Re: Car cooked!!! HELP!!! long!!!

[T Berk <tberk@mindspring.com>]

Tobias M-G wrote:
> 
> Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!
> 
> Driving home from work, the car idles high in neutral, has been for a few
> days now, this afternoon it stayed at a constant 1400 RPM and wouldn't come
> down. I ignore this for the time being, thinking that it's probably the
> stupid battery like Shawn said, that it's draining/ed and the alternator has
> to compensate and the gauges are all a little wacky too because of it.

OK, so Idle goes up, stays up. 

> So there I am, stop and go traffic on the 880, 

Stop and go traffic.

> when the little warning light
> on the temp gauge goes on,   ... wait 45
> minutes, watch car cool down, watch coolant level disappear. An hour later I
> decide it's cool enough, about 1/4, to head to the gas station across the
> road to get coolant. 2 minutes ... one right turn, one left, one right, and
> the gauge is screaming to the top again.

Waited an hour, drove with cap on for two mins, HOT again. (No FAN at
this point?]

> 
> Pull into the station, turn off car, fan stays quiet ..hmmmmm. Get coolant
> .. takes 5 minutes. Come back, slowly pop lid off the coolant reservoir -
> this sh*ts under so much pressure every 1/4 turn sends the level shooting
> up. Finally get it open. Fan turns on??? HUH? 

Fan OFF, pop coolant lid, Fan comes ON. [OK, Fan works _sometimes_ anyway.]

> No key in the ignition, 

Fan runs without key, is independent of Ign. [Good thing too.]

> Fill the
> coolant back up, start the car, and observe idle, coolant level, temp gauge,
> noises etc for 15 minutes. Nothing happens, everything A-OK ...
> 
> I say, screw this, have to get home before it gets dark so I don't have to
> use the lights and strain the electrical system (if the battery is really
> the culprit). Drive 20 miles, and not a peep from the car - it's cooler out
> now yes, but nothing, NOTHING .. like I had some damn bad daydream or
> something. Get home, idle is a little high, about 1000-1200, but car stays
> cool until I park it and turn it off.

OK, you had the coolant spew out, let it cool down and topped it off
with fresh coolant. And it wasn't stop and go traffic any more, right?

> Still just a faulty
> battery or what? 

Don't _think_ so. Did you lay a meter on the battery posts? Have a
voltmeter installed?

> Woulnd't be the distributor .. na, no way. The cooling
> system is fairly new .. 4 months old.
> 
> 
> Oh yeah, what do I need to fix here?
> 
> Tobias
> - Unlike TBerk who hadn't touched a drop the last time I checked, I am
> grabbing a bottle with each hand now!!!
> 

Heh, heh. I _did_ get a wee nip to keep around the house, but it's still
half full/empty.

OK, here is my observations/stream of thought:


- Rad is only cooling marginally, decent enough when under way, no deep
heatsink action when stuck in traffic.
- Coolant system has/had air pockets trapped inside. Now purged due to
boil over, or not.
- Fan's Thermo switch is coated on it's backside, only comes on when the
housing around it gets hot enough due heat soak. [This is you enemy btw]
- I would think to: 

1. Purge and back flush (heater ON!) the coolant system.
2. Clean the inside of the rad, (Purple Magic? Simple Green?) & thermo switch.
3. Refill the block 1st via the upper rad hose, coolant 40/60 , 50/50 to
water. [Heater ON the whole time!]

The thermostat in the bottom of the elbow may not be opening. T, where
did you get the recent components? OEM stuff? How _much_ is new?

TBerk

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