UPDATE: FIXED!!! so far...I installed a new thermostat, drained the cooling system and refilled it. So far no probs. Thanks guys! Ok. Found a big puddle of coolant/af under my car today. I was drivin normally. I stopped and smelled coolant. Delivered the goods, then came back to my car. I backed up and shined the lights on the ground, huge puddle of coolant. I drove around for a second and parked somewhere else...another pool of coolant with a trail of coolant. I popped the hood to find that coolant had bubbled out the top of the Overflow Tank and got on my battery, and other nearby parts. SO, i drive it back to work, get out and pop the hood. It's bubblin again. It appears to be leaking coolant out of the top, where the tube goes in. Basically, it's getting so hot, it hit the red "H" and it bubbles up and comes out the overflow tank. ALSO, I don't have any heat!! SO, even when I try to cool down the car by turning on the heat, full blast(4)...there is no heat coming into the cabin. Cold air only. I heard the fans come on while i was sitting there letting it cool down. I did make it home as well...eventually. I checked the fuses and everything seems to be in order for the fans and everything else. Also, I just ran it for 10 minutes, idle. Once the fans came on, they stayed on. The top radiator hose was hot, the bottom was cold. There was no white smoke coming out of the exhaust. I saw no extra coolant leaking onto the floor while it was running. Does anyone have any ideas/opinions? Heater Core? Head Gasket? Thermostat? Water Pump? Something Else? this sux. Thanks, -jfk
sounds like textbook waterpump. it's not circulating. that's why there's no hot coolant in your heater core, or radiator (lower hose cold).
Or a bad thermostat. I had my water pump replaced earlier in the year, and the new thermostat was bad. On the way home afterwards, somewhere between Bloomington Acura Subaru and Hwy100, the temp hit 240, which was very disconcerting. They replaced it under warranty the following day, and all has been well since. Stuart.
IIRC, the heater core lines don't run through the t-stat....certainly not on EA82 cars anyway. and I'm fairly certain not on my EJ22....so if he had a little circulation, but no tstat, he'd have heat.
I am not so sure about this. IIRC when i was tappin my heater core lines, they came out after the water pump, so i think that if the thermostat was busted it might give you the same problem.
yep, after water pump, but before t-stat. normally, you have some heat before the car comes all the way up to temperature...right? that means that coolant is circulating through the heater core, even before the t-stat opens.
I just tried burping the hoses and tried driving it around afterwards, and the same thing happens. I am sad. I really could use my car today! Damnit. I did get a thermostat w/gasket and a water pump today though. Is the thermostat hard to install? it doesn't look like it. Also, I did notice that when the engine was running and the radiator cap was off, coolant was returning into the filler hole on the manifold from a tube right under the radiator cap. Now, does that mean that my water pump IS working?
