ownor

iTrader: (5)

hi,

i recently drove my firebird formula with the L03 in it and got into trouble when taking a sharp turn at higher speed, ending up spinning on the road, but luckily no serious damage at all *phew* but by the time i stopped i realised the coolant was boiling and the temp was way over 220°F i stopped the engine and after it had cooled down a bit under 220 F i started my way back home, but soon i realised it was already getting hotter and hotter again.. i really had to drive at very low rpm to avoid temps going over something like 240F+

i already checked coolant for oil indicating a blown head gasket but could only notice a very strange color of the coolant, but it wasn't oil. i got some coolant into a transparent bottle and let it rest: it would turn black at the bottom while showing a pink, ATF-like color on the upper end.. after shaking the bottle it would mix again and get a dark brownish color.
btw, i drained some oil as well and couldn't find any traces of water in there.. i have also checked ignition timing and installed a cooler 180°F thermostat, but nonetheless it would get the cooling boiling after a kickdown and hitting 4+ krpm..

can you give me any further tips to trace down the reason for this overheating trouble?

rocko350

sounds like cross contamination from the trans cooler in the radiator and the coolant in the rad. the trans fliud is at a higher pressure than the coolant making it force its way past the cap and "boiling off" and when it cools it either sucks atf into coolant or an air bubble. check your atf, probably black from coolant contamination.if this is only a recent problem, atf shouldnt smell burned, just be discolored. radiator repair and trans flush in your future. also check oil, hopefully it doesnt look like a chocolate milkshake(coolant in oil)

good luck
chris

steve8586iroc

You could also have a lot of rust in the system if you haven't driven the car very much. If everything checks out ok after flushing and replacing the coolant, if you don't have trans fluid in the coolant, check the water pump and also the area between the radiator and the a/c condensor if you have one. It's a graet place to store leaves and such.

Steve

rocko350

you have correctly identified trans fluid in the coolant. reread my reply and check your trans fluid for contamination. will have turned atf black and may not smell burned yet. renew radiator and flush and fill both trans and coolant.

ownor

iTrader: (5)

hi,
thanks for your replies! i'm as well of the opinion that crosscontamination occured.. i checked atf and it IS actually dark like it got burnt a bit!
i will flush trans and cooling and check radiator. any tips how to repair the rad best? of course, buying a new one would be easier i guess but can i just repair it by myself, too?

thanks