2000 trans am - overheating
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2000 trans am - overheating Today, while sitting idling, the "check guages" light came on. I wasn't low on gas, so I looked at the other guages. The temp was in the red. As I drove, it dropped some, but everytime I stopped idling, it pegged up again. I stopped at a garage, and after the car cooled enough, he popped the cap. When he started the car back up, the anti-freeze started pouring out. He eventually added water. The guy recommended changing the radiator. The car only has 55,000 miles on it and has been well maintained. I decided to take it home and think it over. Interestingly, the temp didn't go way up on the way home. I tried letting it idle in the driveway when I got home. It started getting kind of high, but settled down and actually dropped a little. (the book says that if the coolant/water mixture is wrong, the temp won't read right. Is that so?)What running temp do you all see during the summer? (It's real hot here in Florida). My Camaro used to almost hit the red before the fans would kick on and cool it. This guy quoted me about $600 for the job (he also recommended changing the thermostat). Any input here would be greatly appreciated. (BTW, I'm a newbie. Hey to all of the TA lovers out there!).
TECH Veteran
Joined: Dec 2004
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From: Beaumont, TX
The stock thermostat is supposed to begin opening at 87°C (188°F) and be fully open at 97°C (206°F).
There's a variety of other possible causes of overheating, not sure right now what else to try telling you.
There's a variety of other possible causes of overheating, not sure right now what else to try telling you.
On The Tree
Joined: Feb 2005
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From: Mansfield,Texas
Make sure your radiator fan is working. The fan is there only to cool the radiator at low to idle speeds. Once you get going, the wind deflector underneath the front bumper moves enough air through the radiator to keep it cool.
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Originally Posted by iansane
Are the airdams a huge part of the system like thirdgens? I know if a thirdgen bird loses its airdam it'll overheat in a few minutes?
The sympoms you describe are pretty much what happens when you lose the airdam, temp @ idle is fine, but once you start driving it just keeps rising
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Thanks, fellow bird lovers! I had to bite the bullet and take it to the (gasp) dealer today. It was OK driving to work this morning (although a little hotter than normal, maybe 225). Just as I got to work, it pegged all at once (probably because the guy yesterday filled it with water). Water was coming out of the reservoir. I managed to drive it to the dealers (later in the day), still runnung about three quarters of the way up (225-235?). Pray for me!
Last edited by Johnnyger; Jun 8, 2005 at 10:16 PM.
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Originally Posted by 2K2WS6TA
IIRC the airdam is a big part of the cooling system, it sounds like this is your problem, crawl under the front and look for the airdam that's supposed to be there.
The sympoms you describe are pretty much what happens when you lose the airdam, temp @ idle is fine, but once you start driving it just keeps rising
The sympoms you describe are pretty much what happens when you lose the airdam, temp @ idle is fine, but once you start driving it just keeps rising
Well you might also have some sludged up dexcool in there,(assuming you run dexcool) so a flush and refill will hopefully fix the problem.
Did you manage to get a look at the inside of the radiator, and if you did, did you notice some brown sludge looking stuff (about the consistancy of wall paper paste) that would be dexcool gone bad
Happened in my Blazer @ about the same mileage as you had, a flush and refill and it was fine. So hopefully that'll be the case with your T/A
Did you manage to get a look at the inside of the radiator, and if you did, did you notice some brown sludge looking stuff (about the consistancy of wall paper paste) that would be dexcool gone bad
Happened in my Blazer @ about the same mileage as you had, a flush and refill and it was fine. So hopefully that'll be the case with your T/A
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Originally Posted by 2K2WS6TA
Well you might also have some sludged up dexcool in there,(assuming you run dexcool) so a flush and refill will hopefully fix the problem.
Did you manage to get a look at the inside of the radiator, and if you did, did you notice some brown sludge looking stuff (about the consistancy of wall paper paste) that would be dexcool gone bad
Happened in my Blazer @ about the same mileage as you had, a flush and refill and it was fine. So hopefully that'll be the case with your T/A
Did you manage to get a look at the inside of the radiator, and if you did, did you notice some brown sludge looking stuff (about the consistancy of wall paper paste) that would be dexcool gone bad
Happened in my Blazer @ about the same mileage as you had, a flush and refill and it was fine. So hopefully that'll be the case with your T/A
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And the winning answer is..... Thermostat! Some of you guys guessed it. They replaced the thermostat. I also have a small leak in the water-pump, but I need to hold off on fixing that for a short spell for financial reasons. Thanks for your help on this, glad I didn't let that other guy take out the radiator! 
