Should I be concerned my 2003 Mercury Grand Marquis is not heating up on the drive to

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ICEp1ck

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work? The RPM's are so low at 80 MPH because of the overdrive that the car will barely warm up on a 25 mile commute. One day was particularly cold, and a check engine light came on because the coolant wasnt warm enough to open the thermostat. This morning on my commute I turned off the overdrive so the RPM's would be higher and the engine could warm up. I'm afraid to turn on my heater because I dont like tripping the check engine light.

4.6L V8
At 80 MPH w/overdrive engine turns 1650-1750 RPMS
I havent checked to see what it turns at with the overdrive off.

Air temp around 45 F when I leave for work.
 
Your thermostat is stuck open its not nothing major right now but it should be fixed because if you let the coolant system freely flow during warm up than your engine will wear out. You can wear out the tops of the cylinder walls because the engine can't come up to the proper operating Temperature.The cylinders on all engines get tighter at the top of the stroke this is necessary to make good compression.When the engine is cold the cylinders are tight and the pistons rub a little against the cylinders but when the engine warns up the cylinders expand and that allows the pistons the move freely in the cylinders. So as a result of the engine not being able to warn up the pistons will rub on the cylinders and wear them out because the tolerances are too close. An engine with low compression will have poor fuel economy, poor acceleration, high emissions, and it will also burn oil. If the compression is very low than the engine will also have trouble idling,
 
the thermostat is probably staying open, this will cause the engine to stay cold, change the unit out for a new one ( 195 degree temp )
 
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