car overheating

[kking89]

So my car overheated yesterday on my way home from work. Past couple days I could watch my temp Gauage climb then go back down. And yes I checked my coolant I had coolant in the bottle. And yesterday it got up into the red and obviously overheated. Poped the hood coolant bottle was almost overflowed. I have a few ideas what could be the issue. But I want your guys opinion as well. Idk if this also may be the issue or a separate issue but my heat hasn't been working very well lately. And it likes to be hot then randomly just get cold. Thanks for looking and I hope you guys can help me out. Coolant elbows have been replaced before. Probably at around 165-175k miles. Radiator was replaced with gtp radiator probably 10-15k miles ago. Car now has 202k miles.

[Below Average Joe]

Air in the system?

[kking89]

New radiator hose as well. And I could see the coolant back splash on the bottom of the car by the oil pan but do not believe it was leaking from there. I know some GM water pumps when they go bad have a drain hole that let's coolant out

[kking89]

That's what I was thinking. Getting air pockets somehow

[Below Average Joe]

I'd let the car get warm and crack open the thermostat bleeder a few times until a stead stream of coolant comes out. Then fill as needed. Scotty has good method, maybe he'll chime in.

[Jomamma]

Whens the last time you flushed the system?

Jack up the front of the car and take the radiator cap off. Let it run with the cap off until you can see the coolant coming up to the top of the radiator neck. Put the cap back on and bleed the rest of the air from the t-stat bleeder.

EDIT: If you have a steep enough driveway, you wont have to raise the front.

[kking89]

I hope so. Do you have an idea of what the issue may be

[kking89]

I can't even remember. I imagine I need one. Coolant is a brown and gross

[Below Average Joe]

then you need to flush out the DEX and put in Green stuff.

[Jomamma]

I can't even remember. I imagine I need one. Coolant is a brown and gross

I only ask because sometimes when its filled back up its not "burped" properly.

Do you hear gurgling or a water like sound when you step on the gas occasionally?

[kking89]

I only ask because sometimes when its filled back up its not "burped" properly.

Do you hear gurgling or a water like sound when you step on the gas occasionally?

No but I can hear that after the car shuts off. It sounds like air bubbles popping.

[kking89]

Well it sounds how a liquid should sound when it has air pockets in it poping. Don't know how to type the sound effects haha

[Jomamma]

Flush it, fill it, burp it.

BOP IT!...lol

[Scottydoggs]

looking at the bottle is not how you say its full....ice cold, open the rad cap, if theres not coolant to the top fill it up.

your t stat could be stuck shut, so thats worth changing if filling it up and bleeding the air out dont fix you up.

[kking89]

looking at the bottle is 8not how you say its full....ice cold, open the rad cap, if theres not coolant to the top fill it up.

your t stat could be stuck shut, so thats worth changing if filling it up and bleeding the air out dont fix you up.

Well what are u thinking the problem exactly is?

[Scottydoggs]

fill the rad run it cap off till the fans come on, then bleed it. top off, cap it, see if the temp climbs. dont let it hit the red of course.

3 things could maybe be wrong, the water pump impeller is rusted to nothing...the t stat is stuck closed. or the rad is clogged up.

or its got a leak your not seeing.

t stat is 10 bucks, gasket 2 bucks. a gallon of new coolant is like 12 bucks. flush the coolant to clean clear water, then add some coolant system cleaner, like a prestone flush. follow the directions, then drain and add the new coolant.

the rad take the lower hose off the engine, then put your hand over the end of the hose, now fill the rad with a hose, then let the hose end go to let it drain as fast as it can, do that like 3 times, then you can put the cap on, take the upper hose off the rad,then put the garden hose in the lower hose pinch it what ever it takes to seal off the hose as if fills and pumps back up and out the upper rad hose hole. this is back flushing the rad.


how i flush coolant

remove the t stat, put the t stat housing back on, take the upper hose off the radiator, then push it down to the ground to a bucket or let it fly.


get your garden hose out, put it in the rad turn it on, then fire up the car, let it run till clear water pumps out the top hose.


then turn the hose off, run the car till no more water comes out the upper hose. then turn it off.


put your t stat back in, with new gasket, the upper hose back on.





now take 1 gallon of full strength green antifreeze, not the 50/50 crap. ( parts store cheap green is fine to use) dump the whole gallon in the radiator, fire up the car, fill the rad with hose water till its full. top as needed till its ready to be bled of air. it will burp and take coolant as the water in the block warms up the t stat opens up for a few seconds till cold coolant hits it and it shuts again.


now to bleed the air out, let it idle rad cap off till the fans turn on, (when the fans are on the temp is over 195 deg, the t stat is wide open) then open the bleeder screw on top the t stat housing a few turns till a steady stream of coolant comes out the hole, shut the screw, top off the rad. cap it.


done.

[Seachicken]

So your engine is over heating, and you have poor heat in cab.

Sound like a water flow problem.

Being that you have a fairly new rad im gong to assume its not clogged. Next replace thermostat. Don't bother checking it out, its too cheap and easy to replace.

Next take you accessory belt off and feel for play on the waterpump pully. You should feel NO play in it. If your water pump has gone bad its a good idea to take a look at your housing. In some cases the waterpump fins can chew a groove in it making it vary inefficient.

If your problem is just air in the system i would want to find out how it got in the system. You drove around for 10k miles without a problem since your last service. How did air get in the system.

Now in regards to dexcool. Sludge, yeah it can happen. At work when i take a engine apart that hasn't had oil changes and everything is varnished and sludged up nobody is b.itchin that the oil is crap. So why does everyone b.itch that dexcool is crap when sludge problems are generally caused by lack of maintence. Im not saying that dexcool is good for 5 years. But when ppl buy used cars its like they think all the maintence has been done. 98% of ppl have never put a ph test strip in coolant.

I have no problem with green coolant, i just don't think dexcool is as bad as ppl think.

When you say Poor heat in cab w/ engine overheating, sounds like WP

[pjones453]

If you have Dexcool and air in the system it will be gummed up.
I had same problem. Had to change thermostat and radiator cap.

[Seachicken]

^^ I have heard poor things about the rad cap reliability w/ our cars.