Car likes to overheat

[TGP37]

No, I have full heat which is odd based on how bent the hose is. It gets blistering hot-blow dryer hot at full temp. I have ordered a new one for the spot. I am hoping that may curb the overheating issue. I am having the mechanic check the radiator too, I tried checking the fans, but they didn't turn on. So he is going to look at those too.

Hmmm, with such a kink AND blistering hot heater......? Maybe you have a plugged up tstat and a nice large air pocket in the coolant chamber, resulting in high pressure steam pockets which can further hinder flow.

Did you say you had your head gaskets replaced? Did the shop replace the thermostat? Sometimes they get beat on when head gaskets fail, from the exhaust gases escaping the leak into the coolant.


This is my advise, since the issue seems hard to pin point the cause but the symptoms are clear.......

Flush your coolant system, replace your thermostat and replace any hoses that are kinked or looking too old/ragged. Inspect your water pump (especially just under it).

I am thinking your tstat might be completely trashed, preventing very little to no flow. As for heating more so at idle, the water pumps strength is variable in proportion to the RPM's. Naturally at idle the water pump may not have enough umph to flow enough coolant. Fans on or not, that will over heat the engine.

You need to remove the tstat to properly back-flush the system anyways. Which I recommend after a head gasket leak spitting junk into the coolant system. You also need to cut one of the hoses leading to the heater to add the back flush port, so it's a win-win there since one line is kinked anyways.


Pocket, I think CTS unplug should do it. But in case, I did post a schematic for the fans relay, he could jump them to see if they are good.

Flow changes, even more reason for me to consider using the port above cyl 6 for the CTS. Currently plugged, it just seems better to place a sensor for heat high up as heat rises and steam pockets would register high temps long before the stock position would. But then it might be wiser to just have them as gauged temp sensor or use a trip light for over temps and leave the CTS stock position.

[pocket-rocket]

I would like to note, when I change a thermostat I like to drill a small hole (about 1/8" or so) hole towards the outside edge and orientate it up to help bleed air pockets. Also if you decide to change your water pump, don't get the reman with the stamped steel impeller, get the new one with the cast impeller. The steel impeller pump does not flow as much as the cast unit.

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[PerfectCreature]

My car does not have a radiator where you can fill up in the radiator last I knew. I could be wrong.
I have always done this when adding coolant.
Fill coolant in reservoir. Run 2-5 minutes. Bleed out air. Run 2-5 more minutes. Bleed out air. Shut off, bleed out air. Then run and repeat after a full day of driving.

As for the T-Stat it is brand new, so it should not be failing.

[TGP37]

My car does not have a radiator where you can fill up in the radiator last I knew. I could be wrong.
I have always done this when adding coolant.
Fill coolant in reservoir. Run 2-5 minutes. Bleed out air. Run 2-5 more minutes. Bleed out air. Shut off, bleed out air. Then run and repeat after a full day of driving.

As for the T-Stat it is brand new, so it should not be failing.

Well, new items can fail if a problem exists. i.e.- New head gaskets can fail prematurely w/ a one time over temp in the red.

If you have a lack of coolant issue, that might destroy the tstat, blasting scolding hot air way above desired temps. But first look into bleeding air out.


Try bleeding the system with the reserve full and the engine (COLD) but running. Keep bleeder open until it flows coolant. You can use a shop towel wrapped around the bleed area to catch coolant. I haven't worked on a cooling system w/o a rad cap but sure as shit the basics are the same. Gotta get the air out and that requires the use of bleeders.

I'm sure a little air is no problem, it gets carried away in the coolant flow and ejected into the over flow tank eventually. But a large amount of air can cause problems. i.e.- the presence of gas allows the coolant to expand which prevents the boiling point raising, allowing the coolant to boil off and make steam. The steam will not cool for crap like liquid coolant (obviously, lol).

I'm pretty sure you have at least one bleeder for air pockets in the coolant system.


Do you have a manual for this vehicle?

Did you test the fans on/off yet via jumping the relays? All that is doing is closing the circuit as if the PCM commands them on.....perfectly safe as long as the wire isn't really thin so it can handle the brief current.

[kookers]

If your fan isn't coming on with the Air Conditioner that is definitely a problem.

Probably THE problem:

Check that fan motor works, relay, or fuse... easy to check these.
If not that, then could be something with the ECM but probably not as likely.

[TGP37]

I know in my car the PCM is powered through the same fuse the fans are on. If that fuse goes the car won't run at all. (I wonder if it was designed that way as a safety feature)

After that it's probably a bad relay or broken wire/bad ground....or the fan is not plugged in.

Both fans are on different fused circuits so both should not fail together, ideally. I posted the diagrams, you got to test the fans before anyone can further help diagnose. This is where having a multimeter helps a lot. You can get cheap ones at radio shack if you need a simple one.