I flushed my radiator and engine block until the water ran clear. The old fluid seemed only a little dirty, but I'm sure it's been there for more than 10 years. Then I added 50/50 prestone coolant/water that i mixed myself.

After driving around for about two days now, I haven't noticed much improvement since my last post. The guage still hovers between 3/4 to 4/5 of the way before touching the HOT mark.

Could someone give me some advice?

Thanks, Sodara

 

ok, I ordered a new rad cap, thermostat, gaskets and o-ring. even though i'm certain my existing ones are fine, hopefully replacing them should improve my heat problems. is there a way to test if my water pump is doing it's job?

 

You might just need to burp the coolant system. Could be an air pocket now. Search for it, easy to find.
If the system hasn't been flushed in ten years you might need the rad cleaned. Could be blocked. Make sure all the fan shrouds are on, especially the lower one. It directs air to the rad and if missing will cause high temps.

 

I hope you ordered OEM from Mazda because the after market ones don't work as good!

 

crap, i'm not sure if the one I ordered will suffice then. it's a nippon brand rated at 82 degrees celcius... or 179 i think. the site says it's an OEM replacement though...
And thanks for the info, I'll try the burp thing...

 

ok, i took my cap off and started the engine. I read somewhere that i'm suppose to wait 10 min, or at least untill normal operating temp.
sorry but, after about 20 seconds I couldn't stand it anymore. radiator fluid kept spilling out of my filler neck, so i turned it off.
then i tried again with the cap back on. allowed it to reach normal operating temp then turned it off. i started opening the cap with a rag but fluid kept boiling out. after too much sizzling I left it alone.
Does this mean that there are no air pockets in my cooling system?

I took it for a drive again and the temp climbed up 4/5 again. What am i doing wrong?

any suggestions would be much appreciated.

 

There are coolant bleeding procedures in the Archives.

Also see this page: http://www.aaroncake.net/rx-7/cooling.htm

 

Leaking exhaust into the coolant?