Temperature Rising

[firehawk]

Alright heres my question. I just got my motor and everything assembled. The other day I was driving my car and I was watching all of my guages and everything seemed fine. Well i start going up a hill and my water temp increases drastically (yeah im using the stock guage) so the needle gets inbetween the middle of the guage and the warning line. I pull over, shut the car off and the coolant is boiling in the overflow bottle. So i stand there, let it cool down, check the coolant level it was pretty low. Put some coolant in it, drive it home. Everything seemed ok on the way home (i didnt have to go up a hill to get home)

I pulled my thermostat and put it in boiling water. It takes atleast 30-45 seconds for it to completley open. I dont know if that is normal or not so that is question #1. Im buying a new t-stat today as it is very inexpensive and its worth a shot.

Anyone have any other suggestions as to what the problem is? I understand it could be headgasket but there really isnt a whole lot of white smoke coming from the exhaust. Also i drained the coolant into a bucket yesterday and there doesnt seem o be any oil in my coolant. It surely looks dirty but I dont see any separation of water and oil.

Any ideas?

 

[diablos991]

How old is your radiator cap?

I just did the good old cap and Thermostat replace and solved my overheating issue.

Another cheap item that could possibly fix it.

 

[firehawk]

brand spanking new...EVERYTHING in the car is like brand spanking new

 

[blackGSX2g]

If the new thermostat/new radiator cap didn't solve your problems, get a hydrocarbon testor from Autozone/Advance Auto and test your coolant. When I first rebuilt my motor with the stock composite gasket, it blew right into a coolant passage. I had perfect compression across the board, didn't burn anything, and no mixed fluids but the hydrocarbon test revealed exhaust getting into the cooling system.

 

[elementalwindx]

If the new thermostat/new radiator cap didn't solve your problems, get a hydrocarbon testor from Autozone/Advance Auto and test your coolant. When I first rebuilt my motor with the stock composite gasket, it blew right into a coolant passage. I had perfect compression across the board, didn't burn anything, and no mixed fluids but the hydrocarbon test revealed exhaust getting into the cooling system.

I like those. ALSO get a coolant leak tester, those things will find leaks ANYWHERE! You said you were missing some coolant.


Also good rule of thumb, when just refilling the entire system with coolant/water. Fill it up with the car running til it starts to over flow, then fill the over flow container. Put the caps back on, drive the car for 5 minutes, pull over and check the overflow because it will be missing water, fill it back up, and repeat a few times. Otherwise if your overflow runs dry, it can build up pressure in the system and cause it to over heat. At least that was my experience with my 2g.

 

[firehawk]

I like those. ALSO get a coolant leak tester, those things will find leaks ANYWHERE! You said you were missing some coolant.


Also good rule of thumb, when just refilling the entire system with coolant/water. Fill it up with the car running til it starts to over flow, then fill the over flow container. Put the caps back on, drive the car for 5 minutes, pull over and check the overflow because it will be missing water, fill it back up, and repeat a few times. Otherwise if your overflow runs dry, it can build up pressure in the system and cause it to over heat. At least that was my experience with my 2g.

what does that mean if the hydrocarbon testor shows that carbons are coming in?

 

[blackGSX2g]

what does that mean if the hydrocarbon testor shows that carbons are coming in?

That means that combustion chamber gasses are entering your cooling system; most likely through the head gasket.

 

[firehawk]

heres a question. My friend seems to think it could be a timing issue. Could that be the case? I took the spark plugs out and they are not brown like I was told they would be if I had a blown headgasket.

 

[essentialDSM]

elementalwindx:

Does that mean that the overflow tank is not pressurized? If I remove the cover of the overflow, wouldn't the cooling system lose its pressure? Or, does the thermostat housing have a valve of some type to "overflow" without losing pressure?

I ask because I think this may be what I'm doing wrong in my situation...different topic, different thread

 

[blackGSX2g]

elementalwindx:

Does that mean that the overflow tank is not pressurized? If I remove the cover of the overflow, wouldn't the cooling system lose its pressure? Or, does the thermostat housing have a valve of some type to "overflow" without losing pressure?

I ask because I think this may be what I'm doing wrong in my situation...different topic, different thread

The overflow bottle is not pressurized. The radiator cap maintains pressure within the cooling system, and will also allow for coolant to get out and back in again when everything cools down..

 

[GTM]

heres a question. My friend seems to think it could be a timing issue. Could that be the case? I took the spark plugs out and they are not brown like I was told they would be if I had a blown headgasket.

You need to be careful with taking advice from well meaning friends.

Yes, too much advance on the timing can cause overheat. If the plug fires too early on the way up it wants to try and force it back down all the while it's still building compression. The knock sensor may try to compensate but it can only do so much. Too much advance makes for hard starting for the reason above, however, unless it wasn't set correctly or tightened down no reason to think it changed. Check timing but probably not the cause..

Are you certain you had a good fill and the heater was operating correctly? This is one of the more common mistakes, not purging the air from the heater circuit and thinking it's full. The heater must blow hot when engine is at operating temp, should not blow cold when stopping or pulling away from traffic light. Best to fill and run engine with cap off while bleeding the heater. One heater hose will be hot and the other cooler if fan is on high.

Early stages of a leaking head gasket do not have to have any effect on spark plugs. Recheck head torque especially if positive results on a blockcheck (common misnomer) with the HC tool, this can be a fluid or an electronic sniffer. I prefer the fluid tester but I'm an old fart.

Keep us advised

Cheers,
GTM