over heated lt-1 am i screwed?

murphys law took place this weekend. One hr before i leave to go to a wedding im at a stop light and notice my check gauges light comes on. I look at the temp and its totally redlined! So im like FUCK! light finally turns green so i pull right into wallmart(where i was going just before the wedding). I cut the engine and coast into a parking space. Just before i cut the engin i heard a whining noise come from the engine. I pop the hood and there is antifreeze everywhere and i see that the lead wire for my electric water pump is ripped out. So i get the pump working quickly, run into walmart and grab some premix antifreeze. Im doing all this in a suit and tie mind you. I loosen the over fill cap and see the coolent level is near the top. So, it won't take anymore coolent. I open the bleed valves and turn on the engine to try to get the coolent movin again, cuz i know i have an air block somewhere--i just lost way too much liquid. The engine temp goes right back to redline. The pump is turned on with the first click of the ignition, so i turn on just the pump with the engine off. The air bleed nuts won't stop pissing air out of the system. So, i have a shit load of air getting into the coolent system, and no coolent moving thru the engine at all. So, before i ripp the engine bay apart looking for the source...how fucked am i? Did i possibly crack a head or could it just be a hose?
That egine squeal made me really scared that something is really fucked.

94 lt1 350

Sorry, but I can't answer a post with a lot of stupid swearing in it.
Maybe if you start posting in a manner which won't offend people... ?

sorry i don't live in the bible belt man, here in NY, we swear. Im sorry if it offends you, but i just need some help. If you can't help me because of the way i speak, then just move on.

I certainly will move on and talk to people who speak English and not gutter language. I'm sure there are plenty of people in NY who don't swear (I have relatives who live there).
I think this board should censor foul language- most message boards don't allow it. A lot of children read these car-type message boards.

I certainly will move on and talk to people who speak English and not gutter language. I'm sure there are plenty of people in NY who don't swear (I have relatives who live there).
I think this board should censor foul language- most message boards don't allow it. A lot of children read these car-type message boards.

Yeah, cuz so many children are having problems with thier power wheels over heating, they could bennifit from reading this thread. Damn toys r us and everything they make!

A lot of folks think that if they do something other folks don't like, it's the other person's problem

Personally, I was a Teamster for eight years and I know swears you've never dreamt of

That said, I think it's pretty arrogant and rude to respond to somebody like that. You're asking for help here- act appreciative and respect other folks' feelings and maybe you'll get better results

I don't give a rats ass about your language, my Mom can swear worse than you. But I will say you're missing out on the whole "help me" thing with your attitude, which is counter-productive to solving your problem. Not the smartest thing to do :screwy:

About your problem- a few questions

1) What's your system rated to in psi- it should be on the rad cap

2) do you have a little stock electrical gauge? In a '94, I wouldn't expect an electric gauge to be anything like accurate, plus now it's old. I know eletric gauges nowadyas can be as good as mechanical ones, but in '94...I doubt it. I'd be interested to knopw what temp you really saw on the engine

3) do you have the chassis manual for the car? My advice for all car enthusiasts is to get the factory repair and chassis manuals, and the assembly manual if possible. They are available. I have all the books for my '70 Buick, right down to the dealer service bulletin book. Try Year One, they sell stuff for newer cars now, and if they don't have the manuals, they may be able to steer you in the right direction. I suggest this because there has to be a procedure for getting the air pocket out, and it will be in the manuals. get the real manuals, Chilton's and Haynes...blow compared to the real thing, especially Haynes in my opinion, which I beleive now owns Chiltons

4) How mechanical are you? You can get UV dye and light systems to check coolant leaks, they are not very hard to use


A lot of things could have happened...or nothing. Hard to tell without looking at it

A lot of folks think that if they do something other folks don't like, it's the other person's problem

Personally, I was a Teamster for eight years and I know swears you've never dreamt of

That said, I think it's pretty arrogant and rude to respond to somebody like that. You're asking for help here- act appreciative and respect other folks' feelings and maybe you'll get better results

I don't give a rats ass about your language, my Mom can swear worse than you. But I will say you're missing out on the whole "help me" thing with your attitude, which is counter-productive to solving your problem. Not the smartest thing to do :screwy:

About your problem- a few questions

1) What's your system rated to in psi- it should be on the rad cap

2) do you have a little stock electrical gauge? In a '94, I wouldn't expect an electric gauge to be anything like accurate, plus now it's old. I know eletric gauges nowadyas can be as good as mechanical ones, but in '94...I doubt it. I'd be interested to knopw what temp you really saw on the engine

3) do you have the chassis manual for the car? My advice for all car enthusiasts is to get the factory repair and chassis manuals, and the assembly manual if possible. They are available. I have all the books for my '70 Buick, right down to the dealer service bulletin book. Try Year One, they sell stuff for newer cars now, and if they don't have the manuals, they may be able to steer you in the right direction. I suggest this because there has to be a procedure for getting the air pocket out, and it will be in the manuals. get the real manuals, Chilton's and Haynes...blow compared to the real thing, especially Haynes in my opinion, which I beleive now owns Chiltons

4) How mechanical are you? You can get UV dye and light systems to check coolant leaks, they are not very hard to use


A lot of things could have happened...or nothing. Hard to tell without looking at it

I talked to a few engine guys about it. Most are telling me its the head gasket. Mostly because of the fact that when the engine is on, air is getting in. When the engine is off and the pump is on the air eventually bleeds out.

So, the first thing i need is some time to get in there and really take stuff out and poke around. I was think about the UV dye kit--it makes sense to go that route first. Im still new to engines, but im very mechanic savy. I can deffinatly swing a wrench. I have a tons of tools and am a fast learner.

If the heads have to come off becuase of this, i plan on doing alot of research so i can put an agressive cam setup in and port and polish the heads.

Good thinking on the heads. If they have to come off...you may as well get them improved. I am wrestling with this idea myself because I'm degreeing my cam. I can do it on the #1 intake valve stem...but I'd rather get on the piston top. Can't decide. I have a wet intake manifold so it's messy

If you have a digital camera- take lots and lots of photos. Sometimes, even I stare at a vacuum line and wonder where it went- and I have zero emission controls and no engine computer. I've had the engine in this car since '91, you'd think after tearing it apart twice and yanking the engine a dozen time, I'd remember where stuff went!

Get a whole bunch of ziplock baggies and a permanent marker. Label the bolts as to where they went. If at all possible, thread the bolts back into things they came out of, and you'll never forget which long bolt went where, or where that extra stubby bolt should have gone

If the heads do come off, you may get little bits of crud on the piston tops just from monkeying around, or scraping the old gasket off, and that stuff seems to get between the pistons, top ring, and cylinder wall. A wet/dry vac can get most of it. To get the rest, a trick I use is to get a deck of playing cards. You can get a card between the piston and cylinder wall, right on top of the top ring, and get the last little bits of uck out. I really like the fel-pro gaskets, never had a head gasket failure on a V8 with only 10 head bolts per side (well, I switched to studs which give more clamping force with the same torque but can be a pain when removing the heads) and 10.1:1 compression:thumbsup:

Talked to another engine guy today, he said i need to do a compression check. I heard about a tool that does this, but how much does it cost and how easy is it to use? I assume this is checking the vacume in the heads? So, if i had a leaky head gasket, it would be obvious with this tool right?

Did some piliminary research on different kinds of LT1s out there, seems its not that easy cuz in diff parts of '94 there were several diff variations of this engine and diff heads. Great, now i gotta get a note book and write all this info down......sigh....

As my mother always said---school cost money.

There's a couple type of compression testers. I don't want to confuse you about them, I suggest asking this person who's telling you to check compression to explain. Essentially you're seeing how much pressure the closed cylinder holds

It will indicate a loss of pressure, could come from a head gasket, bad valve or guide, broken rings, hole in a piston...

For the engine ID, didn't GM do this through the VIN in the '90s? Check, it may make IDing the engine easier

There's a couple type of compression testers. I don't want to confuse you about them, I suggest asking this person who's telling you to check compression to explain. Essentially you're seeing how much pressure the closed cylinder holds

It will indicate a loss of pressure, could come from a head gasket, bad valve or guide, broken rings, hole in a piston...

For the engine ID, didn't GM do this through the VIN in the '90s? Check, it may make IDing the engine easier

ok im looking at this one at summit check it out and lemme know what u think. Comes with all the stuff (to my knowledge). With these i have to pull all the plugs and test each cylinder right?

http://store.summitracing.com/default.asp?Ntt=compression+tool&Ntk=KeywordSearch&DDS=1&searchinresults=false&N=0&target=egnsearch.asp

That link told me 'no matches found'

I typed in 'compression tester' and found seven matches. Yeah, that's the tool, but you can get better ones. Ask the lt-1 guys


I am unfamiliar with your engine. But bear in mind that certain heads require tapered plugs, and some do not. No matter what kind you get, make sure you can screw it into your plug holes. If you need an adapter, get one. My new heads can't use tapered plugs and it was a real surprise to me

But before you do that, personally, I'd try to locate the leak. In my opinion, these guys you're talking to have made up their minds already about what the trouble it. They can be right, but if it were me, I'd want to find the leak(s) first

If they are so sure, ask them to help you fix it- they know more about lt-1 engines than me

Yeah, cuz so many children are having problems with thier power wheels over heating, they could bennifit from reading this thread. Damn toys r us and everything they make!
Children (well, boys) like cars. Hence they read car boards.

Just quit fuckin swearing you guys. Come on.

Just quit fuckin swearing you guys. Come on.


Wheee! That was fun, kids! A bad word, what a thrill.

Now, what do you suggest to fix this engine?

Pull the heads to start.

Wheee! That was fun, kids! A bad word, what a thrill.

Now, what do you suggest to fix this engine?

lol, ok, here's the latest, as previously posted in the firebird forum:

ok, today i got the chance to take the car apart looking for the leak that was caused when my water pump got disconnected and the car over heated. Looks like its just the gasket for the thermostat. That would explain the leak, and also explain why i couldn't get the system to accept more anti freeze---cuz air was getting getting sucked into the thermostat. I didn't see any indication that there is a leaky head gasket. I didn't see any dried antifreeze anywhere near the heads, and when the car over heated at frist, it wasn't smokin. That would mean no liquid was close to the hot parts of the engine.

OK well, lets assume thats the answer.
I took the radiator out to inspect it and all the hoses.
Doing this, i cracked the freakin compression fitting to the AC condenser loose and lost all my freon.
How much does it cost to refill freon on these cars?

also, i have all this *stuff* out of the car, so im wonderin what i should do while i have this opportunity to work freely in front the engine. Im gonna put in a new belt, and possibly do my optispark. What esle? Pullys? Whats involved in doing them? Smaller pullies means i need a diff belt too right? Help me out....

What about a new radiator, like a high preformance one? Lighter and cooler. Can they still be intalled with the AC condensor and crap still there? or are they strictly for race only applications?

the fact that chiltons hand book doesn't have any info on the AC system is really pissing me off too. goddamn ozone laws

Go to E-bay, and get the factory repair books (probably called "chassis manuals), firstly

Second, a company called Be-Cool will have aluminum radiators for your car. Aluminum is lighter and is a better conductor of heat than the standard construction radiator. they get expensive though

I'd clean everything in sight if I were you, while everything is out

Firstly, Let me say to Mr.Overheating problems-i hear you, man. my neighbor has a 87 Vette, and a similar thing happened to him, where his temp. gauge redlined and he opened the hood only to see that the cylinder heads were shaking, and the rad pressure cap was gone(it came off). the and he drained his coolant system the next day, used the UV light, and found that the rad ws the problem. he replaced the rad, hoses, and head gaskets. never had a probelm since. i am sympathetic for you, and i hope you can get that figured out. Kepp us posted. and to mr FLEETWOOD, go drive off a bridge, you pansy. if you cant take a little swearing, and you dont like it., then youve obviously never experienced something like a timing rotor popping off and hitting you oin the face while youre regapping your distributor. FUCK is the first thing that comes to mind. Thanks!

Firstly, Let me say to Mr.Overheating problems-i hear you, man. my neighbor has a 87 Vette, and a similar thing happened to him, where his temp. gauge redlined and he opened the hood only to see that the cylinder heads were shaking, and the rad pressure cap was gone(it came off). the and he drained his coolant system the next day, used the UV light, and found that the rad ws the problem. he replaced the rad, hoses, and head gaskets. never had a probelm since. i am sympathetic for you, and i hope you can get that figured out. Kepp us posted. and to mr FLEETWOOD, go drive off a bridge, you pansy. if you cant take a little swearing, and you dont like it., then youve obviously never experienced something like a timing rotor popping off and hitting you oin the face while youre regapping your distributor. FUCK is the first thing that comes to mind. Thanks!



lol @ drive off a bridge, i love it!

problems all fixed, new hose, new waterneck gasket were my only expenses....got lucky..