heres the story.i was driving home one night,and i leave from a light(maybe a little harder than i should've)and i look in my rear view mirror and all i see is a ton of smoke.the temperature was all the way up to the red.steam was coming out of the hood on all sides and out the rear.when i got home i parked it and then smoke started just bellowing out the hood.i thought it mighta been a blown head gasket but theres no coolant in the oil.and after a few days of letting it sit when the weekend came around and i had the time to look at it i didnt see anything that could be wrong,so i started it up and it ran fine for a minute or two,then i saw steam(antifreeze)coming up from the passenger side so i shut the car off and came out and took a look and all i heard was antifreeze bubbling.is there some type of heater hose down there that could have blown off or something?what does this sound like it could be?

 

Thermostat.

 

yeah your tstat isnt opening, get a new one and ur problem is fixed

 

i put a thermostat in it a few months ago.the smoke is coming from underneath on the passengers side of the engine.and after i started it up after it happened,i topped off the antifreeze and it all leaked on the ground in about 2 minutes.still sound like the stat?

 

Maybe you should pop the hood and look to see where the coolant is coming from. Ya know, so you can ask what this is and we can tell you how to fix it.

I had a similar problem, only on the passenger side. My heater control valve had a small crack that would only open under pressure. Not much would come out, but it would go onto the exhaust and start steaming real good. However it could be several things, line heater core lines, the block itself, etc that could cause it. Try to find the leak and post what it looks like it's coming from, the "passenger side" is pretty vague.

 

I didnt mean to be vague by the passengers side.when i said it i meant the passengers side of the engine,its very hard to see anything down there though.i hope its not a cracked block

 

Sounds like you water pump is not circulating any water at all. Or you may have a ruptured hose.

 

as in ruptured hose i assume u mean either the top or bottom radiator hoses.i never thought about that.i guess today ill get down there and see where the leak/steam is coming from and let u guys know asap.thnx for the help guys

 

I have a similar problem. When sitting in traffic for 15 minutes or so the temp starts to go up, so I take the next exit and take some back roads to cool it down. Ive squeezed the hoses and I can hear the thermostat click, and coolant rush into the resivor. Anyone have any tips for me? Thanks

 

The passenger side of the engine has the heater hose assembly, heater core, and freeze out plugs. Coolant could come from any of these. The overheat in three minutes could be a cracked cylinder head. Small block heads can crack in the combustion chamber, only symptom is causing compression to leak into the coolant over pressuring the system causing coolant leaks and quick overheating. There are two tests for the problem. Remove radiator cap and start the engine. If it immediately, excessively overflows the radiator, this confirms the damage. Second pick up a test you can purchase at a local good parts store for diagnosing this condition by means of testing for combustion gas traces in the coolant.

 

i came home and decided i was gonna take a look at this thing.so i top off the coolant and start it up and after about a minute,maybe less i look on the ground and i see all the coolant running down the street.then i go up to the engine and i hear antifreeze bubbling.then i take a look at the passengers side head and theres antifreeze all around the front part of the valve cover.i think this confirms a blown head gasket or cracked head.this sucks

 

Your still not telling us where this massive coolant leak is coming from, you still need to visually confirm where it is originating from. This could be the intake, THE HEATER CONTROL VALVE like my problem was(cheap part that takes $20 and 5 minutes to replace) or any number of things. If it's on the valve cover it's unlikely it's the head, though it is possible.

 

You know what, it's not the head gasket, it's an external leak that's cheap and easy to fix. You just have to pop the hood and look.

 

well i finally got some time to actually visually inspect the engine in daylight.after lookin and lookin at the sides and bottom i finally went to the top of the engine and noticed the heater control valve had one of the connections cracked off and the hose missing.so after all this im glad it was just a 20.00 part.thnx for all ur help guys.i really appreciate it

 

only one week to fix a simple leak !

 

i've spent more time on simpler things. sometimes not being adept at working on cars earlier in life makes simple fixes much harder. at least the kid is out there trying to fix his car.

 

ya thats good. i was just thinking that a quick look under the hood shoulda been obvious. oh well, glad he is back on the road.

 

hey joe, since no one else will do it.... THANKS!

 

thanks joe!!

 

u guys r right.but i work during the day and when i get home its usually dark outside,and the way the control valve was broken it looked like one of the connections was still on there cuz the hose was still in place.but nonetheless,its fixed!
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and im no kid im 21,lol.ive done many things to this car myself.brakes,alternator,starter,all ignition parts,shocks,radiator,open element,but im still a beginner