Thread: 2/27/13 edit: cooling issues!!

Originally Posted by GTP in RTP

p0171 is the egr tube at the manifold, it is crushed or leaking

Often..it can be. That's not the only cause though. I'd start with the other two and see if the lean bank doesn't correct itself based on those fixes. If not, we can help you.

I got two lights... Regal..it's the extra light car.

Ok... I think my bad idle/car pulling/etc issues are fixed.
I haven't had any codes at all come back after cleaning everything(tb, iac, maf, etc), and replacing a bunch of parts like evap, hoses, etc.

Old thread, yes, but I just now trying to get this car really running.

I am still having issues with the cooling system.
I drained the coolant when I replaced the ECT sensor. I then refilled it, and bled it, and I at least thought I bled it well enough.
Earlier this week, I drove it to work. It is a five mile drive, takes about ten minutes to get there. The first 3.5 miles the temp needle is below 160, then all the sudden the needle take about 2 seconds and it rises all the way into the red, over 260. I park it at work, and notice a puddle of water/coolant underneath, not really sure where it came from. So I drove it home that evening and parked it(about the same situation on the drive home, needle jumps about a mile from the house, but this time no coolant puddle).

Yesterday I finally have time to work on it, so I pop the radiator cap off, and I'm able to add at least 2 quarts of my coolant mix. I started the car planning on trying to bleed the coolant. Car seems to take forever to warm, but once it does I open the bleeder valve, and at first nothing, then a strong spray of coolant(spraying hard, blasting the TB), and then nothing but lots of steam. I figure that means lots of air, so I decided I was going to fill it up at the LIM.
Went to AAP and bought a t-stat/gasket ring/radiator cap(why not?).

Today I went out, and I removed the t-stat, and added about a quart of coolant directly to the LIM. Then I installed the new t-stat.
Started the car, with the aeroforce hooked up this time. At first the aeroforce is reading 73*(that's about the temp outside, so seems correct). Dash gauge stays below 160 mark.
After about 3-4 minutes, the aeroforce reading goes from like 110 to 65498, and then gauge inside stays below 160. When the reading on the aeroforce shoots up, the fans come on. I let it keep running, and once the dash gauge was reading a few ticks above the 160 mark I open the bleeder screw.
At this point both hoses off the back of the engine are hot, the lower hose is hot, and the upper hose is hot, but not quite as hot as the others. Still too warm to hold onto though.
After a min I start getting coolant at the bleeder screw, then it stops for a while, fans turn off. I go back and look at the gauge and now the dash gauge says 260, and the aeroforce is reading like 193*. When it hits 195* I start getting coolant at the bleeder screw again, stops for a bit, starts again. Seems like a steady stream, so I think I have all the air out of the system.

Sorry, I was extremely wordy, but trying not to leave out any details that might help with diagnosis.


The ECT sensor I bought to replace the broken one was [link=http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000CGK7V4]this Delphi, purchased on Amazon[/link]

Did I possibly just get a bad ECT sensor?
If I did, should I try buying an ac delco to replace this delphi? Junkyard ECT sensor?