91 z28 350

im gonna make this as brief as i can im tired as hell

car overheated badly tonight and radiator cap was shootin out steam. there was a puddle of what i wud say has to be coolant under my car (smell, it was to dark to see color) and now my temp guage is all messed up. i let the car cool down and drove it home later and it was def cooled cause the heat wasnt warm yet and the temp guage was peggin all the way when i was stepping on the gas and it would drop only too 220 when i let go of the gas. my normal opp. temp when driving is 170-180.

what should i check for damage considering there was coolant on the ground? and whats up with my temp guage?

 

Any hose, look at the lower rad hose they get beat up pretty badly. Look for a crack in the side tanks on the rad(very common). If you lost enough coolant steam in the system will cause the guage to go nuts until the system is properly refilled. Don't forget the possibility of a bad rad cap also. Best way to troubleshoot is to use a pressure tester, it reveals leaks without running the risk of overheating the engine. Some places like autozone lend tools.