97 Mystique Over Heats and Causes Tranny Issues

[shivparekh]

Just recentely, my coolant reservoir tank emptied out twice in 2 weeks.

Took it into Precision Auto care, but they couldn't find the problem,

Following week on my way to work, the temp gauge went upto more than half and the revs started going crazy and the gears started switching back and forth.

I took it to a local mechanic, they did a pressure check for coolant as i mentioned about the drainage, but couldn't find any issue and also couldn't notice the overheating also. but they made me change the engine mounts as they were broken/damaged.

With the issue unsolved i took it once again to Midas, and told them everything , their test/check reveled the problem with broken/blown head gasket and estimated $1500 - $1800 for the repairs.

Now my local mechanic says that i might not have to worry about head gasket , if as long as i mantain the oil level, i can live without repairing the head gasket,

My question is, does anybody have any idea as per what's happening with my car here? what can i do to find the right problem and how can i get it fixed without pouring more money in??

[kevinwylder]

well if it is ur head gasket then u would b losing power when driving like when u 2st start off and it would b blowing alot of white smoke how long did u run it when it was overheating and if u ever put cold or room temp water in ur reservoir u should keep the car running cuz it might crack ur block or head that wouldnt be good but with this car there r sooo many heater hoses and i would fill up the reservoir and on or in a dry place just run the car see if u can find a place where it is leaking water if there is no smoke and alot of smoke then i dont think ur motor would b burning up all of ur water it might just b a leacking hose but i cant just tell u what would b wrong with it another cheap fix would b ur thermostat dose ur heater blow hot or cold air when car is getting hot

[shivparekh]

I haven't drove my car in almost a month now since the problem.
But every 10-12 miles i drive it heats up rapidly and causes the tranny problem.
I haven't drove it with empty coolant tank though. Never have noticed the white smoke nor any sign of cooling mixing with the oil.
I need to properely get the thermostat checked. Do you think a bad thermostat can casue such a problem?

I haven't check the heater air whether it's blowing hot or cold while car's running. If this is a must i can do it.

[beyondloadedSE]

Originally Posted by shivparekh

I haven't drove my car in almost a month now since the problem.
But every 10-12 miles i drive it heats up rapidly and causes the tranny problem.
I haven't drove it with empty coolant tank though. Never have noticed the white smoke nor any sign of cooling mixing with the oil.
I need to properely get the thermostat checked. Do you think a bad thermostat can casue such a problem?

I haven't check the heater air whether it's blowing hot or cold while car's running. If this is a must i can do it.

If its blowing cold air, that will essentially tell you if your waterpump is broken.

First of all...which engine do you have? 2.5L or I4? How do you know it's the tranny that is acting up? I'm assuming you have an automatic? Is it shifting erratically?

Have you done an oil change and looked at the oil?

[shivparekh]

Thanks for your help with this issue.

I have 2.0 I4 engine with auto transmission.

If you mean cold air thru cabin vents, that seems normal without any issue. I had a mechanic do the diagnoses, and the water pump is fine, also the coolant pressure check turned out to be ok. Also, time to time i have looked at the oil dip stick , and haven't found any sign of coolant mixing with oil.

Midas did the same diagnoses, and they found coolant under the engine body, and determined that there's a blown / damaged head gasket. but the previous (local) mechanic told me that i can live without changing the head gasket as long as i maintain the oil level to certain point.

When ever the car heats up to more than half on the gauge, the revs would start going crazy as if you are driving at high speed in lower gears and at the same time, i felt gears start changing randomly.

I also read somewhere in this forum that this is a problem many or atleast few have experienced with ford transmissions of early built. and some suggest, to let the engine cool down and then you can drive again with no problem until it heats up again.

I have read many threads / thread replies from you, i feel like my case is in good hands now.

Thanks again.

[beyondloadedSE]

Originally Posted by shivparekh

Thanks for your help with this issue.

I have 2.0 I4 engine with auto transmission.

If you mean cold air thru cabin vents, that seems normal without any issue. I had a mechanic do the diagnoses, and the water pump is fine, also the coolant pressure check turned out to be ok. Also, time to time i have looked at the oil dip stick , and haven't found any sign of coolant mixing with oil.

Midas did the same diagnoses, and they found coolant under the engine body, and determined that there's a blown / damaged head gasket. but the previous (local) mechanic told me that i can live without changing the head gasket as long as i maintain the oil level to certain point.

When ever the car heats up to more than half on the gauge, the revs would start going crazy as if you are driving at high speed in lower gears and at the same time, i felt gears start changing randomly.

I also read somewhere in this forum that this is a problem many or atleast few have experienced with ford transmissions of early built. and some suggest, to let the engine cool down and then you can drive again with no problem until it heats up again.

I have read many threads / thread replies from you, i feel like my case is in good hands now.

Thanks again.

I guess what I should have said was if it blows cold air with the heat is turned on, your waterpump isn't moving coolant. But I'll take your word for it that everything is working correctly.

If it were me, I would at least drain the oil and inspect it. If its fine, you can put it back in. On a similar note, does the coolant appear to be a milky brown? If both of these check out fine, then I think you can rule out a blown headgasket. You haven't noticed any white smoke and your losing it pretty quickly so I think your losing it somewhere else. Trust me...I've ridden in a car with a blown headgasket, and the amount of white smoke it produces is unreal. You couldn't even see while driving. Anyways, have you checked all the hoses that connect to the coolant resevoir? Is the overflow hose connected? The coolant system needs to be pressurized. This is what prevents the coolant from boiling. If you have a leak somewhere, the coolant is just going to boil and spew out everywhere. I'm guessing that's what is happening.

As for the mechanic that said you can just run more coolant with a blown headgasket is a complete idiot. First of all...water is not compressible so if thats leaking down into the combustion chamber, you'll pretty much be guaranteed to bend a rod. Secondly, if that doesn't happen, you'll probably crack a ringland on your piston. Throwing 200F degree coolant on a 1000F degree piston, has bad news written all over it.

The simple way to diagnose whether its the engine or transmission is does the engine still have an erratic idle when the transmission is in neutral? If yes, it's not your transmission.

[shivparekh]

Thanks so much for your help, i will check all that you have suggested and will post the result again. As i mentioned earlier, i'm not a "DIY" person, so this will take some time for me to go thru and check all the stuff.

thanks again.