I havea 3.5L 24v 1995 Chrysler LHS. It has 102k miles on it. Itsatin the garage for a long time and started using it again and suddenly it started overheating really bad. I took it toa local monkey garage shop they don't know what the hell they're talking about and only made it worse. First they told me that it was the thermostat, so they replaced it. Less than 2 days later, it overheated again. Took it back in. They suggested to flush the cooling system. I figured that since it sat in for almost 6 months, a lot of rust built up in the engine and needed to be cleaned out. That didn't work either(I think they only did a drap and fill). Then they said it must be a blown head gasket. I seriously doubted it, because there's no sign of it. There's no oil in the coolant and no coolant in the oil and no strange smells or smoke coming out of the tail pipe. So instead of saying yes to a $1,500 dollar job, I took it home and to check it out myself.

I noticed that when I turned on the heater inside the car that there is no heat. It was cold even while the engine temp gauge says it's atH, so I thought it was a failed water pump. (And, no there's nothing wrong with the heater core)the I'm really at a loss at this point.And get this, when I rechecked the thermostat, the damn thing was upside down! I bought a Fail safe 195 temp Thermastat and put in it's correct position, butit's still overheating. I evenpurged the air out of the system withan air evacuater to make sure there was enough coolant in the system and no air bubbles. Still no change, except the heater is now working, so obviously the water pump is still working.

The damn car will overheat in park if I let it runon idle for 10 minutes. I don't know what to do, besides try and replace the radiator.There's almost no point in having someone clean it out. These newer radiators don't have much clearence to be able to clean them. I maytry flushing out the coolant system myself.

Anyone have any suggestions?

Thanks, Michael

 

ok what kinda checks did u do as far as seeing if the water pump is working what kinda flow do u have?? the heater core is the pipes outside going into the fire wall hot? The headgasket blown is there coolant lost after it over heats, is it being pushed out of the over flow tank? do the fans come on when its over 220 temp? does the radiator feel hot as well from one hose to the other hose???

 

The firewall heater core is running fine and both fans are working fine. And yes, once the engine temp is above about 210 there's is lots of spillage from the overflow tube.

Iwould be able totell if there is coolant loss from a head gasket leak bychecking the oil and the look of the coolant. Both are what it should be. The oil level have been staying constant.When I had my Mustang, I did blow a head gasket and the oil level kept rising and coolant level kept lowering. It sucked.

I know the waterpump is working, because there's no evidence of leakagenor is there any sound of whinning or sound of bearing failure. I did check if thetube from the engine is hot, but I didn't think of checking the return line. I'll run the engine again and get back to you on that. I believe if it's cool or just luke warm, then that's the problem(or is it the other way around. I can't remember). If the radiator is blocked and there isn't sufficiant flow to cool the engine, one tube will be hoter than the other. From my own experience, when the car is running at normal temp, both lines should be just warm to the touch.

Thanks! Sometimes, I need to just talk out loud to think of things, but you actually gave me some helpful advice

 

the general rule for the head gasket is yes if one or more of ther other fluids is getting full or milkey then yes but it also depends on where the crack is located. If u have a crack on the water line then it will pusch out the fluid but that should also do that at any time not just when warmed up.

 

Alright. I checked the return line. Boy, it was tough just to check it. I had to remove the upper bracket, the fansto get enough clearence to get a good grip of it. Going from underneath the car was too cramped.

There's practically no water flow. So, I pulled out the radiator and used my pressure washer to blast out the junk and silicone build up.A lot ofreddishpink looking rudder bulid up was inthe radiator. It's flowing better, but I think it could be better.I really don't know what it should like like when it's flowing at full capacity. Idoubt I got all thegunk out.My dad said it's doubtful that I could get all the gunk out without rodding it out, but he was telling me about a productcalled RMI. It'sa solvent that will disolve the silcone build up and it might help, if I didn't want to take it in or buy a new radiator. Haveyou heard of this product?

Thanks! MJ

 

sorry i have not heard of the stuff but be aware of what u put in it might cause more trouble then its worth by making some stuff inside the engine come loose

 

This is what it is. I looked it up. I'm not sure what to think either. So many companies claim tso many things. I don't believe in most snakeoils, because everyone sells some form of it. I don't like adding things unless it's proven. I might buy it and add it while it's laying flat and then flush it out and then reinstall the radiator, but it says to add it while it's hooked up and run the engine for 30 to 40 minutes. Here's it's claims:
Power Flush - While you drive
RMI-25 and your water pump make an unparalleled combination for cleaning your entire cooling system.
Vehicle water pumps circulate from 2,500 to 9,000 gallons per hour, depending on the size or make of your vehicle. By just adding RMI-25 to your radiator, your water pump becomes a powerful cleaner, circulating thousands of gallons of cleaning solution through your engine cooling system while you drive.

And this automatic Power Flush requires:
NO draining and flushing
NO downtime, no shoptime, no labor costs
NO loss of antifreeze/coolant
NO 30-to-40-minute engine run time
NO harm to skin or eyes or to the environment
NO coolant gel problems
Just pour some in your radiator and drive away.
Remove 'em all the Easy Way
MINERAL DEPOSITS -- CORROSION -- RUST

THEY'RE THE MAJOR FACTORS IN ENGINE OVERHEATING
Just 1/16 inch of mineral deposit on 1 inch cast iron is equivalent to 4 1/2 inches of cast iron, reducing heat dissipation by 40%.
Corrosion deposits of any kind raise the engine operating temperatures.
A spot of rust raises the temperature inside an engine as much as 700 degrees, causing hot spots and loss of cooling efficiency.
RMI-25 cleans your engine cooling system's metal surfaces, then protects against cavitation erosion, electrolysis, pitting and further corrosion. RMI-25 promotes cooler operating and higher efficiency - and it does it while you drive, with no labor costs.
Antifreeze/Coolant is Only Partial Protection
Everyone knows an engine needs water and antifreeze/coolant to protect it from freezing and boil-over.
But worn out antifreeze/coolant can actually damage an engine even though a hydrometer shows it has plenty of protection left against freeze-up and boil-over.
Antifreeze requires changing only because the inhibitors against rust and corrosion dissipate, the "freeze-up" protection doesn't wear out.
RMI-25 extends the life of expensive antifreeze by replacing the inhibitors - and you still are protected against freeze-up. At the same time, RMI-25 gives you all the other protection against cavitation erosion, electrolysis and pitting, as well as lubricating water pump seals and stabilizing pH.
Treat yourself to savings three ways with RMI-25:

Save on the cost of new antifreeze!
Save on the cost of hazardous waste disposal!
Save 80% on water filter replacements! [/ol]

Cooling System Treatment

For all Gasoline, Diesel & Propane Engines

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RMI-25 makes engines run cooler, greatly prolonging engine life



One easy application - just pour some in your radiator and drive away



One 8 ounce bottle treats 5 gallon capacity radiator

Before RMI-25

After RMI-25

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RMI-25 Radiator Treatment 8oz
Qty: Price: $8.95

RMI-25 Radiator Treatment Qt
Qty: Price: $19.95

RMI-25 8oz case (24)
Qty: Price: $168.00



RMI-25 Qt case (12)
Qty: Price: $228.00

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almost as much as a new radiator your call