thanks for looking,
ive had a huge problem with my cooling system since ive bought my car, first it was the water pump, i changed that and the thermostat since i was already working in the area. now my car has a milky looking substance in the coolant, and im over heating again... i went to Autozone and had the codes ran, and came back with a ect sensor and i changed that... still over heating...
i have no pressure in my radiator when its hot and i take off the cap...
any ideas on what i should try next??
or any input at all would be greatly appreciated..

 

Blown head gasket.? Going by the 'milky substance in your coolant'

 

Does it have a power steering cooler?

 

did you get all the air out of the system?

 

All good posts before mine, but from what you say you're not building any pressure in the cooling system. I'd have to go with a head gasket also...

 

im not 100% on the power steering cooler... i was going to replace the radiator on monday, and what are the other tell tell signs of a blown head gasket??
and my power steering coolant keeps getting low...

 

its an 02 z28... it has a weird pipe looking thing in route from the water pump to the radiator on the drivers side?? not sure what it is

 

pics????

 

i got work in about 45 min... but ill post some tomorrow after noon if my break is long enough...

 

replace the radiator cap, and make sure the hose to overflow tank is good and clean. no pressure means the coolant will boil at 212F or slightly above, which is normal operating temp. Your radiator fans don't kick on till 226F.
you need a working cap that will hold pressure to at least 12-14 psi, I think the oem cap is 18psi, a replacement cap should be 15, 16, or 18 psi which is fine.
The other problem with a bad cap not holding pressure is coolant will belch into the overflow tank but not get sucked back when the system cools. The radiator cap is dual purpose, holds pressure but also allows coolant to flow back to the radiator from the overflow tank under vacuum when system cools. With a bad cap or a non functioning overflow tank you'll have air in the system which is bad and can be a cause of overheat.

not saying this is your whole problem, the milky substance in the coolant is not a good sign.
What you may try doing is pressurizing the cooling system and see if it holds pressure, that can help diagnose a bad head gasket or power steering cooler, you'll need an adapter to take the place of the radiator cap and around 15psi of air pressure.

 

i replaced the radiator cap when i did the water pump/ thermostat... maybe a new one wouldnt hurt, and a new over flow tank.. hell my goal by the end of next week is to replace everything: hoses and all

 

A blown head gasket will over-pressurize the system, not lower the pressure. New radiator caps have been known to be duds. Try a new one, they're $3.50 for a Stant cap.

If your power steering fluid is low all the time, you probably have a factory power steering cooler leaking fluid into the coolant system when its cold. Look at the picture below....do you have that metal pipe in your upper rubber radiator hose. If you do....you must NOT replace it, you MUST remove it. Replace it with a complete upper radiator hose. Then add an aftermarket cooler. There's a thread in this section that has all the info you need.

Factory coolers are one of the worst designs GM has ever come up with.

.

 

Oh, no reason to replace the over flow tank, it has nothing to do with cooling or heating or leaking. Its just an overflow tank. Just make sure yours is clean. Fill it a few times with Formula 88, let it soak each time for like 30 minutes and that'll get it clean.

No reason to replace the radiator either, unless its leaking. Just flush the hell out of the cooling system with a gallon of Formula 88 also. Itll clean that thing out like new.

But if you do....DO NOT get an LS1 radiator, get an LT1 radiator. Installs 100% the same, you just need to cap off an extra port. It cools better than the LS1 does.
Look at the pic below, you see how I capped that port off and you see my aftermarket power steering fluid cooler.
I used a plastic valve on my extra port so I can use it as a great coolant fluid drain when I do a flush. The factory petcock drain is terribly slow.

If you did have a PS fluid leak....you will need to do a serious flush....not just a normal flush. That **** stays in the block and swirls around and does not flow through the entire system.....it takes allot to get it all out.

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ok so ive read the PS cooler thread... and im getting some info on where to get parts for it, so thats my next project... but my car is still overheating like crazy... i dont know what to do... im going to flush the **** out of it here in the next hour... then see what happens...
and if i do go with a LT1 radiator... what year should i go with, or does it not really matter??
i love my car but im 1 step away from blowing it up lol... (not really) lol

 

I have a 1998 LS1 T/A WS6......I ordered a 1997 LT1 radiator. When it comes in just make sure all the connections and ports are there for the LS1 hook-ups and it should also have that extra port on the back, drivers side corner. While you're at the auto parts store, go get a 6 inch long piece of heater hose, two clamps, and a plastic valve or plastic plug that will fit snug into the end of that heater hose to use as your flush valve, and clamp it on.

But you're still overheating...........take the t-stat out and go for a highway drive, see if you overheat. If you run fine, you need a new t-stat.


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how can i take my thermostat off and drive... its one big piece... with a outlet for the hose...
http://www.hawksthirdgenparts.com/br...C-K-Truck.HTML
thats what it looks like...

 

the thermo does come out of the 1 piece LS1 housing.....push down and turn.........waa laaa

 

awesome... thank you so much, ill try this later tonight

 

Push it in/downward and turn it, the little tabs will come out from those two wings. Then just bolt the housing back up.

edit: sj beat me to it.......

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ok, so i put a new cap on, its holding pressure now, over heats after a little longer... i dont have time to do the thermo today, but after school tomorrow ill do it... thanks again fellas...