Vinscully50

So my ignition lock cylinder is bad and my car got stuck on. In order to turn it off I pulled the FP/INJ 2 fuse.

The car died but I saw some mild smoke coming out of the front passenger side of the hood. I opened it and there was steam coming from the overflow tank while the coolant was overflowing.

I let the car cool down for awhile and It fired up again on the first turn of the key. I took it for a short drive and it drove fine.

What could have caused this to get a little hot?

Also what fuse am I suppose to pull to turn off a car? Is it the FP one?

Tuned Performance

iTrader: (92)

Ecm fuse would work or unplug the power to the ignition coil. The fp fuse is next to the battery that kills some backup power to the ecm as well.
Not sure why you had the overheating issue unless you removed the relays power or ecms power.

John in RI

iTrader: (167)

I agree with Brian,....... Pull the ECM/IGN fuse. Safer & easier than dealing with anything under the hood. Pulling INJ2 fuse only kills 1/2 of the injectors.

sofakingdom

iTrader: (1)

Whatever "overheating" there might have been going on, it is unrelated to pulling the fuse.

The car should have died within a second or 2 after disabling the fuel system. Not long enough to affect the coolant temp.

I'd suggest, as far as the steam and boiling and all that, replace the radiator cap.

Vinscully50

I had the ignition switch replaced the day after I made this thread. The car has run fine since then.

Today I took it out for a long drive. Got home, about a block away from my house I stopped to talk to a good buddy. I had the car parked in his driveway still running and way talked for about 30 mins.

After 30 mins we both began to smell fluid.

I popped the hood and the coolant was again overflowing in the overflow tank. The water pump's pulley was still spinning normally, no leaks as far as I can tell.

Should I replace the cap? What cap do I buy?

My friend said there might be blockage. What this involve replacing the hoses? Also what about the Thermostat?

John in RI

iTrader: (167)

The cap should open and begin spilling over-heated coolant into the overflow tank shortly after the needle gets into the red. IIRC the stock cap is rated @ 15 lbs.

To check the thermostat; start the car cold and let it warm up till about 160 degrees,... then grab hold of the upper hose and wait there till you feel the coolant begin to flow. ( the hose will get Hot. ) Once it opens take a look at the temp gauge and get a reading. ( temp gauges are prone to be "off" a little. ) The hose should get hot at about the same temp as the thermostat rating.


I'm guessing that your electric fan isn't working properly. An 86 TPI fan is controlled by the ECM thru a relay.

Vinscully50

Honestly I don't think my electric fan works either. In the last 3 and a half years since I've owned the car I'm not sure if it ever has.

I did some searching on this forum. A lot of posts saying if the fan isn't coming on it's usually the relay. (some times it's the switch). I know where the switch is located, for the relay it's by the firewall but i'm not sure which one is which (none are labeled).

Is replacing the relay as simple as unscrewing and unplugging the old? Or is there more too it?

John in RI

iTrader: (167)

Try 'jumping' 12 volt power to the fan motor to see if it works. If it works than the fan is OK.

The ECM should send a switched ground to the relay. Pretty sure it's a green wire @ the relay. ( might be green/white ) "Jump" a ground wire from anywhere on the body to that green/white wire and see if the fan kicks on. If it doesn't work than you probably need a relay. ( Should check fro power - usually orange - and ground - black - at the relay too.) If it DOES work than the ECM might not be sending the ground signal and probably needs to be replaced.

henryd3

iTrader: (128)

Before you start replacing stuff at random start at the beginning. Try applying
12 volts to the fan itself. If that doesn't work you have your answer. If it does with key on switch the HVAC controller to A/C or defrost. If that works the relay is fine. Don't know how original your wiring is so it might take some tracing. The green with white stripe wire going to the fan relay is grounded when either the computer gets the turn on temp from info provided by the CTS or the HVAC slider is on one of the two positions mentioned earlier. If that is not happening you have wiring to trace. Fan relay also needs to be getting 12 volts with key on and power in and out to run the fan. Power comes through a fusible link down by the battery junction area. If that voltage is not making it there your fan can't run either. Happy hunting

OOPS sorry about duplicate info. John types faster than me apparently

Vinscully50

How exactly do I jump 12 volts to the fan?

Also the ECM was replaced 6 months ago with a brand new one. So it should still be fine right?

Would this likely be the relay then?

It seems like my car starts to get hot when sitting or in bumper to bumper traffic. Not when actually driving.

John in RI

iTrader: (167)

Probably a good idea to let a professional look at the car.



I understand your looking for help, but these are very simple things and if you don't have a handle on them after the input given to you here,...... you need someone that knows what they are doing to touch the car.

Vinscully50

I understand. I've learned a lot through being on here but no one in my neighborhood is mechanically inclined (either am I for that matter) or works on cars. Either does my Dad.

I've always wanted to learn how to work on cars but I don't have anyone teach me. I try to learn from here and YouTube but I can't always figure things out.

There is one shop that I trust but it's an hour and a half away and probably won't be able to get in until early March or maybe at the end of this month. He installed the ECM 6 months ago when my car was having a problem where it died after I stepped on the gas.

If the ECM is bad it will be under warranty. Either way he will figure it out. He owns a C4 Corvette and is a bit of an expert on the TPI cars.