help overheating

[etlsport]

I think that what he is talking about is when taking the pressure cap of the radiator bubbles come up in the overflow tank. That is probably a good thing. Means that the radiator is holding pressure.

[tom4bren]

I didn't get that. It sounded like the bubbles were in the rad.

Flushing the radiator probably won't help but considering the age of the VX, it's not a bad idea.

I'm trying to think of anything, other than a blown head gasket that would cause those bubbles. Since his oil is clean, I'm kinda leaning away from the head gasket.

If the lower hose is collapsing when the engine gets hot, that could be restricting the flow to the point that it overheats (boils) and the bubbles are actually trapped air in the system that are just working their way out. Of course, if the thermostat is staying closed then the lower hose could still be collapsing even if there is nothing wrong with it.

http://www.dummies.com/how-to/conten...Id-131604.html

Hey, it's a starting point.

[Ascinder]

Almost sounds like the mechanic failed to completely bleed out any remaining air when he did the thermostat. Your system may be trying to purge it. Do what Tom said and take it to a radiator shop(not the mechanic) and tell them the story.

[zadam123]

I took of the radiator cap While it still was hot The overflow tank started overflowing And some bubbles c.ame from the radiator 4 a second or 2. It doesn't look like any hoses collapsed. If it is the head gasket has anyone had it done and how much?

Is there any definite test to see if it's the head gasket,watter pump, thermostat, or even radiator. My mechanics guessing games are costing me a fortune

[tom4bren]

To test the head gasket, you can pick up a compression tester at your local auto parts store & check the compression on each cylender. That would be the first indicator but only if it's a major leak. You're better off taking it to a garage to get them to do it and to perform a bleed down test at the same time (not sure if the guage you pick up at auto parts will be adequate for that).

I'm still leaning towards the thermostat. It's not unheard of to get a bad one out of the box. If you do go that route, make sure they bleed the system like Ascinder mentioned. Does anyone know the procedure for that on our VX? Even though it's not easy on our beloved VXs, it is something you can do at home. That should save you a few $$$.

There is no test for the thermostat without removing it. Same for water pump. Radiator can be flushed & pressure tested.

I feel for you zadam. I replaced the thermostat twice on the Eclipse, the water pump & timing belt, 2 temp sensors ... all were fine. It appears that it's just a relay that's causing my problem. That's not your problem though since your fan is coming on (mine's not).

[zadam123]

the saga continues. drove my car to work today (45 min drive)without the ac on and no problems, gave it to the mechanic and he drove it around with the ac on and he said no problems and dont think head gasket is bad cause car runs strong, he said maby there was a bubble in the rad and now it good so i drove it home wiht ac on and after about 50 minutes it started heatin up again. now he thinks its the water pump cause there was a lot of corrosion in it when he fixed the housing..

sorry for all the qustions but if its the water pump wouldnt it leak and how can you test a water pump. im not paying for any more guesses.

thanks

adam

[tom4bren]

That's the problem. Usually when a water pump goes out, it starts leaking. But I've been told that it's not uncommon that the vanes erode eventually which just cuts down on it's ability to move the water. In that failure mode, it doesn't leak ... or make noise. Worst of all, the only way to tell if that's the problem is to remove it & inspect it. If you're going to go through all that trouble then you should replace it.

BTW, even though I've been told that it's not uncommon, I've NEVER known anyone that has experienced that problem.

[lasturbo]

Well the mechanic said it was the clutch fan even though it didn't spin freely 4 me when I spun it or seem loosening . He said it is not spinning fast enough when the temperature gets hot.I guess well wait and hope this is the problem. Total is 175

Maybe the fan clutch was the ultimate cause and the subsequent damage to the vehicle continually getting hot is something else like the head gasket now or t-stat etc. Aluminum does not like to get too hot and/or the next weakest point goes. Good luck on your diagnosis.

BTW-I put a Hayden fan clutch and it is quiet. When I posted my thread, the group who had Torqflos seemed to like them but the drawback was they were loud so I tried the Hayden and was happy.

[zadam123]

Just wondering if theres a warrantee on a water pump since i know they should be replaced at 100,000 miles which mine was and now only has 40,000 miles on it? should it go this fast?

[IndianaVX]

I feel your pain.....why you ask? Because I'm having a lot of the same thing happening to me.
Here is what I know and what I've done.
I have replaced my thermostat, and am right now in the process of doing a step by step on how to replace it, including pictures!!
It is a big job, but if taken slowly, and pay attention, its not too bad of a job. But vx still overheats in town driving with ac on, and even with the heater on
It takes a lot to get it to cool down.
Befor replacing the thermo, my theory was. While driving, the resevour was filling all the way up with. Coolant, and then blowing the coolant out the top of resivour
Which then left me low on coolant. However, even after thermo replacement, and even when the engine isn't overheating, when I stop and shut the engine off, I hear the resivour bubbles, and it fills up to the top.
I replaced my orange coolant because it looked extremly dirty, and even had little tar ball looking things in it. This tar ball residue also stained my resivour. So with this in mind, I wonder if the lines in my radiator are also covered in this tar all residue, which would constrict the flow thru the radiator.
My mechanic buddy told me that the orange coolant breaks down luke that, and gets all mucky. So now I'm running the green coolant.
But I'm still overheating.
I also replaced my radiator cap, which I suggest you do also. If the cap is bad, nothing else works proper
Still overheating, and by overheating, in my case, I can drive for hours withac on and. At highway speed and not overheat, or even get high. But if there is a stoplight I have to stop for, within a minute, I am getting hot. Then its windows down, heater on full blast,
And then even at highway speeds, it does not cool down where it should be. This is the point where I. Think I'm loosing coolant thru the resivour. Because I am always low on coolant when I check it after I get home.
Sorry if this is hard to follow. With this blackberry, its like I'm typing on a postage stamp! Lol
Hard to stay cohesive.....
Something else you need to check is that you don't have a ton of debris on the front side of the radiator. It wouldn't take too many butterflys plastered on the front side to restrict the flow of air over the fins.
But that is where my next step is, and that is to replace the radiator.
I may need to check the fan clutch again. I had the water pump replaced a couple of years ago (or it was SUPPOSED to be repaced, I ought the pump) with my timing belt debackle.
I don't really know anymore. I am watching this thread closely. OH, my oil is not milky.
That's about all I got right now, get a new radiator cap. Its cheap, and easy to do, and you will probably be repacing the one that came with the truck.
Hopefully my mini novel may shake something loose in someones head and we can get this problem fixed.
I will try and finishthe thermostat replacement how to soon, so you can do that. The shop here wanted 500 to replace mine!

[zadam123]

I was suppose to take my carto the mechanic today when the temperature was hot . only problem was today it did not overheat. Maby because it's colder in the morning i drove it for 1 hour with a c on and no problems. It was about 74 thismornin and when overheated temp was 94 outside.