i just bought a 92 rs with a 305 automatic last week i live up on a mountain (crestline, ca) and its a good 20-30 min drive up the mountain (hwy 18) ive only driven this car up the mountain twice now. the first time i made the mistake and left the ac on . i noticed the steam coming from beneath the hood once i got over the last hill let it cool down and everything was fine. today i drove from sandiego to crestline. during peak traffic... took me 3 hours. stopped 3 times going up the mountain to let it cool down also had the heater on (was told that it helps cooling??) no steam this time but once i started going down hill into town the car shut down (brakes got stiff, power steering stopped...) pulled over to the side temp was at mid gauge 220. started the car and it died again started it again got 30 feet down the road and it died again... it died one last time before i got it home. my question was did it die because of overheating?
i just had a new oil change and fluid check earlier this week. and the mechanic said that i got numerous oil leaks under the car. but it holds oil i check it daily. the engine has 185k miles on it and i really enjoy driving it. so any tips on where i should begin with getting the car to peak performance would be great too thanks

p.s. after about 5-10 min of city driving i get the service engine soon light. and yes i have a good mechanic but he is out of the country till next month.

 

Reason why it turned off on you---
Ignition Module. There this little white grease under the ignition module, when your car overheats so is the ignition module, or it could be the coil. Go take ignition module to autozone and get it check. Use a paperclip and check the engine light too.

 

first do you still have your shroud underneth your car right below the radiator, this could cause overheating

 

by shroud are you talking about a plastic skirt that hangs down from below the radiator? if that is it should i remove it?
and tomorrow i will take the car into town and get the ignition module checked.

 

The piece that bolts to the underside of the radiator mount, the air dam--
I would leave it on. If it's there, make sure it's not bent backwards from too
many curb shots.
There are alot of members that run without it with no issues.

Agree you should get the engine code soon!!! May be nothing
serious, but you will know when you get it checked.

Good luck & keep us updated

 

Here's the "paperclip" diagnostic method to get the Service Engine Soon codes:

https://www.thirdgen.org/service-eng...ht-error-codes

 

thank you. went to the local mechanic today... he wanted 75 bucks just to diagnose the engine codes . told hime ill just do it with a paper clip

 

---------------update with trouble codes---------------------
ok so i did the paper clip trouble code check and only got 3 codes as follows

flash flash pause flash flash flash = 23; low temp at manifold air temp sensor or throttle position sensor

flash flash flash pause flash flash = 32; Fault in barometric pressure sensor circuit OR Fault in exhaust gas recirculation valve diagnostic switch OR Fault in electronic vacuum regulator valve

flash flash flash flash flash pause flash flash flash = 53; High voltage at battery OR High voltage at exhaust gas recirculation valve OR Voltage reference error OR Problem at vehicle anti-theft system
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
for code 53 i do know that the vehicle has an anti theft product installed that involves a sensor on my key chain that i have to put next to a sensor under the steering column in order to start the engine. it also has a new battery. but code 53 and 32 could go hand in hand as they both involve the egr valve

as for the other codes any ideas on what i should take care of first?