OVERHEATING..why? '98 2.2

[velocity_101]

It's a '98 2.2.. the car over heated and it cracked the cylinder head. I replaced the cylinder head, radiator, water pump and thermostat but it's still overheating.. why?? Where should the temp gauge be at normal operating temp??? in the middle or more toward the cold/hot???

Any info would be great! I don't feel like taking the car to a mechanic.

[Cold_Silence]

Its a horrible problem with cavaliers. It "should" run in the middle of the temp gauge or a little higher when in the city. Is your rad fan activating when it gets hot? Other than that you have tried pretty much everything it could be, where did u get the thermostat from? Try getting a good quality one, that has helped some peoples problems go away.

Tip: If it starts getting hot turn the heater on full blast and just put it on the feet/defrost setting or w/e so you dont feel it as much, that should help keep the temperatuer lower if it gets hot.

[spaceman88]

it should be right in the middle which should be around 195... if your using it alot it should go up a little higher but NEVER in the red..... make sure your not leaking radiator fluid, or one of your sensors is properly connected.... make sure your fans kick on once your car starts over heating...

[Cold_Silence]

Yes never in the red, and try and avoid excessive idling, if u need to let it idle ie: drive thru, traffic jam, either turn it off for a bit or put the heater on.

[GTP Dad]

Make certain that you got all the air out of the engine. If there is air in the water jackets it will overheat regardless of what you do to fix it. If your radiator has a cap then remove it and start the car. When the thermostat opens the coolant level should drop. Refill and repeat until you can't get any more coolant in then replace the cap and refill the reservoir. If the radiator does not have a cap then try the bleeder screw on the thermostat housing.

[Lances133]

That is true, that happened to me twice, I took the coolant cap off and let it idle, one time i had to rev it up tho.

[velocity_101]

Originally Posted by GTP Dad

Make certain that you got all the air out of the engine. If there is air in the water jackets it will overheat regardless of what you do to fix it. If your radiator has a cap then remove it and start the car. When the thermostat opens the coolant level should drop. Refill and repeat until you can't get any more coolant in then replace the cap and refill the reservoir. If the radiator does not have a cap then try the bleeder screw on the thermostat housing.

the radiator doesn't have a cap so i guess i'll try the bleeder screw on the thermostat housing.

thanks everyone for the help! hopefully i can fix this problem soon. it's driving me crazy!

[Lances133]

I took the cap off the coolant resevoir and let it idle, and it worked.

[Cold_Silence]

Originally Posted by Lances133

I took the cap off the coolant resevoir and let it idle, and it worked.

Really? Lucky for you hey! I used the bleeder screw that runs along the front of the engine, let warm up, bleed, turn off and start again, bleed again, and then fill any coolant needed in the resevior.