Coolant Problems (yes, im a newb)

[american]

I just bought a 1985 z-28 camaro (125k miles). It was running great until today when I was gunning it down the highway. I didnt watch my Temp guage (D'oh!) but after I pulled up to my friends house a few minutes later I noticed my coolant was leaking because it was boiling out of the cap and smoking :/
The temp when I looked at it was around 230, after I let it cool down for about 5min to take it home it went back down to normal during driving.
People said it could be a number of things:
There isnt a 50/50 ration of coolant to water.
A radiator problem.
A valve or something (rember, im a noob) is working properly.

I havent gotten it checked it out yet, and I know the real experts are propably here

Any idea why it was boiling or how to fix it would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks!!

One more thing, the fluid level was at Full Hot, and now its down to almost nothing.
Thanks again for any help!

[DaMoNe6969]

Did it overheat just on the highway? Sounds like your thermostat is just stickin closed.. They are cheap, and simple to replace..
Is it still overheating?

[90 RallySport]

thats a real nice car, yeah check the thermostat
mine done that too. it was stuck.

[4onFloor]

take off those luvers and it'd probly help. lol

[ridge_runner]

lol yea i think it would look hella nice with out the louvers

[pfox_64]

Thermostat definatly

[89IROC&RS]

well, first things to look at, is the cooling system all orignial/?? waterpump, radiator, hoses????? thermostat, all that stuff. if it is, my guess is a part failed.

but heres a test. jump in and drive the car around the block once or twice, then pull over with the engine running and pop the hood. there are pretty much five key parts to the cooling system the block(waterpump), radiator, thermostat, cooling fan system, and the hoses. with it sitting there idling, get out, check if your fan is on, if its not get in and turn your A/C on, then check again, your fan should be running. if its not, the fan is bad. if it is running turn the A/C back off. now, check for heat in the system. naturally the block will be hot, dont grab that. grab a hold of the upper radiator hose. is it warm?????? if it isnt, chances are your thermostat is stuck closed. if it is, move to the radiator and CARFULLY touch the cap, it SHOULD be HOT!! if its not, your radiator is probly clogged or something, if its hot, grab the lower radiator hose, is that hot??? should be if its not, probly also means the radiator is cool. now, if the upper hose is cool close to the radiator, but hot close to the block, you could have a bad water pump, and there is no coolant flow, and the coolant in the hose is being heated by the hot fluid coming out of the open thermostat. but there isnt enough heat transferrence to heat the coolant close to the radiator. if the cooling system is hot everywhere, and the fan isnt running while its overheating, it could be one or more of the following. the fan motor, which you can test by turning on the AC as stated above. the fan temp switch on the passenger side of the block above and in front of the starter motor. or the cooling fan relay on the firewall in front of the driver. hope that helps.

[DaMoNe6969]

yeah... what he said

[-= c a m a r o =-]

Originally Posted by american

People said it could be a number of things:
There isnt a 50/50 ration of coolant to water.
A radiator problem.

i thought the coolant doesnt do anything except prevent corosion, water would do the same thing as coolant only it would cause corrosion. or am i wrong?

[68chevelle]

coolant is a blend of anti-freeze and water. idealy a 50/50 blend. get it... ANTI-FREEZE. in the winter it keeps your colant from freezing. it lowers the temerature at witch it will freeze. yes it prevents rust and all that stuff too. straight water would freeze at higher temperatures and it would make things rust.

[-= c a m a r o =-]

but it doesnt do nothing to cool the engine better than water

[DaMoNe6969]

You still need to have properly mixed coolant.. Too much water, and your cooling system will corode, and parts will fail prematurly.. Too much coolant, and it will gel at high temps..
But I doubt thatd be the problem

[68chevelle]

but it doesnt do nothing to cool the engine better than water

i dunno if it does or not. it could. but there are adaatives that you can add that do make the mixture disapate heat faster. 40 below is one along with water wetter and there are others.

[4onFloor]

not trying to pick at you Iroc, but the fan switch is in the pass. head not the block

[Chevyracincamaro]

water transfers heat better than coolant. all the coolant does is prevent the water from freezing and from boiling away while it cools the engine. now a days its all formulated to prevent corosion. ive always heard that you dont have to have 50/50, that its just recommended. i generally only run with about 1/4 to 1/3 coolant in the summer for obvious reasons...one of you guys want to prove me wrong and explain the 50/50 thing???