QuestionCar was overheating, had thermostat replaced, radiator had hole in it, replaced it, fans are working, after picking it up from shop, was fine for a couple days, temp gauge was up, returned to shop, said there were no leaks, was fing again, for a week, now overheating again. could it be the water pump or does the water pump have an electronic sensor that's going. Car is a 2001 chrysler concorde ltd. 103.000 mi.
AnswerHi Denise,
Please tell me the symptoms of overheating. Do you mean the gauge reading only, and if so, what is it showing? Does it swing back and forth or just go straight up? Does coolant come out of the overflow bottle or the filler cap? Or are you loosing coolant, and if so where do you see it? And there are two fans; are both coming on finally as the gauge rises toward H? How soon after starting does the gauge go to near the H? Do you see any significant amounts of white smoke coming out the tailpipe when you start the engine in the morning from cold? Was the repair done at a dealer or a radiator shop, of just a general mechanic? I ask because there is a special way you have to re-fill the system to avoid trapping air in it.
There are no sensors on the water pump, it is purely
nechanical. There is a coolant temp sensor which could be inaccurate, but the fact that the fan(s) come on means it is working. We can deal with that question later.
Which size of engine (L) is in the car. There are several possible reasons for what concerns you which I can better diagnose with your answers. Use the "thank/rate" tab to get back to me without having to wait for me to be 'available' for a question.
Roland
the gauge slowly rises after driving about 5-10 miles. coolant came out of the overflow bottle, losing some coolant seen it dripping underneath car where coolant bottle is. Thisnk that was from the overflow.the 2 fans come on before the gauge reads high. Didn't see a significant amount of white smoke from tailpipe. Car was taken to a general mechanic. after taking it back to shop after a week because the gauge was rising high. he said he had it running for a while had the rpms up and the gauge didn't rise past middle, tod me it probably had an air pocket and burped. I left the garage drove about 1/4 mile down road and the gauge started to rise, when I turned around to go back to garage, the gauge went down and up al little then back to normal where it stayed for 7 days and then seen coolant in the driveway. Drove it about 8 mi when it started to rise again. let it cool for more than an hour drove 1 1/2 mi. to gas station, removed coolant cap and it was boiling out the top of bottle. Haven't drivin in since.
Hi Denise,
The simplest possibility is that the coolant bottle pressure cap is leaking and not retaining pressure in the system. So take a look at the rubber gasket and and other parts on the underside of the cap. If that were the case, you would loose some coolant every time the system warms above 212 and so you would soon run low on coolant. It ahould not leak unless the temp gauge goes very near to H when the pressure will exceed its limit.
Also do observe the tail pipe after a cold start for signs of excessive white smoke, and let some of it condense on you hand and then see if it smells of anti-freeze. Let me know if that is the case.
Also, check the dipstick for whether the oil is clear or cloudy.
Also listen for bubbling while the engine is warming up.
The gauge will go down and up as the fans come on and off so that is normal.
Keep an eye on the bottle, check it every time you drive just to verify whether or not you are loosing coolant, and of course watch for anything under the car.
We need to verify the bottle cap is operating properly and that you don't have coolant coming out the tail pipe before going further.
Roland
