gincali

OK. I have been a happy owner of a 1997 2.2cl for about a month now. But the happiness is a mixed one because I can't seem to figure out what the problem is with this overheating thing. I should say that I cant' seem to pin-point what the problem is. I have been through so many forums and threads and have gathered up enough info to narrow it down.

Here is the problem.

The car is fine during the day time. No overheating at all, stays at the 1/4 mark temp.. You could say that it is due to that it is hot outside, and so the A/C is on, meaning that the fans are on, therefore no overheating. Ok.

But during the nighttime (cold temperature), the car starts to overheat!! Turning the A/C on really doesn't seem to help all that much. I try the heater too, but that too is not much help.

So, my thinking would have me believe that during the hot sunny daytimes, the THERMOSTAT gets heated up by the hot temp. and so it doesn't stick closed. But after the car is left sitting outside during the evening.night times, the THERMSOSTAT will stick closed! So I'd conclude that my problem IS the thermostat.

But my bewilderment begins with the fact that, HEY wouldn't the car overheating after driving it at night and even the heat inside the engine compartment cause the THERMOSTAT to "loosen up" and not get stuck?!?!? Hmmm. That's why I can't really pin-point the thermostat.

Also, one thing I noticed is that after driving home or anywhere, as SOON AS I TURN THE IGNITION off, I can hear the fan(s) turning on.

I don't know whether it is the FAN or FANS, or the THERMOSTAT or even if anything else extreme such as a head gasket (which I doubt, not losing any oil) or some sort of RELAY problems. One thing for sure though, is that the car runs fine in the DAY TIME with hot temp. outisde, and only problem is during the night time. In the night, when the temp. needle starts going up, TURNING on the A/C and sometimes the HEATER bring it down a bit, but the temp. needle will still fluctuate up and down slightly past the half-pont and below it. . .but will not stay at the 1/4 mark.

I'm leaning towards the thermostat. . .but before I go ahead and start replacing part after part, please. . .If there is anyone out there recogning this problem and ca help me out with any ANY ADVICE, please do so. I need help. I don't want to damage my car.

Thanks.

G

ib_jimmy

well it does sound weird...i've never heard of a problem like that.....but a thermostat doesnt cost that much and is a very good place to start trouble shooting something like that. if that doesnt fix it...do a radiator flush.

cornfed

I just posted in another thread, before I read this one. But that brought to mind some details I didn't post in my other question!

I've had my '98 2.3CL for about a month now as well. It has 95,000ish miles on it. The day after I got it, it started overheating. The temp gauge would go down when I was driving, but when sitting still at a stoplight, it would shoot up. I brought it back to the dealership and even asked them to check the thermostat but when all was said and done, they said it was just that the radiator needed to be flushed. That was done a couple weeks ago and it has been fine, except that the check engine light has been coming on intermittently.

So today is the first actual cold day we've had this fall, and of course it's the first day that my car chooses to overheat again! I had driven a few blocks, it died, and when I turned it back on is when it started overheating.

As far as the fan issue goes, I've noticed the same thing since I got the car. Everytime I turn the car off, I hear the fan going like mad for like 30 seconds or so. Not sure if this is a normal thing or not.

Gincali--if you find out what's going on with your car, or if anyone has any ideas I will be eternally grateful. I have no money (since I just bought the #@%&ing thing) and can't afford to have dishonest mechanics fixing unnecessary things.

wilp99

i think both of u need to change ur thermostat. also check on the left side of ur engine (from the drivers seat) and look below the crank pulley to see if there is any white crusty stuff. if there is then ur water pump may be bad. but definatly change the thermostat first since its the cheapest thing to do.

Cocoa

iTrader: (2)

If the car starts to over-heat, please dont run the A/C. If anything, run it on the highest temp for Heat (90 degress) on full blast. That will act as a second radiator and will help bring temp down a bit. The fans will go on when they need to. If anything, hook up a switch to them, so you can turn them on when you'd like from the inside of your car.

Anyways, check to see if the radiator cap is bad or loose (the radiator cap must be able to hold pressure inside the radiator in order for it to do it's job, otherwise your boiling point in the coolant will decrease, resulting in over heating problems). Check the hoses, if they are too mushy, they are bad, if you squeeze them and they crack, they are bad. If you see rust at the end of the hoses by the clamps, odds are they are leaking or the clamp is on too tight.

Do you happen to know if they added a 50/50 ratio of coolant and water to your system? If you add much more coolant(antifreeze) than water, it will cause the engine to run at higher temps. (I doubt this is the case, but you never know)

Since you live in southern cali, maybe you can meet up with me sometime this weekend, and we can take a look at it.

Oh, and the reason why the fans go on, is not to blow cold air to the engine. They act as a vacum for the radiator for whenever it doesnt get a sufficient amount of air flow (thus why your fans come on at stops, rather than on the freeway at 75mph). The air going through the radiator is what cools the temp of the coolant so that it can run through the engine again.

Do your fans come on all the time when you shit your engine off?

If you want to check to see if your thermastat is bad, here are 2 ways to check it:

1. Remove the radiator cap from a cool radiator and insert a thermometer into the coolant. Start the engine and let it warmp up. Watch the thermometer and the surface of the coolant. When the coolant begins to flow, this indicates the thermostat has started to open. The reading on the thermometer indicates the opening temperature of the thermostat. If the engine is cold and the coolant circulates, this indicates the thermostat is stuck open and must be replaced.

2. Another way to test the thermostat is to remove it. Suspend the thermostat completely submerged in a small container of water so it does not touch the bottom. Place a thermometer in the water so it does not touch the container and only measures water temperature. Heat the water. When the thermostat valve barely begins to open, read the thermometer. This is the opening temperature of this particular thermostat. If the valve stays open after the thermostat is removed from the water, the thermostat is defective and must be replaced.

Hope this helps you out a bit, in finding out whether to bother getting a new thermostat or not. Just trying to keep you from going through the hasstle of wasting money only to find out that something else was the cause of your over heating problems.

Cocoa

iTrader: (2)

Just replied to your pm. Hehe, you sent me that pm as I was gathering information for my reply to your thread.

gincali

WOW!!!
I just finished reading everything, and I must first say, thank you!! I pretty much got enough info to start testing away now. Probably gonna start with the radiator cap, then the thermometer test for the thermostat. That should get me started.

One thing for sure is, you are very very knowledgeable. am very impressed, since I have been readig many of your postings/responses through arious threads. You're an asset to this forum. Yeah maybe we can meet up this weekend, I live near Ontario and work near Anaheim. It'd be a pleasure to get any type of assistance from you. Thanks again. Now I can sleep peacefully (well not entirely until it is fixed) but at least calmly.
Thanks again.

"Boy I can't wait till I get my Hemi CL fixed!"

Cocoa

iTrader: (2)

hehe...I don't think too many people read that thread! My professor use to be the tech on a race team for Nascar, and that's who I've been learning from. Well him, the book, 2 of my friend's with hands on experience, and another friend who's been through 3 years of college learning about hondas/acuras. So I'd give them the props

JLatimer

I had an "airlock" (at least that is what my bro-in-law said) in my Nissan Pathfinder. It had similar symptoms. Under throttle the temp gauge would go down. At idle it would climb back up. An airlock is basically a air bubble in the coolant pathways that wont allow proper water flow. Not sure exactly what causes it, etc. But mine fixed itself in what could have been a bad way - eventually on a hot drive the bubble steamed itself out - that can blow a gasket. It didnt in my case it forced its way out of a newly formed split in a hose - burning coolant stinks.

In any case a coolant flush should get rid of it. All in all a pretty cheap fix. I got lucky I only lost a $12 hose.

jeff

ib_jimmy

AznX TL

your picture isnt showing up

Wannarace62188

Do you think that could be b/c the thread is from 04?