same temp problem after "fix"

[DLS8K]

About a month and a half ago, I got my thermostat replaced under warranty because they said it was bad. I had taken it in due to its problem with "overheating." Everything ran great until now. This weekend the problem came back to me. I had been on interstate for about 3.5 hours and pulled into a city (stop/go traffic) and the engine said it was "overheating."

Two questions..........my warranty is expired, however, since this was a prediagnosed problem that apparently wasn't fixed properly, is it covered? Or did they fix it right and maybe i just have a bad thermostat?

I've read all the posts on this issue before, however, last weekend i made a similar trip and had NO problems whatsoever and hadn't had any since the t-stat was replaced. Before that, it happened about once a week. Anyways, if you guys/gals could answer that warranty question before i take it in to the dealership and get charged a fee for diagnosis, I would appreciate it.

 

[eL eS]

If you went to a FLM dealer is covered under the 12month/12k mile warranty which should be extended again after this repair. Or you can petition for an After Warranty Adjustment but they have to be able to duplicate the problem.

 

[big ed]

Possible there is still some air in the system? Happened to me & in my case this was the problem. Whether they fix it or you, I'd encourage them. Good luck, Ed

 

[Motts]

same problem here, air in the system... they fixed but had warranty.. then later that day.. blew the radiator hose.... took back and fixed in 45 mins.. they were lucky nothing else went wrong!!!

 

[DLS8K]

same problem here, air in the system... they fixed but had warranty.. then later that day.. blew the radiator hose.... took back and fixed in 45 mins.. they were lucky nothing else went wrong!!!

Isn't it a little weird that after driving for over month on a new thermostat and having took several trips that there could be air in the system? I'm really dreading having to have this problem that was supposed to be "fixed" get "fixed" again........ya know? It just gets a little old that instead of properly diagnosing the car, they just throw a part on and hope it fixes it. Oh yeah, I also ran a temp on my radiator hoses and they were running hot............240 on the upper and 230-235 on the lower. Something is not working right. Hopefully it is just a bad thermostat which would be covered under the 12/12000 mile warranty on the part/labor........otherwise, i don't even want to know what else the problem could be. Any more suggestions with the temps on the hoses being that high? Thank a lot.

 

[Motts]

hows the coolant level? its probably just the thermostat... but i'm not a mechanic, just trying to help with the real life experience... try driving your car 12 mile to the local lfm dealer.. stopping every 1000 ft to put some coolant in... yea it was quite rough... seeing that the tow truck guy wanted 200 bucks for the tow... grrr

 

[Jim Henderson]

whenever you lose fluid like when you flush or you change a Tstat, you will get air in the system. Depending on how much air is in there and how well it was bled out, it may take a week or two before your fluid levels stabilize. As air gets pumped out of weird nooks and crannies, it will gather in the coolant tank. This will make the apparent level of the fluid drop. If you do not add fluid periodically during the first few weeks, you may get low enough that air starts to circulate back into the system from the coolant tank.

My practice is, the first week after losing fluid, I check the level and add every day. The first few days you may add quite a lot. I do this even if I think I bled the system properly. The next week or two I check every few days and add if needed. Usually the fluid level stabilizes after a week or so. If yours keeps dropping more than that then either you have a real leak or there was a lot of air in the system.

Good Luck and check your fluid levels. If it is really low, you have re-introduced air into the system.

How old is your car? I forget. If it is really old, your radiator may be getting clogged up. Even chemical flushing won't fully clean a really old radiator, then you would need to "Rod" it out or replace it.

Also try this... Get your car nice and warmed up, preferably to the point where you notice temp problems. Park the car and leave it running. Pop the hood and gun the throttle a few times for several seconds at least. Watch the hoses. Older hoses may collapse under the suction of the water pump. When they collapse they cut off the flow which heats up the engine. You won't see this normally unless you are watching under the hood while the throttle is applied. If the hose collapses, you either need a new hose or some hoses have a big spring inside to keep them from collapsing, so you would need a new spring. I would just get a new hose if the spring is dead sicne the hose is probably pretty old anyway. I have encountered this problem several times in my life when there was no apparent cause for overheating. You should also squeeze hoses to make sure they are not bulging or getting soft.

Good Luck,

Jim Henderson

 

[DLS8K]

whenever you lose fluid like when you flush or you change a Tstat, you will get air in the system. Depending on how much air is in there and how well it was bled out, it may take a week or two before your fluid levels stabilize. As air gets pumped out of weird nooks and crannies, it will gather in the coolant tank. This will make the apparent level of the fluid drop. If you do not add fluid periodically during the first few weeks, you may get low enough that air starts to circulate back into the system from the coolant tank.

My practice is, the first week after losing fluid, I check the level and add every day. The first few days you may add quite a lot. I do this even if I think I bled the system properly. The next week or two I check every few days and add if needed. Usually the fluid level stabilizes after a week or so. If yours keeps dropping more than that then either you have a real leak or there was a lot of air in the system.

Good Luck and check your fluid levels. If it is really low, you have re-introduced air into the system.

How old is your car? I forget. If it is really old, your radiator may be getting clogged up. Even chemical flushing won't fully clean a really old radiator, then you would need to "Rod" it out or replace it.

Also try this... Get your car nice and warmed up, preferably to the point where you notice temp problems. Park the car and leave it running. Pop the hood and gun the throttle a few times for several seconds at least. Watch the hoses. Older hoses may collapse under the suction of the water pump. When they collapse they cut off the flow which heats up the engine. You won't see this normally unless you are watching under the hood while the throttle is applied. If the hose collapses, you either need a new hose or some hoses have a big spring inside to keep them from collapsing, so you would need a new spring. I would just get a new hose if the spring is dead sicne the hose is probably pretty old anyway. I have encountered this problem several times in my life when there was no apparent cause for overheating. You should also squeeze hoses to make sure they are not bulging or getting soft.

Good Luck,

Jim Henderson

My car is a 2000 LS8. My coolant level is normal.........I even checked the secondary fill location under my engine shroud cover and that was topped off too. I'm getting the car diagnosed tomorrow where I work, so i'll know more tomorrow. Thanks for all the help.

 

[dbuseman]

Try a cap?

I had the same problems as you. It overheated a few times a month or so and I would restart it and it would go away. Eventually it got worse and worse. The hyraulic cooling fan motors are somewhat notorious especially on the 2000 LS. I got lucky by sucking out the fluid in the cooling fan reservoir, adding Type F fluid back in, then running the A/C. Once I did that a few times, I put a new coolant reservoir cap on and haven't seen a temperature problem since. I'm guessing the old cap wasn't holding the 16 psi's it was supposed. For $7, it's worth a try. Good Luck.