First thing you should do is get a pressure test...Codell mentioned it a couple times, you could just have a tiny leak that only gets big when you are driving under load. If you are blowing clouds of white smoke out the back trouble...
OK well I got to my mechanic right as they were closing so he couldnt look at it. I told him the situation, new thermostat and all, blah, blah. Without even seeing it he said there are 4 things to the cooling system, the Radiator, thermostat, Water pump, and uh...something else. Damn, I forgot. ANYHOW, since it is an overheating problem it aint the thermostat (I just changed it), so we'll check the other 3 things tomorrow. then go from there. thanks for your help and I will update tomorrow after its been looked at. Now stop saying its a warped piston!
If you just changed the thermostat, it's possible that the replacement is bad or you installed it incorrectly. Have to keep all the possibilities in your head until they are eliminated.
4th component he is probably talking about is probably the cooling fan. Since you have a truck, you probably have a belt driven fan. So its highly unlikely a problem with that. My money is on your radiator. I don't think you have to worry about warped pistons. However, you don't want to drive a vehicle with a cooling problem. If the engine overheats long enough, the oil will burn up and you could seize your main bearings and/or rod bearings. And that would be quite an expensive problem.
Back in 96 I was driving from Seattle to Houston, and the car started to overheat in Oregon. I made it to a small town outside of Nevada, and had the head changed, and the radiator flushed. I took it down to Death Valley at midnight to test it out, and it overheated every thirty seconds. I ended up getting a new radiator, and that solved the problem. If nothing else works, it is probably the radiator.
Here's what I did to the Mustang when i was having cooling problems after 130K miles: New fan clutch from AutoZone. New fan from AutoZone. New 3-core radiator from AutoZone. New thermostat (for good measure) from AutoZone. Around $208 (the $8 was for the Shiner) and an afternoon and I was rollin' again, and I haven't had a problem with cooling since. Besides, the car needed a tune-up anyway.
I'm running a Black Magic Electic fan and a 3 row radiator. I changed my water pump while I was at and my wp bearings love me now! I'm also using "water wetter" Are you running the 192, 180, or 160 stat?
Lynus, I can get you a C&L MAF for stock injectors for $90.00 plus shipping. Are you interested. I might be able to get you some 3.73's for $100.00 plus shipping. let me know soon.
I sent you an email, FT. I'm running the 180* thermostat, btw. I'll get an electric fan one of these days, but I've got to upgrade my alternator first.
So weak.... I would suggest that your pour beer into the gas tank and charge the car with 1.21 Jiggawatts.... btw - good luck mr_oily, you could just ride your bike everywhere?
I printed this out and used it as my instructions. 3g upgrade The actual alt upgrade took me about 30 minutes. Oh, and I got the alternator at a junkyard for $40.00 over 6 months ago...no problems yet.
So when I changed my thermostat I also emptied the radiator...by accident! (pullled off the wrong hose, cuz I couldnt find the thermostat at first hehe...) I then replaced the thermostat and filled up the radiator with half green stuff and half water, then was on my way. As you know it seemed fine but got really hot after only about 10 miles of driving. Not water spewing hot, just hot as hell on the guage. When I would stop or get home and pop the hood, I could hear it bubbling and boiling in there! Well, this morning I thought, I had better see if it'll take any more coolant, just so I can get to and from work safely. It took almost a third of the coolant bottle and a little more amount of water! Today I drove out passed the beltway and through memorial and back to the Heights. Then after work, I kept driving on Loop610 and through the North Side with my A/C on medium high for over an hour non-stop. My temp gauge stayed right in the middle the entire time! It was going all the way to almost the edge of the red zone before. SO I'm assuming... I DIDNT FILL MY RADIATOR ENOUGH IN THE FIRST PLACE!!!!! No, I didnt run my engine while I filled it up at first, no I didn't. But now I know. Has this happened to you?! Thanks for all your help and any more suggestions on what to look out for in case it wasnt the coolant level (but I think it was) would be greatly appreciated! I guess its time to learn a little more about an engine than changing the oil!
Mr. Oily, Glad to hear about your inexpensive fix. That is a good tip to remember. It is very hard to put too much coolant/water in your radiator. If you do, then all it does is go into your overflow jar.
It started heating up again 2 days ago. I took it in for a compression test (I thinks its called that) and.. I've got a freakin blown head!!!!!!!! How?>!?!?! It was rebuilt in October?!?!?!?!? Oppersal Kendal on Yale is gonna have a visit from me today. They rebuilt it. Its till under warranty so they better not give me any ****! I'm so freakin pissed! Oppersal Kendal jacked me around for almost TWO MONTHS. I was without my vehicle and it was always next, week, next week, next week, it'll be ready. I'll bet you money they screw me over. I got a bad feeling about this and them. If so, think I'll just fill up my truck with anti-freeze, drive it to a dealship and trade it in for a new truck or car with 0.0% financing (lots of that going around, huh?) thanks to bobrek, zzhiggins, woofer and codell who suggested it was indeed the head and/or head gasket. You got it right on the money.
I am very familiar with Oppersal Kendal on Yale. Never really had a problem with them. If you want, email me through the BBS and I can lend you some assistance. My company handles disputes just like this. In fact, last year, we represented the Texas Attorney General's office in a lawsuit they filed against a local mechanic who scamed a ton of people that had flood damage from TS Allison. Your right in that your repairs should be under warranty. Also, if they give you crap, check out Troubleshooter.com. This is a consumer advocate radio show that is on 740am in the afternoons. They can assist in you and if they don't get results from the shop, they will put out the bad word for him on the radio in Houston.
thanks very, very much codell. I'm only expecting the worse cuz it took so long the first time but I'll wait and see what they say and be in touch.
Also, it depends on specifically what they did to your engine. If they rebuilt it, then it should have all new gaskets (including heads). If they replaced it, you need to find out if it was a new engine or a used engine. How much did they charge you? If you want, I can email you my fax and I would be more than happy to take a look at the invoice they gave you.
I've got all the paperwork at home. Basically it was a different short block in better condition than my previous block, pistons were cooked back into shape due to them being warped, uhmmmm a whole bunch more I dont remember cuz it was truely a mess. Cost $3500, half of which was labor I'll email you from here and give you my home email, then we'll take it from there. I'm going to see them straight from the other garage and will email you back tonight with the verdict. They'll probably want to keep the truck for the weekend or a few days as its Friday so we'll see. Well, I did want to ride my bike more this spring so there I go! p.s. your email is disabled here I am mr0ily@houston.rr.com
If they have you a short block (which is just the lower engine (no heads), then they should have DEFINITELY put on a new head gasket. Now, keep in mind something: If your radiator or water pump went bad, then they could get out of it (because they worked on the engine and not the cooling system). You are gonna have to prove that their workmanship caused your engine to blow a gasket. In reality, they might not have done anything wrong. A bad cooling system can blow a head gasket on a brand new engine. The shop is saying you have a blown head gasket. Can they tell you what caused it? (i.e. head gaskets don't blow by themselves, something else causes it) My email is cstilwellada@swbell.net. Let me know what happens.
