Coolant issues, pls help
Thread Starter
Teching In
Joined: Oct 2011
Posts: 35
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From: Ft Rucker, Alabama
Coolant issues, pls help Not really any noises, just stuck on this issue.
1995 Trans AM
Recently i planned to flush my coolant and replace: radiator, heater core and lastly the T-stat.. Due to the brown mud found when taking off the radiator cap, and the car constanly overheating. After draining fluid from the radiator (very borwn) I thought all was good to continue with replacements, until i moved to the T-stat. Which was not installed (wtf), and the port where it fits was bone dry after running the car for about 30 min.
This then led me too think my water pump is bad. I then proceded to disconnect the lower hoses (2ea) where i found the fluid to be perfectly clean.
Does this mean that my pump has failed and needs to be replaced?
Thanks
1995 Trans AM
Recently i planned to flush my coolant and replace: radiator, heater core and lastly the T-stat.. Due to the brown mud found when taking off the radiator cap, and the car constanly overheating. After draining fluid from the radiator (very borwn) I thought all was good to continue with replacements, until i moved to the T-stat. Which was not installed (wtf), and the port where it fits was bone dry after running the car for about 30 min.
This then led me too think my water pump is bad. I then proceded to disconnect the lower hoses (2ea) where i found the fluid to be perfectly clean.
Does this mean that my pump has failed and needs to be replaced?
Thanks
The brown stuff was probably oxidized coolant. Time for a flush.
Once you get a proper thermostat and coolant in there, you can see what's up with the overheating. That could be caused by all sorts of things:
- Broken water pump
- Bad water pump seals pumping air in to the system
- Bad radiator fan
- Dead rodents all over the radiator
- etc.
Once you get a proper thermostat and coolant in there, you can see what's up with the overheating. That could be caused by all sorts of things:
- Broken water pump
- Bad water pump seals pumping air in to the system
- Bad radiator fan
- Dead rodents all over the radiator
- etc.
You may have been over heating from a lack of coolant/ air in the system and it not flowing properly. As said flush and put a tstat in there and see where you're at.
How long have you had the car and realized there's no tstat?
How long have you had the car and realized there's no tstat?
Not really any noises, just stuck on this issue.
1995 Trans AM
Recently i planned to flush my coolant and replace: radiator, heater core and lastly the T-stat.. Due to the brown mud found when taking off the radiator cap, and the car constanly overheating. After draining fluid from the radiator (very borwn) I thought all was good to continue with replacements, until i moved to the T-stat. Which was not installed (wtf), and the port where it fits was bone dry after running the car for about 30 min.
This then led me too think my water pump is bad. I then proceded to disconnect the lower hoses (2ea) where i found the fluid to be perfectly clean.
Does this mean that my pump has failed and needs to be replaced?
Thanks
1995 Trans AM
Recently i planned to flush my coolant and replace: radiator, heater core and lastly the T-stat.. Due to the brown mud found when taking off the radiator cap, and the car constanly overheating. After draining fluid from the radiator (very borwn) I thought all was good to continue with replacements, until i moved to the T-stat. Which was not installed (wtf), and the port where it fits was bone dry after running the car for about 30 min.
This then led me too think my water pump is bad. I then proceded to disconnect the lower hoses (2ea) where i found the fluid to be perfectly clean.
Does this mean that my pump has failed and needs to be replaced?
Thanks
If there's no t-stat you can't have an air bubble "stuck" in there causing the overheat like people do when a t-stat is in there, the coolant would flow as soon as you started the engine, unrestricted. But it sounds like you have a void in the system, or a large air pocket. It gets to a certain point and then it can't pump the water efficiently anymore and you overheat pretty fast.
Also....water pumps NEVER stop moving coolant....they just spring leaks in the seal and drip coolant. (unless your 1 in a million with a sheared shaft))
I would flush it properly....with a good degreaser, for a very long time. Its not easy getting the block fully clean.
You probably have a very tiny, slow leak......over time the coolant is pissing out after you shut the engine down. Then that void in the cooling system gets bigger and bigger over time, then one day you over heat because the water pump is spinning in that void and not moving coolant efficiently. Top off the coolant, put the front end up on ramps, get it up to operating temp, turn the engine off and look for leaks underneath....keep checking for 30 minutes. Actually, get under there and look right after you shut it off, then wait 15-20, then come back and look again.
.
Last edited by LS6427; Mar 30, 2012 at 11:20 AM.
Thread Starter
Teching In
Joined: Oct 2011
Posts: 35
Likes: 0
From: Ft Rucker, Alabama
