A little background to start
I have a 1995 Ranger XLT 2.3L OHC Lima engine with the Mazda 5 speed transmission.
I've owned the truck for 4 years and in that time have replaced both ignition coils, rear axle assembly, the intake system, cooling sensors, intake sensors, new 182 degree thermostat, radiator, fan clutch, upper and lower radiator hoses, thermostat housing, heater core shut off valve, and water pump. Still despite all of that I can go all winter and the truck will never seem to get hot at all. It will barely get above the bottom of the gauge at any time. Then come spring like clock work when it gets to Abt 60 degrees outside the truck will start to overheat at idle, oddly only at idle. As long as I can keep her moving she will cool back down but if it's anything above 80 outside I have to avoid stop and go traffic in town and even at times I will have to pull over and let her cool down. I will hear the coolant bubbling up in the degas bottle and my radiator hose will get almost rock hard from the excess pressure that seems to build in the system in the summer. But it will run perfectly normal at anything under 60 degrees and under 40 degrees and she'll never get hot. I don't know what the problem could be. I've had to do coolant flushes multiple times in that time frame due to what seems like mud building in the system every couple years. It's not oil but it has this clay like grit to it like sand. Turning the heater on full blast seems to help keep the truck cool for a little while but eventually it does get hot enough to have the thermostat get stuck open. I have no oil in my coolant and no coolant in my oil. The oil is changed every 3-4 months as I only use the vehicle for work. Any suggestion would be greatly appreciated as I have been hunting this issue down for 4 years now.

 

Welcome to the forum

Reads like Fan Clutch has failed
2.3l Lima is a big block of metal and is hard to heat up in the first place, lol, as you know
And the temp gauge sender is at the rear of engine not the top front so it reads low anyway

The cooling fan on any engine is actually only used at idle or stop and go slower speeds, above say 40MPH the air flow thru grill and radiator is more than any fan could provide
So over heating when driving slower or stopped usually means fan clutch issue, can be water pump(blades) but fan clutch is more likely

Simple test
After vehicle sits overnight open the hood and spin the fan, it should be Cold Locked so won't spin, you can move it but not spin it
If it spins easily replace fan clutch
Start engine, should hear fan sucking air if it was Cold Locked, then that noise will go away after 5 to 10 seconds, shut off engine
Fan should now spin easily, its fully unlocked

After you get home from a drive and engine/radiator is fully warmed up, shut off engine and spin fan again, should not spin, should be Heat Locked now
If not replace fan clutch

The cold or warm outside temp is just the tipping point for your 2.3l engine's cooling system without a working fan clutch, in winter radiator is probably never used so no fan needed

Radiators on vehicles are used for excess heat, which is why there is a Thermostat in the first place, if outside temp is cold enough for the metal in the engine and heater core to bleed off excess heat then thermostat doesn't open at all, or barely opens in the winter
Radiator without a fan cools coolant by 10-15degF, with fan 20-25degF

 

I wasn't having any issues whatsoever this year until my previous clutch locked up completely on me. So I replaced it and that's what started my overheating this year. It's done this every summer for a few years. The replacement was only Abt a month ago. Maybe I was sold a bad one? My ECT is reading between 205-232 depending on the heat outside. Block temp can get all the way up to 250 if I don't stop and let her cool off once it starts. I flushed the coolant again today and replaced it but to no avail the issue has persisted. I'll try to see if they'll warranty that fan clutch since i tried the test you mentioned and no matter the temp of the motor the fan is spinning freely. I'm just perplexed as to why the car seems to have a point of no return. If I pass halfway on the gauge no matter what I do the only way to cool it down past that point is to cut her off. I could get on the interstate and it won't get worse but it will hold wherever it was at.

 

Fan clutch is bad if it spins easily
Yes you got a bad one, hopefully they will exchange it
But if first one was bad..................grain of salt on that brand of fan clutch, maybe "money back" and try a different brand

 

Im Abt to head to attempt to get another fan clutch. If that fixes the problem I'll update the forum with the results.