and hold its own on the highway too. It is like a second generation Ford Model T.

VIVA TEMPO!!!

I don't know why everyone here thinks that the Tempo is such a wonderful car. The ONLY reason I have my '94 is that my grandmother left it to me in '03 with only 11K miles on it. It rides like a tank, sucks gas like a V6 and has almost no acceleration. Not to mention that the cabin noise is so loud that I have to have my (aftermarket) stereo cranked up. I should be getting 25-30MPG with this 4-cylinder, but I get around 19-20, and yes, I regularly check my tires, change my oil and air filter. The fuel filter is fine, also. The only good thing I can say about it is that it is paid for and the body is in great shape. I have 58K on it now, and in the past 2 months I have had to:

-replace the brake rotors and pads (AGAIN! After 20K miles!)

-replace the passenger front tie rod

-replace the center brake light (AGAIN!)

-replace the crankshaft pulley (according to the mechanic it was replaced in '01!)

This is almost a $1000 worth of work on a car with just over 58K miles that is NOT driven hard at all, maybe 8-9K miles per year.

I'm just waiting for the other shoe to drop. Unless it's a new Mustang, I will never own another Ford vehicle again.

Hello...this site is a great find! I own a 91 Topaz with 120K on it and have recently developed this problem. The car sometimes stalls during start up (only on chilly mornings) and idles rough and tends to sputter during acceleration. I have tried gas treatment, and this helps a little, but not totally gets rid of the problem. I love the car, the inside is spotless and looks brand new! Best 400 bucks I've ever spent. Any help on this would be great. Thanks!