STUMPED...whats next HELP!

[TxAlero]

:(
So this is what's going on. The engine is boiling out fluids and I'm at a wall to figure out what's wrong, here's a list of what's been done:

Changed the thermostat
Changed the water pump
Changed the head gaskets
Pressured tested the engine to 15 psi and watched for any leaks (none were found )
Bleed the system
Cleaned the radiator off and flushed
New overflow cap

I've watched the water flow from the overflow tank and from there no bubbles were coming out from like combustion gases.
I noticed that ONCE the temp got stableized and the guage was a mid point the upper hose to the radiator began to move and make chunking noises. My best guess was cold water going to the thermo was being pushed back by hot, boiling water comming back thru on the other side of the thermo.
After I stopped the engine and took off one of relay hoses back to the coolent tank there was steam comming out of the hose.
I was running water thru just to pressure test the system. WILL dexcool really lower the temp enough that it won't boil out like the water did, OR is the another underlying problem like a blown head or could I have placed the head gaskets on wrong and they are blocking water flow so it would boil.
Nothing is indicating a blown gasket or head because the problems only start after the car is warmed up to normal temp.
so all u gear heads out there Help please...

[xXManwhoreXx]

Could be a crack in the overflow resivour

[Hellfire5670]

Thats what happened to mine i did everything you did and the problem consisted Is there and oil in your coolant? my problem started from the LIMG problem and everything went downhill and I couldn't fix it no matter what i did..

[sleepyalero]

i would buy a new resivour. its like 45$ at napa here.

you can run water through the system and it shouldnt be a problem. my opinion dexcool would probably bubble out too if your having that problem with water. half the time, 50% of your dexcool is water cause you have to mix. some people run 75% water 25% coolant. i just do 50/50.

you filled it to the recommended level in the resivour right? are there any lights on on your cluster? svs ses coolant light?

i dont think a blown or cracked head would make it boil? i could be wrong though.

thats weird though. i dont think ive ever had that problem so im not completely sure on my statement above.

[TxAlero]

No water in the oil. No warning lights on dash. I would not think that the water overflow tank would be a problem, I pressure tested the system and no leaks, including around the resavor.

[TxAlero]

Thats what happened to mine i did everything you did and the problem consisted Is there and oil in your coolant? my problem started from the LIMG problem and everything went downhill and I couldn't fix it no matter what i did..

Did u ever take it to a shop to see what your problem was because that's seems to be my next step and just spend 75 bucks to get a full diagnosis on it.

[sleepyalero]

No water in the oil. No warning lights on dash. I would not think that the water overflow tank would be a problem, I pressure tested the system and no leaks, including around the resavor.

hmm, well im about as stumped as you are. lol sorry i wasnt to much of a help! hope someone chimes in and gives you a good idea of the problem so you dont have to take it to a shop! best of luck dude

[xXManwhoreXx]

First post was too long to reread... You sure your fans are working? Does it happem while driving or jusy sitting in traffic

[Hellfire5670]

My dads a mechanic and has been for years me and him tore into the engine and check everything... new gaskets new thermostat new headstuds did everything you did + cleaned everything we could on the head and the intake manifolds... taking it to a shop didn't do anything to help me... i could keep the temp level steady for about 2 weeks then it started rising up and started everything over...

[TxAlero]

First post was too long to reread... You sure your fans are working? Does it happem while driving or jusy sitting in traffic
Fans are working they come on when the AC is off, and on when the AC is turned on etc.. the boiling out part seems to only happen after its been running for a while , either letting it ideal or driving.

[TxAlero]

My dads a mechanic and has been for years me and him tore into the engine and check everything... new gaskets new thermostat new headstuds did everything you did + cleaned everything we could on the head and the intake manifolds... taking it to a shop didn't do anything to help me... i could keep the temp level steady for about 2 weeks then it started rising up and started everything over...

Is your alero still doing that or did u just get a new engine??

[Hellfire5670]

Is your alero still doing that or did u just get a new engine??

It's still doing it and its parked I just got a whole new car thats still yet to arrive at the dealership... your best bet is to get a whole new engine, nothing i have done to the car is working

[Nate's Alero]

Replace the radiator. Mine would heat up in a matter of minutes sitting in a drive thru, i cleaned mine time and time again, flushed, rinsed, even took it out and cleaned it.... sometimes they jut rot from the inside out and dont dissipate heat well. Mine can sit for hours now and be like a new car, rising to 220 and then dropping back down to about 200 when the low speed fan comes on. Even in 90*f Heat.

[xXManwhoreXx]

Could be a cracked radiator

[Nate's Alero]

Could be a cracked radiator

I cut mine in half when i replaced it, i found like a calcium build up on the tubes.... i think it kind of created an insulated barrier between heat dissipation. It certainly helped my situation... (of course when i replaced mine, half of my radiator blew apart sitting in traffic when the temp was hovering around the 3/4 line)

[xXManwhoreXx]

Eff that thay sounds scary as shit hahaha.

I have thought about doing a rad swap on mine as well though. I may get the one from milzy

[sleepyalero]

Eff that thay sounds scary as shit hahaha.

I have thought about doing a rad swap on mine as well though. I may get the one from milzy

fyi i heard you gotta fab his radiator a bit to fit.

[xXManwhoreXx]

Orly?

[TxAlero]

Back on subject would a new rad really be the answer to something that sounds like its boiling in past the thermo? I mean I guess it couldn't hurt getting a new one but is it solving the problem or masking something else?

[TxAlero]

Any more thoughts before I take it to a shop?

[MMGT1]

Have you had the rad out at all yet? The design of our rad to evap leaves enough room between them to cause build-up between them, not allowing air to flow through there properly causing high temps. Once teh temp gets hot enough there is jsut too much pressure in there and the rad cap is gonna let it bleed off. Might want to check that out if you havent already

[MMGT1]

Sorry, you did say "cleaned it off", but did you actually remove it when you did this?

[TxAlero]

Sorry, you did say "cleaned it off", but did you actually remove it when you did this?
Yes I removed the radiator and completely cleaned the outside of it and flushed it out then replaced it. So its a real possible that I just need a new one and see what happens then?

[zzyzzx]

Interesting commentary on the radiators, but I would figure that as a general rule, radiators have a leak when they go bad.

[Hellfire5670]

Take it to the shop and let us know what they tell you before they try and screw you over

[MMGT1]

And the condenser is clean right? That would sure mess things up if it was stopping flow on you. Your AC working fine?

[a.graham52]

water will boil at 212 degrees at atmospheric pressure. pressurizing your coolant will raise the boiling temp. i dont rember how many degrees per psi but i know its true. having a proper mix of coolant and water also helps (too much coolant and not enough water wont cool well enough etc). have you pressurized the radiator cap yet just to make sure thats working? iv bought 3 caps in a row before that have failed. i know from experince that once you start getting coolant boiling in the engine its hard to get it to stop. let it cool down, fill the cooling system to the proper level (the seam on the over flow tank) and pressurize the system with a pressure tester. bleed the system, and let it run for a little while. run the HEAT in yoru car, that will slow warm up a little bit and will also tell you if you have proper coolant level everywhere. its a good palce to start.

[TxAlero]

AC is running fine. I've pressure tested the system and cap. Both are holding at 15 psi well. No drop in pressure. I'm getting the boil over like I said after its warmed up and its on the upper hose connecting to the thermo, that's where the noise is coming from.

[Nate's Alero]

AC is running fine. I've pressure tested the system and cap. Both are holding at 15 psi well. No drop in pressure. I'm getting the boil over like I said after its warmed up and its on the upper hose connecting to the thermo, that's where the noise is coming from.

Right there that says junk rad. It's not able to flow freely. Mine did that, new rad, no problems.

[03glgold]

if I remember right don't the radiator hoses on the alero have issues with getting weak and collapsing

[Nate's Alero]

if I remember right don't the radiator hoses on the alero have issues with getting weak and collapsing

Not exactly. What happens is the cap fails, so when the pressure drops when the engine is cooling, the cap wont let in air and the hoses collapse because there's a slight vacuum.

[zzyzzx]

Right there that says junk rad. It's not able to flow freely. Mine did that, new rad, no problems.

I still think it's rather unusual to have a radiator go bad without any leaking.

[xXManwhoreXx]

One word.. Dexicool

[a.graham52]

One word.. Dexicool

two words with a hyphen: "dex-cool" and if i recall... there was no complaint of the engine overheating (according the the gauge)... i would think that would be a HUGE indicator of a bad radiator.

[Nate's Alero]

I still think it's rather unusual to have a radiator go bad without any leaking.

Nope. the smaller aluminum rads nowadays have such small passages that stuff can either get caught, or corrosion/rot can clog the small tubes.

One word.. Dexicool

....was made for a purpose. the OAT Technology (Organic Acid Technology) Was designed for GM for the type of radiator and metal cast engines they were using, also to keep it maintenance free for 100K Miles. It was engineered for the vehicle. It should be used in the vehicle. I use it still, all i did was swap the defective gaskets over, and not a drop gone in over two years. ('cept when my rad clogged, and i changed it")

two words with a hyphen: "dex-cool" and if i recall... there was no complaint of the engine overheating (according the the gauge)... i would think that would be a HUGE indicator of a bad radiator.

The main reason i keep saying rad is i've seen enough radiators in my life, look perfectly fine on the outside, but be hideous with calcium buildup and rot. the small tube and fin design clogs easily, and inhibits flow of coolant, even slightly, the coolant will backflow through the bypass and back at the pump, without being cooled, therefore i see why he hears that noise, and why it's boiling over at the cap. All makes sense. OP needs a new cap and rad.

[01GrandAm]

Stupid question but did you bleed the air out of the coolant system?

[xXManwhoreXx]

Lol

[TxAlero]

Stupid question but did you bleed the air out of the coolant system?
Stupid answer--yes
Oh and buying a new rad for a 100 shipped from buyaradiator.com .

[sleepyalero]

Orly?

yeah lol just lettin you know

[TxAlero]

Finally got my radiator installed today, but guess what it still over heats!!
When I had it ideling without the cap on it was purring like a kitten temp guage just under half and blowing hot air. I had bleed the system etc. I went for a drive with the cap on and by the time I got back the temp guage was in between half and three forths and I opened the hood and could hear the coolent boiling in the engine...
F u d g e , I'm clueless now, guess its off to the shop.

[a.graham52]

didnt think it would be a radiator :glare:

[TxAlero]

didnt think it would be a radiator :glare:

Well I think the new radiator is an improvement over the 12 year old one I had in there, but yeah there's something else causing this.

[a.graham52]

recheck your pressure testing. both the system and the cap. maybe consider getting a "block test" done as well. maybe what you think is boiling is actualy combustion gases?

[Hellfire5670]

This is really stumping everyone.. if you can figure it out then great it can help me too! But i still think an engine swap.... get you ecu checked? maybe its something there?

[TxAlero]

Well I drained the system and filled it back up with almost 2 gallons of dex-cool burped it and ran it for 15 minutes without cap on, was purring fine right under the half mark. Stopped the engine and waited about 2 hours and put the cap on and warmed up the car and drove it 15 miles back to my place. The temp guage stayed right in the middle just a tick under.
So where does that leave the problem at now? Is it fixed or just masked by adding lower boiling point dex-cool?
Idk at this point will drive it a couple of days to get a feel of what's going on, I just can't think that Dex-cool would lower the boiling point that much that it wouldn't boil or overheat.

[zzyzzx]

I just can't think that Dex-cool would lower the boiling point that much that it wouldn't boil or overheat.


Either it did, or you had air in the system, or you just need to drive the car more to see if it overheats again.

[Hellfire5670]

Thats what i did with my alero it drove good for about 2 weeks then the coolant would boil away

[TxAlero]

Thats what i did with my alero it drove good for about 2 weeks then the coolant would boil away

:eek: don't say that, I'm hoping that this is fixed. Btw anyone who replaces there radiator make sure you insert the washers on the transmission line inlet on the radiator. I didn't do that and found a small puddle of trans fluid on the ground and it was a real bitch getting the washer on the lower line, lol. But its done, my wife drove it around this morning and no problems reported.

[Hellfire5670]

Done your heat and ac work? if so you might have done it! mine didn't work even when the problem stopped!

[jawa]

now come to ass

[TxAlero]

Done your heat and ac work? if so you might have done it! mine didn't work even when the problem stopped!
Heat blows hot, AC blowing cold. And I need to put plumber s tape on those trans lines to keep them from dripping :'( oh well!

[TxAlero]

now come to ass

That just sounds way to perverted...:rolleyes2:

[jawa]

And....

[Hellfire5670]

hahaha! I really hope your problem is fixed! it sure sounds like it!

[TxAlero]

And....
Tbh I don't trust driving the hoe anywhere far. I've been out driving her around 30-50 miles at a time, and sweating the whole time freaking that it would go bad, so a trip that would be some 2000 miles is waaaaaaay out of the question. Would love to meet up with everyone but I just don't think the car would make it.