Garion's Head

[garion]

After talking with BEEK on the phone, he had me check the resistor under the dash. No difference..

This time around, I didn't have to top off the car at the T. Just stayed at the level I left it at last night. *whew*. It was getting old filling it up a cap full at a time.

Started the car up, and let it idle a while, while taking temp measurements. Idled up till the dash said 190... Took measurement at the head, between 2 and 3, near the temp sensor.. I tried to get the same point every time.. My head temp was anywhere between 225 and 245.. BUT... Afterwards, i noticed that if I took temps from the otherside of the car (Orignal temps were taken from the passenger side), the temps were different! Even though I took them at the same point.

Fan comes on as expected when the temp near the fan sensor hits 190.. Works like a champ.. Fan eventually shuts off, and the car stays at 190 according to the dash..

After 30 minutes of this, I go ahead and rev the engine to 2k rpms for about 30 seconds to add additional heat to the system.. Temp guage starts to creep up.. Fan comes on and stays on.. Temp levels out in the middle of 190 and 260. (est 220-230?)... Temp at the head says 240-260 from one side and 200-230 on the other..

Temps on the radiator at this point: at the upper inlet: 220.. As best as I could on the bottom inlet: 185.. With the fan running..

If I rev the engine, the temp will come down some, closer to 190 on the guage, but creep back up once I return to idle..

I'm starting to suspect the radiator may not be cooling enough... Once the car cools down, I'll drain and pull the radiator, and give it a good flush. Which I thought I did when I had it out before, but don't recall exactly.

[garion]

I think I may have found my cooling issue. This is *after* I flushed it a few times (removed the radiator and just shoved a hose into it, reverse flush, forward, reverse again..).. Its caked in there.. It wont simply wash away..

I'm willing to spend the next couple days attempting to clean it out, or should I just punt and get the new radiator?

[So Cal Mark]

a radiator shop will remove the tank and rod it out. That's the only way to get that beast to flow enough to cool

[garion]

FOund a radiator shop locally after a bunch of calls.. Dropping it off tomorrow..

[BEEK]

good deal

[baltobernie]

Your heater core is probably clogged, too.

Ask your radiator shop about the proper procedure for installing your clean radiator, so you don't put the crap now in your block and hoses back in.

[garion]

My radiator shop is apparently not really a radiator shop...

I went to it today, and it was a small office with a few desks, and a couple piles of boxed radiators.... (there was another door that could have lead to a warehouse).. Talked with them, they only sell new... Apparently, the owner has a few other businesses, one of which repairs radiators.. So... I ended up leaving it with them, and hopefully won't get scammed.. They did call to tell me it'll be ready tomorrow, or at the latest Thurs.. For the rodding, its $120... I suspect they are just taking it down the road somewhere and charging me extra to do it, but what the hell.. It'll be done.

As for cleaning the crud out of the engine, I was thinking about taking off the water pump, and just running water through the burp T... Thoughts?

[BEEK]

yes, that will help. carefully flush the heater core too. dont force 100% of the water from a garden hose thru it though, the pressure might cause problems, as a garden hose could have as much as 100psi where the cooling system can handle 30 psi or so

[garion]

ITS ALIVE!

Got my radiator back from Western Auto Cool (http://www.radiatorsaz.com/).. $120 + tax out the door. Better than spending $300 for a new one... Came back looking all fresh and clean..

So I flushed out the block/head/heater core as best I could.. I took off the water pump (I had an extra water pump gasket, so no big deal), then hooked up a washer fill/drain hose that I had laying around.. I then poured water down that as fast as I could, till it backed up, then I held it up high over my head to "flush" the water down... Gravity, its the law.. At no time did I hook the facet to the car, which I figure is safer.. This seemed to flush all sorts rust out of the system, both from the block and the heater core tube.. Repeated that until it ran clear... reinstalled the water pump..

Hooked up my fan to the radiator, the fan sensor, put it all in the car, hooked the hoses up, and started filling.. I actually filled from the lower radiator hose first, to about an inch or two from the top.. I figure this lessens the size of the air bubble...Hooked the lower hose back to the thermostat, then filled the rest of the radiator.. Then filled the block from the burp T, slowly...Took about ten minutes to fill it...Shake the car a little, fill a little more, till it starts coming out the radiator.. Close up the radiator, start the car, with the T open.. Let it run for a few minutes, top off.. Close up the T..

Ran the car at idle, let it come up to 190... It stays at 190 for a while, like 10 minutes, before the fan comes on...Fan come on, stays on for a few minutes, turns off.. I let this happen a couple times... Then for my test... I rev the engine to 2k rpm for 30 seconds, then return to idle.. In the past, this would add so much heat to the system that it would just build... Never leaves 190.. I think the needle may have touched the zero for a bit.. Fan comes on, eventually shuts off.. I do this a few times.. I think the car was running for an hour in the garage...

After this, i'm feeling pretty confident that everything is licked, so I go on my test drive..

Never leaves 190... At my turn around point, where it would start to rise, it just goes up the the zero in 190, and as I accelerate, it dropped back down to the nine...

I believe the problem is finally licked! Now onto some other (comparatively minor) issues... New thread time...

[BEEK]

awesome, glad its solved, now time to enjoy

[RRoller123]

It's great when a plan come together!

[baltobernie]

Glad it worked out. Maybe run it for a little while on plain water, then do a backflush with the T, drain the rad and block, then your new coolant and distilled water. You should be good for years afterward. What's next?

[nelsonj]

Great news. Glad to hear the head was not damaged by the heat. Make sure you turn the heater on for a while (to make sure the entire circuit is filled with coolant. Then check you radiator when the car is cold to see if you need to add any coolant now that the heater circuit is filled.

[garion]

Thanx. I've been running it with the heat on the entire time.

Went for another run tonight, no problems.. Checked the collant level, and alls good.. I might start trusting it some now

[nelsonj]

I have a really silly sounding suggestion but I mean it: Get a new radiator cap.

I may be the only person with such bad luck, but my radiator caps never seem to last more than about three years. They should last forever, but they don't. They start leaking when the system gets to temperature, they spray coolant all over the hood and engine compartment, and if you don't catch it, you will loose fluid and run hot, potentially even critically hot.

You have a new head and a refurbished radiator. If you haven't already, now would be a good time to order a new radiator cap (I think they are only about $10) to help protect your investment and hard work.