radiator/temp issue 1998 cavalier

[drsuess]

I have a quick question to which I hope someone can help me out on...I have a 1998 Cavalier with a 2.2 liter in it. The car has almost 200,000 miles on it and it is still running great, but I do have the following problem. The original radiator was recently replaced with an aftermarket one (The aftermarket one is a little wider.I think it might be bigger core wise, but is an direct replacement according to autozone) Anyways, I replaced it, along with a new thermostat (Factory 180 temp) Everything is fine except the car does not heat up at all when driving..when the car is stopped at a stoplight, or idling without airflow going through the radiator the car heats up fine. It seems like the system becomes unpressurized when driving. I have noticed that thee is a small, small leak on the waterpump, which I have yet to fix but wouldn't think that would cause the problem that I am having.
I will say that the car initially did heat up temp wise when the original radiator hole happened(To what extent is unknown) A woman was driving it when she noticed the BIG red dummy light.
Anyways, I tried to replace the thermostat again (Thinking the first one was faulty) but still no difference. Any suggestions/comments are appreciated.
Thanks!
NS

[perna00]

it's possible that that "small" leak on your water pump is from the weap hole showing you that your water pump went bad. the pump could be warn bad enough that it's not building up enough pressure/flow to circulate the antifreeze. just a thought though

[dekster]

I have the same problem with my Cavalier'95, I also suspected thermostat, but now I see that it might be something else... Please share your ideas. Thanks!

[drsuess]

I think that you have a valid point with the waterpump issue. Hopefully I can replace it soon and find out if that is the problem..
Thanks a million! I will keep ya posted

[drsuess]

Well I replaced the waterpump...no difference. I am thinking that the head gasket is blown (Although the waterpump was leaking). I'm thinking that maybe its the headgasket because its still leaking and no pressure is being built up in the cooling system even if I let it run while sitting for 10 minutes. Does anyone have any other thoughts, or recomendations. I can't see if it is truly the headgasket because I can't see due to all of the components on the left hand side of the engine (When looking from front)
So back to square one...
Any thoughts are appreciated.

[bigdaveangell]

do you have coolant in the oil. If you dont you wont need a new headgasket

[perna00]

you might want to try one of those quick flush kits. if you cut the heater core line you can add pressure from a hose into it and see if the lines are clogged by seeing what kind of pressure you can flow through it (possibly even removing any clogs if there are any, especally through the heater core). my dad's heater core was actually clogged and after the car would warm up enough to flow through the heater core if couldn't get pressure cause of the clog. might be your problem too.

[drsuess]

I think that i will try the flush...No I do not have water in the oil, but it is still leaking somewhere..I'll have to really do some looking to see if I can hunt down the problem. While the car was running I squeezed the heater lines that go into the firewall one at a time and I could feel the fluid running through it after holding onto it for a little while (I Crimped the lines and held it for a few minutes) The other wierd thing is while driving I can actually here fluid circulate through what appears to be the heater core. I think I will try the flush..other than that I am getting totally baffled with this thing! I appreciate all the comments on this topic though!

[bigdaveangell]

sounds like a clog

[knucklebuster2]

Check to see if the passenger side floor mats and carpet is wet. If it is, (and it wasn't snowing or raining recently) it is probably your heater core. Are you getting a thick brown sediment in your cooling system ( under the rad cap, in your rad, etc?) That is a sign the Dexcool may be breaking down. Seeing it already screwed up your rad, it probably screwded up your heater core. I would first check if the heater core is leaking. You say the car is not heating up? Is it not heating up as per the temp guage, or you are not getting heat in the pass compartment? If not getting heat inside, you may have a clogged heater core-Dexcool strikes again! After determining where the leak is coming from, I would perform a good flush, repair the part, and replace with green antifreeze. Many people are having problems with Dexcool. More and more are doing what I am saying. I did and haven't had a problem since. Also, make sure you bleed the system very well to remove any air pockets.

[drsuess]

It appears that it is no longer leaking....I must of jumped the gun inn saying that it was leaking (Must have been left over from spillage from waterpump fix that lingered for a day) I have bled the system via the bleed screw on the radiator line until all that was coming out was fluid. Is that the only way to bled the system?

The compartment (Inside) heats up when the car is idling or at a standstill, as well as the temp gage moves to normal, but when driving, the temp both on the gage and inside the compartment drop. I think I will try and see if I can force some condensed air through the heater core and see where that puts me. It sounds as though the Dexcool antifreeze is just a great product huh?
It gets ridiculous sometimes with these modern cars...don't anyone test this crap out before putting it on the market... Typical automotive!

[knucklebuster2]

If you are forcing compressed air through the heater core to check if it is clogged, I would hook a garden hose up to it to try to force out all the sediment(if it has any). I did this and got a lot out. Unfortunately, that is when I noticed a heater core leak.