Q: 2003 Ford Focus is overheating

It could be. Around 2000 many manufacturers including Ford started using plastic water pump impellers. In this way they messed up one of the worlds simplest and reliable devices. The center of the plastic impeller can get loose and allow the impeller to spin on the shaft so the pump turns on the outside, but not on the inside. But before you run out and buy a replacement. check and be sure the cooling system is well filled and there are no leaks. That is the most common cause of overheating. It can be difficult to diagnose a a pump that has failed in this way, so what you have to do is eliminate all other possible sources of overheating first. If you don’t want to take this on yourself, you can contact YourMechanic. They can send a technician to your home or office to check out your overheating problem and let you know what it will take.