overheating still after new thermostat and water-pump install
 

I don't know what else to do. Anyone in JAX willing to help me try and figure this out? My 2001 trans am started to overheat yesterday then the needle buried itself in red. I replaced the thermostat first and that didn't help. Had warrenty still left on the waterpump I replaced about 9 months ago so I picked up a new waterpump, replaced it and that still didn't help! All my hoses are good and my coolant level is normal for hot and cold. I did notice when it was running hot I would turn the heat on and it would blow cold if that means anything? Any help is greatly appreciated as this is my only transportation at the moment.

on first start up turn a/c on see if fans are on.could be air invaded.run car till starts to get hot turn off let sit for a while open cap fill coolant put cap on do it again.leaving heat on high while doing this .cheack for heat when hot my have to do this few times.

I'm willing to try anything. Gonna go do that now..

Are your fans coming on?

I'd guess fan relay or relays. Happened to me once...

Derek

Are you sure the water system is pressurized? And is the thermostat opening up? Also i would do what the other say, check fans. And if the fans are off check fuses, plugs, wiring, grounds etc.

Yes, my fans work and turn on when supposed to. I'm a little lost on 'is the water system pressurized'.. please explain. I've been messing with it all morning and still no luck. MORE HELP PLEASE!!!

You need to chill. So you put a new T stat and a new water pump. If your car went into the red did it boil over? If not your temp sensor has probally gone fubar. If you have allready checked that you need to make sure you are getting all the air out of the system.

and check your radiator also...

Haven't checked the temp sensor. Any info on this? Where is it located?

Have your radiator cap pressure tested.

It is on the driver side head by the spark plug/header it has two wires (it went out on my car when it overheated) If you need a hand on the car let me know, I can come by and look at it sat/sun if you want the help. Just PM me your number.

i just went through a similar ordeal with mine. check your heater hoses. sounds like you had one collapse. I had one collapse then the pressue popped a hole it it. so I though, "oh, I'l just bypass it like the old school sbc". can't do this on the ls1. it uses the water traveling through the heater hoses and core as a bypass for the waterpump to keep the water circulating in the engine. since you said the heater is not blowing hot, I can almost garauntee this is your problem. now, you ready for the bad news? replacing your heater hoses is a MAJOR pain in the ass. they decided it would be a good idea to run them through a section of metal line along the fenderwell, attatch them together with a bracket, and bolt them to the inside of the frame rail. this wouldn't be so bad except they give you about 1-1/2" between the strut tower and the head/manifold to reach through and perform all of this. my hose, like most, failed between the water pump and the metal line, since it is the most exposed and closest to the pump and heat. what you can do is feel the hoses and see if they feel soft or squishy. they should be firm, yet plyable. if it is really soft, then it is your problem. if you confirm that this is your problem, and which hose it is, here's the shortcut i took. bear in mind it was my UPPER hose that went bad(which is probably your case also) so it was a little easier to get to:

get 2' of 3/4" heater hose from discount, or 5/8" if it's the lower hose. or you can do both to be safe. and hose clamps accordingly

remove both heater hoses from the water pump

use a 90* fender well ratchet ( $2 at harbor freight, comes with bits even) and a torx bit

wedged my hand down to reach the bolt. you can only do this with the engine cold. unless of course, you like skin grafts

then the tedious part, take the bolt out (about 1/16th turn at a time)

once you have the bolt out the lines will pull up where you can reach the ends. these lines are crimped like a/c lines. but don't let that discourage you

use a hacksaw (or CAREFULLY a cutoff wheel) and split the outer "band" crimping the line on. now you will see it is just slid over a barb. pull the hose off and put the new one in its place, and put a hose clamp on.

then put the metal lines back down into place (your choice to put that stupid bolt back in or not. I didn't) and route the hoses so they do not kink. cutoff any excess and reattatch to the water pump


I hope this helps you. I wish someone would have told me this before I spent about a week replacing/checking other things that weren't wrong and did no good. if you need anything explained further let me know

1badSS thanks for the info man. Id really appreciate it if you could swing thru and help me mess with it. Ill PM you my number here in just a few. Txt me when you get it.

Also some good info.

@badhombre thanks a lot man! I would of never thought of this on my own. I'm gonna go check them now. Its the 2 hoses on the passenger side of the pump correct?

yep. they come off right next to the thermostat housing

I'm also going to add that I had this same problem after installing my new water pump as well. the higher flow/pressure of the new pump on the aged and broken down hose often ruptures the inner lining and causes pressure to build between the outer and inner lining, and pinches off the flow. mine just happened to be weak enough in one place to rupture on the outside where I could visually see, but I could feel the whole section of hose was very soft and the inner lining was loose and would move seperately from the outer

Well I don't see any visible cracks but the hoses do feel very soft and squishy.

Before sleep bump..

if they feel soft and squishy, I can almost garauntee that is your problem. refer to my how to above ;)