Head Gasket or Cooling system?

Hello, first off, I should introduce myself to the forum.....I'm a 23 year old from Canada with what I would call a rookie level of experience....meaning I can change brakes, etc but nothing major. I've read similar posts and given the excellent feedback provided, I thought I'd give it a shot.

Any way, my problem is that my car is continually over heating. I've checked for antifreeze in the oil.......no sign of (also, not really any loss of antifreeze), there isn't any white steam coming out of my exhaust or anything that resembles it. Now, my fan isn't coming on, but it hasn't for a while and I've never really overheated until now. The car had sat for about 7 months because of a lack of insurance, license, etc. I've put about $1500 into it in the past couple months, hoping not to have to put another grand into it. I'm gonna change the oil soon, doubting this would have much to do with the overheating, or would it??? (like I said, i'm a rookie :)). Anyway, any help with this would be GREATLY appreciated. Essentially, I guess I just want to be armed with some ideas before I head to a garage so they don't make me think it is the head gasket.

Thanks!!

What Year? model? and how hot is it getting? could be the thermostat. water pump. air in the cooling system, but let us know what year and the engine.might be able to help more.

Sorry about that, i just realized I left that out. The year is 96, 2.2 engine. It gets as high as the red. I shut it off when it gets that high, so I'm not too sure what happens afterward.

well i am not to familier with that motor but i would try to make sure the fan fuse is ok. the sensor is good. and also make sure your thermostat is working properly. if it isnt opening and. and also make sure your water pump is pumping.

Does it overheat in traffic or on the highway, or both?

Thermostat or obstructed radiator will overheat ALL the time. Make sure there is nothing exterior blocking the radiator-bag, bugs,etc... Interior flow of the radiator can be somewhat observed down the cap when flusing and filling.

If it overheats in traffic only then check the fan, sensor, relay and fuse. If it is the fan,fuse or relay it typically would not overheat on the highway.

If it only overheats at highway speed then look for a loose belt, collapsing bottom radiator hose, or low coolant level.

Well, I only drive in the city, so I guess it overheats in traffic, especially when I'm idling at a stop light. Water pump was just replaced not too long ago, and I'm not losing any coolant, which I constantly monitor.

my 96 cavalier is having the same problem, im anxious to see what happens with yours

You say the fan is not working, that would be the frist thing to fix. If it is over heating in traffic and the fan is not work, then this is the problem. take it out on the freeway and see if it over heats if it does not then you will know for sure it is an air flow problem (FAN)

This is were I would start.

You may want to try a flush and fill of the anti-freeze. If there is an air bubble in the system, the water pump will have a difficult time moving the liquid around effectively.

When you say overheat,does it go outside of the normal operating range and into the "red zone"? The reason I ask all of this is because I replaced my head gasket on my 97, 2.2L and until I drained and refilled the anti-freeze, it would run hot. Once I correctly flushed and filled the radiator and cooling system, I no longer had the overheating problem.

Hope it helps...

change the thermastat

I actually had a very similar problem. First thing I did was flush the radiator fluid, that was a temporary fix. Then I picked up a waterpump and thermostat and had my mechanic install them. That made a big difference in temperature. Temps are good now, just about perfect, except when I'm not moving, it tends to get a notch over halfway on the hotside. So try a new thermostat, but you might as well throw in a new waterpump while your at it. Good luck :wink:

Hello, first off, I should introduce myself to the forum.....I'm a 23 year old from Canada with what I would call a rookie level of experience....meaning I can change brakes, etc but nothing major. I've read similar posts and given the excellent feedback provided, I thought I'd give it a shot.

Any way, my problem is that my car is continually over heating. I've checked for antifreeze in the oil.......no sign of (also, not really any loss of antifreeze), there isn't any white steam coming out of my exhaust or anything that resembles it. Now, my fan isn't coming on, but it hasn't for a while and I've never really overheated until now. The car had sat for about 7 months because of a lack of insurance, license, etc. I've put about $1500 into it in the past couple months, hoping not to have to put another grand into it. I'm gonna change the oil soon, doubting this would have much to do with the overheating, or would it??? (like I said, i'm a rookie :)). Anyway, any help with this would be GREATLY appreciated. Essentially, I guess I just want to be armed with some ideas before I head to a garage so they don't make me think it is the head gasket.

Thanks!!


if u dont see any steam or antifreeze comming outta the head or any residues on the oil then ur head gasket is ok

try flushing the cooling system and change termostat

check the fan sensor or switch to see why the fan isnt comming on

those might be the problems after sitting for long maybe antifreeze went bad and need a flush and now that u r there termostat is a must

I actually had a very similar problem. First thing I did was flush the radiator fluid, that was a temporary fix. Then I picked up a waterpump and thermostat and had my mechanic install them. That made a big difference in temperature. Temps are good now, just about perfect, except when I'm not moving, it tends to get a notch over halfway on the hotside. So try a new thermostat, but you might as well throw in a new waterpump while your at it. Good luck :wink:


throw in a water pump? they aren't the cheapest thing to replace... and he said he already changed that recently..

throw in a water pump? they aren't the cheapest thing to replace... and he said he already changed that recently..

I don’t mean to disagree with you seeing as I am new here, but a water pump for the same engine in my car was 34 dollars and it came with a new gasket and a little tube of gasket sealant.

now for ur fan not going on u should check the fan relay it might be blown.