Chevrolet Repair: Over-heating, cylinder head gasket, 1997 chevy cavalier

Question
-------------------------
Followup To
Question -
I have a 1997 Chevy Cavalier. Recently, it started over-heating, when I check the water in the radiator, it is bone dry. When I refill it I can drive @ 25 miles to town, upon checking it again it is empty. Would a defective radiator cap cause this? Or, what is you best guess?

Thank You In Advance
Answer -
Hello Taressa, The most common things to leak are the cylinder head gasket and the waterpump. You should look at the ground where you park the car and look to see if there is coolant on the ground. The waterpump is not as common as the head gasket. The radiator cap wouldn't cause this unless the weather was hot and needed to hold a lot of pressure.


Let me know what happens


Have a Nice Day     Mark

Your prompt response is greatly appreciated. Today, I did notice that there was coolant on ground under my car at work. The reservoir sits on the passenger side, on what I describe as the front fender well of the frame. It seems to be dripping from under the metal frame area. A co-worker looked at it today & filled the reservoir up for me with a funnel so there would be no drips. We didn't see any leaks at the time. I drove 10 minutes to my house, raised the hood, and the metal frame under the reservoir was wet. An employee at AutoZone said, it my be the reservoir that could be cracked, & I seem to think he could be correct. What is your opinion?

Answer
Yes it could be cracked. Maybe you could get it dry of coolant and then let the engine run while you watch under the hood and around the coolant reseroir. You should be able see it coming out and this will be a positive way to make sure that is it.


Mark