Just this last monday I purchased a 91 Camaro RS (305) for what I thought was a very good price. I've always dreamed of owning a camaro, and long wished to be able to own one, partially for the style but also because of the hobby.. well now I find out that I have a great deal of problems with this car, and who knows what else that I have not noticed yet. I don't know much about cars, beyond assisting in swapping boltons a few times (starters/alternators/stereo's amps etc) I've had no real engine experience, needless to say I find the idea rather daunting.. however this is the predicament that I find myself in.

I purchased the camaro with money from an insurance settlement that kept me from work, now that I am back to work the camaro is my daily driver until I can afford a beater for a work truck.. When I purchased the Camaro it had sat for a few months (winter in wisconsin isn't the nicest) and I had noticed that the upper radiator hose had developed a small leak around the thermostat cover plate, I'm reasonably sure that it is the upper radiator hose, but not positive.. that is what I originally noticed, when I first got the car, it ran like a charm.. for about 2-3 days. Now.. well.

The car overheats, hitting red (ove 220 on the factory gauge) quite quickly, it also seems to be losing oil from somewhere as well as the aforementioned coolant leak. When I had a friend of mine help me check the brakes to locate a squeal, he also checked over the car, somehow I failed to notice that my coolant is a wonderful brown color.

I've read as much as I can over these forums, I have read about the flushing concept, and that it seems to be typically eliminated by swapping out the factory radiatior for an after market aluminium one. My car also only has a single fan on the radiator, and I'm wondering if it wouldn't be a wiser investment of my meager funds to swap the radiator with an aftermarket aluminium one (suggestions for a good cheap place to buy something quality?) and at the same time replace the factory single fan with a double fan.. preferably going with the junker plans I believe Willie wrote up.. and also swapping my fan controller and thermostat to 180 degrees, as this seems to dramatically improve the cooling conditions. I have inspected my air dam, and it seems the car maintains a steady temperature (between 110 and 220 on the gauge) while on the highway. However at idle or in city driving the car quickly overheats.

I mentioned at the start of this post that I have not mechanically inclined, although I do want to learn the hobby I am quite intimidated by an engine, as corny as that sounds.. but I am. Watercooling a pc and overclocking.. sure no problem.. but cars? I'm just blah.. very nervous about doing any work myself and ending up with an even bigger mess than when I began.

How difficult is it to replace a radiator? The upper radiator hose leak and thermostat looks fairly easy.. I think.. although somebody said I had to use some type of compound on the thermostat gasket.. and that I had to be careful or I could permanetly mess up block by damaging the metal around the thermostat gasket.. gah.. I don't have alot of money, and with my job I drive long distances quite a bit, so I need to get this car fixed up and capable.

on the bright side, the engine only has 25000 miles on it from a rebuild... Any advice that you guys could offer would be greatly appreciated, thanks for reading this rather long winded post!
~Phil

 

Replacing the rad. is a piece of cake. If you want it cool, get AT LEAST the factory aluminum rad, if not an all aluminum rad. And get a lower fan temp switch as well.

 

I just went out and purchased a 180 degree thermostat from Autozone, called around in milwaukee and could only find the one place open today.. as for the lower temp switch I know that I will need to replace that, to pair it up with the lower temp thermostat, but will my car be alright to run for a few days with the lower temp thermostat and factory temp switch to the fans?

What are some suggestions for a solid aluminum replacement?

Also this might help some of you out, the best materials for radiators ideally would be silver (best heat transfer) followed by copper, and then aluminum.. my other question is I know with watercooling computers, water wetter needs to be used to prevent element corrosion (aluminum/copper mixing) do I need to worry about this is in my engine? As I'm sure there are a variety of different metal types that the coolant comes into contact with?

 

While true, copper transfers heat better than alum. look at the weight differences...

Flush the system thoroughly and use "green" coolant with water. If it still over heats, make sure the fan(S) work. Water wetter when its all done

 

Well! I successfully managed to swap out the thermostat, change the serpentine belt, air breather, air filter, and I purchased a flush kit (haven't used it yet) I've also replaced the upper rad hose that was leaking. I've noticed that even with the new 180 degree thermostat, my car continues to overheat, especially in city driving conditions.. Although by overheat it hits about 220 degrees by the factory gauge. I made sure that my fan does engage, by flipping the AC on. I've noticed that although there isn't much push thru the vents, the fan does engage. I've checked for debris that might be clogging the rad or elsewhere in the engine and haven't found anything. If anyone would offer up some pointers on what next to check, I'd really appreciate it!
~Phil

 

220 isnt overheating...

the red starts at 250 on my factory gauge.

We are talking about the coolant fans right? the stock dual fan setup should move quite a bit of air.

 

I should have stated this better lol!

The car on highway stays at about 160-180, at stoplights, drive thru, or even just city driving it creeps all the way into the red. (260)

As I mentioned before I only have the single electric? fan on my engine, its also a TBI 305 if that helps at all.. I'm quite exasperated at why this car is overheating, but then again that could also be-because of my lack of overall automobile knowledge. I just took the camaro out to run up to culvers for food, and just the 5 minutes I spent in the drive thru the engine dipped into the red, I ended up shutting it off to make sure it didn't over heat, I've also noticed a slight burning smell, not sure what to make of it, but it fills the garage after I shut off the engine and car.. really noticeable once the garage door goes down.

 

Even the single fan moves a lot of air. If the car is staying nicely cooled on the highway, its not really/likely to be a "chronic issue".

Make sure that fans does move good amount of air, may need a new motor.
May be time to switch to a dual fan setup.

My setup consists of a 195 stat, 31x19 2-row, (1) 10" and (1) 16" fans.

 

I read somewhere on this forum a supplies list for converting single fan to double fan.. I've been off work for the last 5 months with a broken foot, and after getting plowed in my probe by a f-250.. well this car is now my daily driver. I'm a mason by trade, and as a construction worker I go to a lot of different locations, average wear and tire? about 30-40 miles a day ont he engine, and with it overheating I'm a bit concerned. There is also the matter of all my bills that I need to catch up on.. I've been trying to keep my overhead costs as low as possible, any suggestions?

 

Sorry to hear of the luck (err bad luck). Pretty much all your symptons point to a non-capable fan. Maybe you should speed more (More airflow). Maybe swing by a junkyard, the one by me charges about $20 for a fan, just grab a couple motors or complete fans.

Good luck, you sound like you need it