2003 impala overheating problem

[bobbyboy-g]

yes i mean to ask is it normal for a bad w/p to gush water out, it only trickles out when the car is running, and gushes out once its turned off, is there any other place it could leak from around this same area...

[eugene4282]

hey everyone, im having the same problem mr. bobbyboy-g was having. Ive replaced the fans, coolant temp censor, thermostat and even the gaskets. and it still overheats!!!

[CHICHI1980]

I have an 2003 impala, that is having this same problem right now, the problem was the radiator was leaking, and caused it to run hot, well replaced radiator, still runs hot.......replaced water pump, replaced radiator cap......topped off with fluids....car was good....one week later....runs hot again, now i don't know what wrong...i changed thermostat...maybe i need to change fans, and hoses, i heard about bleeding something????please help someone.

[HeMi101]

If the rad was changed and never bled, COULD be air in the system cuasing problems. Could also be a temp sensor, if the fans ARE running when it shows hot.

[CHICHI1980]

Alright, thanks im gonna give it a try..

[rhandwor]

Feel both top and bottom radiator hoses they both should be hot. Is your bottle full for the radiator. Will the heater blow hot air are both hoses hot.
Are the radiator fans both working one should run when the A-C is turned on the other one is temperature operated.

[JohnT396]

Great lively discussion on this point! I have a 2000 Impala 3400 engine. I just went through the same problem and mine ended up being the intake manifold gasket. For the second time. Overheating, erratic temperature readings, etc. Finally it all let loose with oil in the water, water in the oil, complete mess. Took the opportunity to replace all the coolant parts, hoses, etc. and had the heads done at the same time. Since my car had 198K miles on it, the valve guides were shot, had them taken care of. Car runs good now and a lot quieter. Interesting enough, the temperature guage still fluctuates around 20 degrees. Not happy with that! I'll be interested to see what you final problem/solution is....

[lionpads]

Same car. Number 1 & 2 fan fuse keeps blowing. Never see fans on, and does not run hotter than 210 degrees. Just did 1400 mile trip but no red light. Which fan is supposed to turn on when ac is on? Is it the drivers side or passenger side fan? I want to check power to fan in case its something else. Also as I approach 45 to 50 mph i hear a low roaring sound from up front which gets louder as speed increases yet I was doing 70-80mph and no problems. Trans was shifting ok.

[gordon_gjs]

The fans might be bad. I had both fans start going out at around the same time. They will lock up and the fuse will pop. They are kinda of a pain to replace.

[ChevMali99]

I had the same problem with my Malibu, and it turned out to be a defective coolant reservoir. Somehow there wasn't any pressure so, for some reason I don't fully understand, the car would overheat... the thermostat would lock... the radiator would violently knock... and the coolant would violently rush out the reservoir. I replaced it and problem solved.

[gitouttahere02]

Have same problem as bobbyboy but without the trans fluid in coolant problem.Have 237000 miles and have new radiator,water pump,thermostat,hoses,and not losing any fluid. Also flushed and purged system a few times still sporadic overheating. Car drives normal than quickly loses heat and overheats. sometimes will go back to normal. Sometimes have to pull over for a few minutes and start again. After a few miles it starts all over again. Can`t figure out what to do next. Open to suggestions

[gordon_gjs]

Originally Posted by gitouttahere02

Have same problem as bobbyboy but without the trans fluid in coolant problem.Have 237000 miles and have new radiator,water pump,thermostat,hoses,and not losing any fluid. Also flushed and purged system a few times still sporadic overheating. Car drives normal than quickly loses heat and overheats. sometimes will go back to normal. Sometimes have to pull over for a few minutes and start again. After a few miles it starts all over again. Can`t figure out what to do next. Open to suggestions

Are you sure the car is overheating and its not just a bad coolant temperature sensor? The gauge on my car would stay pretty high or on red even after I replaced alot of parts on the car, I then changed out the temp sensor and the gauge has not got even close to red.

But if you are sure the car is overheating and seeing smoke from the engine then this would not be the case.

[Scrapper]

you may want to check see if a recall on your cat converter my wife just got one for 06 malibu there close to the same thing. but really dono if go's to the impala i'd check it out anyway just to make sure.

[tavo123]

well my mother in law had the same problem after fixing the heads i just put the fans straight with a relay to turn on with the ignition a lttle loud the fans but no overheating i made it with a switch so she could turn it off if she didnt want the noise but i didnt mess with any connections meaning if i switch it off and i turn on the ac if the fans fuses and relays were working right they would turn on no problem i also made shure to have water in and bled off the air in the system before that she would always have to be filling the car with water since it would overheat once she turns off her car all the water would come out NEVER TRY REFILLING WHEN THE ENGINE IS OFF AND CAR OVERHEATING

[JohnT396]

All, I have been through this crazy experience myself this weekend. The car would over heat mostly in traffic or city driving. Then it went down hill from there. It got to the point where the radiator developed a serious leak on the drivers side. So replace the radiator (pretty easy), replaced the water pump (very easy). Test drove, still same problem. Next replaced thermostat (pretty difficult) and did a pressure test. Held 15 pounds for a good period of time, but the temp guage continued to fluctuate, but not as bad. I did have a difficult time bleeding the system though and getting good circulation. I had opened both the value on the thermostat housing and the one on the unit on top of the water pump. Finally replaced the radiator cap and drove about 50 miles, highway and city traffic. I still see some fluctuation and will replace the temp sensor next weekend. Since the pressure test showed steady for about 15 minutes, would that eliminate the head gasket issue? I have already had it replaced twice. Next time, it will be a do it myself project...