Engine Help!!! Cooling Malfunction

[mredwards0421]

I am having a very odd problem with my cooling system. I had an issue a while back after I did some maintenance (Changed oil) and ended up braking my radiator cap(it still fit so i put it back on). I drove home that night and noticed that the car was running much hotter than usual while stopped but cooled a little when I was driving. Once I got home I heard a noise from the engine bay, after inspection I could hear the radiator fluid boiling in the overflow tank. The pressure built so high that the plastic top popped off of the overflow tank and steam bellowed out of it. I never figured out what the issue was.........

Fast forward to today, I replaced the radiator, and thermostat and refilled the radiator with water wetter and water then started it up. I left the radiator cap off to try and get out all of the air bubbles, as the car ran the fluid began filling up the overflow tank then flowing out of the radiator top. After a few minutes of that it began to steam then started spewing fluid out of the radiator top.

I'd like to add that before I changed the oil and broke the radiator cap I had no heating issues that I was aware of.
My next guess would be a bad water pump. Someone help!!! This thing is driving me insane.

 

[mikestang63]

If I recall, your motor has a supercharger on it? Time to go to Autozone and rent both a coolant system pressure checker and coolant exhaust gas test kit.

Pray to the car gods the test fluid doesn't turn green.

 

[mredwards0421]

Yes it has a Novi 2000, ok i will do that tomorrow. Do they come with instructions on how to use them? What does green mean?

 

[jka]

Did you turn your heater on high when you filled up the radiator? and did you replace/tighten the cap before the coolant got warm? This one is stupid..but did you ever replace the cap with a new cap?

 

[mredwards0421]

Last owner removed heater, no i left the cap off so i could burp the system. I did get a new cap, but nvr got to put it on because it nvr heated up to normal temp before the fluid spewed everywhere.

 

[jka]

Just add coolant again until the radiator is full with the engine cool and crank it and before it gets warm .. replace/tighten cap and let it warm up. Then keep an eye on the coolant gauge and overflow tank and if everything is good with that ..let it cool ..then check the level in the radiator/overflow bottle again and add more if you need it. You shouldn't need as much coolant since you do not have a heater core that's why the coolant came up to top of the radiator that fast.

 

[mredwards0421]

Now that i think about it, there's more than one problem. If the radiator fluid is boiling(212*) my Efan should have kicked on, come to think of it it hasn't been on since about the time this started.

In other news, no shops around here have the coolant exhaust gas tester. But i will be renting the pressure tester, any tips on using it/how to comprehend the results?

 

[mredwards0421]

I talked to a mechanic that I know, he said it coukd be the water pump. The water pump is boiling because it isnt circulating in the system.

Any thoughts on this?

 

[jka]

I think if it was the water pump the engine temp would be over 230 degrees ..212 degrees is kind of warm but it's not running hot. I think that fan not coming on is your problem... what is temp is the fan set at to come on ? Also an easy way to check the water pump... with the engine idle squeeze the upper radiator hose then release the hose and you will feel the pressure as it is released.

 

[mredwards0421]

I don't know what the E fan is set to, the fan used to come on after the car ran for a while. I do know it had a 195* T-Stat in it(I recently swapped for 180*). I thought I blew a fuse(I replaced it but still nothing) I have no clue how to fix that, there are no words on the fan controller for me to figure that out.

Any help with fixing the E fan is appreciated.

Water pump will be installed tomorrow morning, i got 75% done(ran out of sunlight)

I was also told to check the oil to see if there may be coolant in the oil... <--- a sign of blown head gasket( lets hope there isn't any coolant in there)

 

[RangerJoe]

Are you sure you aren't being paranoid? When I have burped my cooling system in the past, I have to be careful to watch for the thermostat to open. Usually, if there is air in the system, the coolant level will drop when the thermostat opens and fluid pushes through to a void. However, once the coolant is full, the pump will push the fluid out of the radiator cap opening. When I see the fluid start to rise, I throw the radiator cap on and make sure the resivoir is topped off.

Joe

 

[mredwards0421]

Are you sure you aren't being paranoid? When I have burped my cooling system in the past, I have to be careful to watch for the thermostat to open. Usually, if there is air in the system, the coolant level will drop when the thermostat opens and fluid pushes through to a void. However, once the coolant is full, the pump will push the fluid out of the radiator cap opening. When I see the fluid start to rise, I throw the radiator cap on and make sure the resivoir is topped off.

Joe

I am 100% sure that i heard boiling radiator fluid when I had the radiator cap on and saw steam bellowing from the radiator when the cap was off.

Any Idea why the E fan doesn't work anymore?

 

[RangerJoe]

I am 100% sure that i heard boiling radiator fluid when I had the radiator cap on and saw steam bellowing from the radiator when the cap was off.

Any Idea why the E fan doesn't work anymore?

I am not a wiring guru, but I can do basic stuff. Start with your power supply and grounds, make sure you have 12v coming into the relay or controller. Make sure it has a good ground also. Next, I would verify that whatever method of temp sensor it is using is still hooked up (ie: probe in radiator fins or temp sensor in the thermostat housing). Next, check on the relay, if it uses one. You can do a Google search to find out how relays operate and you will see how to test them and trouble shoot them. Lastly, you can use a 12v jumped supply and send 12v power directly to the fan in order to determine if the fan itself is operational.

This is about the best generic advice I can give you without seeing your system or knowing what type of system your car has.

Joe