How much coolant should overflow into the overflow tank when the car is fully warmed up (or running warm at 210 F for that matter)??? I only ask because my car is having a bit of a cooling issue....something i thought i fixed a while ago...where the temp just slowly rises until i finally turn it off after it reaches 210 F or so.

For now i'm ruling out the possibility that my water pump is broke because both the lower and upper rad hoses were hot (which means that coolant was flowing), and i'm also assuming that the autometer gauge i'm using to measure these temps with isn't a pile of crap.

As it stands right now the system is holding pressure (i haven't measured it tho, so i dont know if its the right amount of pressure)...and there IS a certain amount of coolant overflowing into the overflow tank...but its a very little amount.

Also my logicon appears to be broken, because the fan blows nothing but lukewarm/hot air out of the vents no matter wat setting its at.

I'm going to bleed the cooling system and etc, but i just noticed that barely any coolant is being displaced into or out of the overflow tank. The little hose going TO the overflow does get hot, so i dont think its blocked.

See the weird thing is that it doesn't seem like my car is running hot, yet the gauge is telling me its at 210 F...a temp i'm not even going to try and tolerate. My oil temp gauge is showing something like 180 F, while the stock temp gauge is between 1/4 and 1/2...ah crap im rambling again.

 

I blame the gauge or sensor LOL

 

Bahahaha...ya i would too. But i'm **** about my temps so i'll blame the gauge only after i've blamed everything else.

 

Where is the aftermarket temp sender located? If it's on the pump housing, you're going to read different temps than the OEM sender location...

 

Actually its after the thermostat. Particularly its where the coolant filler cap assembly used to be (now replaced by an aluminum plate and a threaded hole for the sender).

Would the readings after the thermostat be higher or lower than the block?

 

At that position, you're reading the hottest coolant temps in the whole circuit, so I wouldn't think 210 would be much of a worry then. The OEM location taps in before the coolant ever runs by the rotor housing combustion areas, so that's your difference right there...

 

Oh damn...good to know. I wonder how big the temp difference would be.
Didn't someone measure the temps at different locations on the engine with an optical thermometer once? I could've sworn i read an old thread like that.

Anyway, there IS a cooling issue because it doesn't stop at 210...today alone it went up to 220 F before i turned it off. I'll bleed everything and make sure nothings leaking....but i'm pretty concerned rite now.

 

Check your radiator cap(s)- if they aren't holding pressure, you'll boil faster, maybe that's what's happening. Or could be the t-stat not opening fully by 185* as it should, causing restrictions to flow (the coolant would then stay in the block passages longer than usual)

 

Well theres no boiling going on as far as i can tell...but i'll definitely check out the stat.

Could a busted heater core cause this? I dont think its leaking...its just not working.

Thanks for the quick responses by the way...ur the man!

 

No, a plugged heater core wouldn't affect the engine circulation...I've heard of some guys even blocking off the heater run altogether, with apparently no problems...

If your rad caps & t-stat are older than Paris Hilton, they need to be changed anyway...Cheap & easy to change- start there first....

 

I've actually changed them all fairly recently. Maybe my cooling system just needs a good flushing...it HAS been sitting around for a bit.

Thanks for the help wayne!