I need some help with this; the other day my heater control valve broke (one of the inlet tubes snapped)...so I replaced it (on the side of the highway ). Then the temp gauge started doing funny things...slowly overheating. So I finally made it to an auto parts store, grabbed a new thermostat (180 degree) and some coolant. I replaced the thermostat last night with a new gasket. The gasket has a sticky side and a paper side. I put sticky side down and installed the new stat. Now it runs alot cooler (@160) when I am on the highway, but as soon as I idle for a while, the temp starts creeping back up. I checked the engine, sometimes both fans run, and sometimes they dont. I also noticed that I'm leaking alot of coolant from where I installed the new stat. The bolts are tight enough but air and coolant keep leaking out.

Did I install the gasket wrong? and if I did, would fixing it correct my prob?

I went to the dealer and asked about fan relay switches. There are two components; a fan relay and a fan switch. Which one would I need if there was a fan problem?

Anyone please help.

 

I had almost the same problem last week. I replaced the stat and it was leaking even though I tightened it as much as humanly possible. I took the housing back off and took of the gasket. I bought this liquid gasket stuff and it worked perfect. Also, a buddy of mine told me that sometimes the paper gaskets need to soak up the coolant in order for it to make a good seal. I can take a little bit. I didnt feal like waiting to see if he was right.
Hope this helps.

Brian

 

ok...I plan on removing the housing tonight and I'll try that liquid gasket. Yeah I can see why you did not want to wait. Thanks

 

Make sure bothe surfaces are clean before you apply the sealer.and make sure the stat is sitting correctly .

 

MAKE SURE YOU PUT THE STAT. IN FIRST ------ there is a recess in the intake for the stat. to sit in then put the gasket over it and install the neck.

 

Make sure the Surfaces are clean, and just use a thin layer of RTV to get it to seal.

 

Ok...I bought a new paper gasket (decided not to use liquid). Removed the housing, and sure enough I had put the gasket down first and obviously missed the thermostat seat - well it was getting dark when I first did this .

So anyway I cleaned up both surfaces with a blade, laid the stat in its rightful place, placed the paper gasket down and slapped on the housing, bolts and connected all hoses.

No leaking!!

Drove her all day today. She's not leaking coolant but I'm still a little sketchy on her temp. The needle seems to hover between 220 and 230 at stop-lights and on the highway or open road, there is no problem.

Is this unusual or does everybody operate in the same temp range? I do live in Texas and its hotter down here.

 

That is pretty damn hot there. You are going to blow a head gasket soon. I would say that you need to hardwire a fan to a switch. Just flip the switch when you are in town. If that is not it then maybe your water pump is not working right.

 

I talked to someone about fan switches and got negative feedback...something about the switches f*cking up after a while. And I have no idea how to do install one. I just wish the car would run like it should with 'normal' parts.

I could see a water pump problem. Is there anyway to figure out exactly if this is the problem?

 

I live in Tx also and have always had a hot running eng (220+)when going slow with the A/C on. I've tried just abt everything.
New 3 core radiator, water pump, sys flush, 160,180, 195 deg t-stats, super heavy duty fan clutch, fan clutch eliminator and heavy duty 7 blade flex fan (blows a ton of air!) , air dam at few different angles, an extra elec fan in front of the A/C condensor, distilled water instead of tap water, removed insulation from under hood, sealed every small gap I could find between fan shroud and radiator, all no real help with slow speed + A/C overheating.
I've recently heard that the Edelbrock alum water pumps will help a lot. That will be my next attempt at solving my chronic issue.

On the t-stat leaking:
My dad showed me how to perform a red-neck milling.
Find some relatively smooth concrete, hold flat surface of housing down aginst the concrete with moderate press and slide the housing in 1 foot circles. Check the flat surface after every 5 rounds or so. If warped (like from overthightening) this will show it and fix it. Usually abt 10-15 rounds and your done.
Finding the right roughness of concrete is the hardest part. Too smooth and it won't remove the high spots, too rough and it will gouge the surface.

I always use a gasket with a very thin layer of sealant on both sides. Clean sealing surfaces with alcohol and the sealant will stick like crazy.
Never had one leak after the above processes.

It shouldn't take a lot of torque on the t-stat housing bolts to seal.

 

hey bro..hopes this helps....my car breaks down like this...driver fan is controlled by the computer chip...passenger fan is controlled by thermal switch in right hand cylinder head...my car overheated as well..learning that the fans would not come on until some *** awful temp set from the factory...i replaced the chip with one from hyper tech....and a cooler fan switch from hyper tech...along with a 160 deg stat...only reason i run one that cool is because that is what the new chip calls for...had system flushed and wow..no overheating..gotta love it...hope that helps bro..later

 

I love my set up alot. I just go by my gauge and set my fan to turn on a certian tempature. I have it set on 200* and my car runs 160 on the highway and in traffic is usually around 195ish.

 

OK....I've ordered a Hypertech cool fan switch from thunderracing.com. Comes on at 200 and off at 180. It should take care of the prob. The car will not get above 237 as it is. I watch the guage closely. And 237 is the factory set temp for the fans to turn on (they like em to run hot for emissions). So, It appears that everything is operating as it should, even though it runs at higher temps than I might like. So, by replacing the switch, I should be in an acceptable operating temp range (fingers crossed).

At any rate, I plan on gettign a new engine soon with an alum water pump (gives 20 degree coolant temp drop). If the switch does not do it, that sure as hell will.


I'll keep you guys posted.

Thanks for all replies and advice.