Overheating please help

[twiszted24]

First of all hello,
Ok I have a 95 Grand am with the 2.3 Quad 4. When i first got it the car would overheat driving in town but if I was on the highway it would stay around 220. If I was idling it would get really hot but if I revved it up the temp would go back down to around 220. So I was told it was probably the head gasket. So last weekend my dad and I tore it apart and not only was it the head gasket but the head was cracked too. Awesome
So I got a new head, the head gasket kit, timing chain kit, water pump, thermostat, plugs, wires, both coolant sensors, upper radiator hose, serpentine belt, radiator cap, fan relay, and changed the oil and oil filter.
Got it all put back together Sunday night and guess what...thats right it still overheats. I let it idle for about 14 minutes and it was just about to the red on the temp gauge. I have tried to bleed the coolant by running it with the heat on and the radiator cap off 3 times for about 10 minutes each time. My dad still thinks its an air pocket or something but I'm not so sure. ANY suggestions would be greatly appreciated because this stupid car is driving me crazy

Thanks in advance

[skibum1111]

Sounds like a problem I had a couple of years ago. Check your heater hoses and make sure the heater core isn't blocked. Easiest way to do this is disconnect the heater hoses from the motor and attach a garden hose to them. If you are not getting decent circulation, replace your heater core. One of the annoying designs of these cars is coolant runs through the motor, through the heater core and then to the thermostat. If the heater core is flowing, check your radiator. I drained mine, pulled it out and put it in the bathtub. A good radiator for your car will keep up with the water from the spout without any trouble. If the radiator is good, change your thermostat. It's very possible you got a bad one, and they are difficult to change. Also check the condition of all your hoses, make sure none of them have collapsed. Good luck, cooling problems on the quad motors can be difficult to find.

[twiszted24]

Well thanks for the suggestions,
I put in a new radiator and lower radiator hose. Now I can let it idle for about 20 minutes before it starts creeping into the bottom of the red on the temp gauge. I haven't tried flushing the heater core yet. I don't know what else I can change besides that While I was letting it idle trying to purge air out of it I had the heat on full blast but it wasn't blowing really hot, kinda lukewarm. I don't know if that is symptom of the core or not. Another thing I noticed was after it almost got into the red I turned it off and the upper part of the radiator was warm but the lower half didn't really seem to be warm. Would a clogged heater core cause that or not? I am sooooo frustrated now, I don't know what to do.
Any more help would be greatly appreciated, Thanks

[skibum1111]

A quick check would be to bypass the heater core. Attach a line from the water outlet to the line the heater hose goes into, just be careful not to pinch it when you hook everything up. If this eliminates your problem, I'd suspect the heater core. They are a pain to replace as you have to disassemble a chunk of the dash in the middle of the car. The radio comes out, hvac controls need to be moved, and its very cramped in there. Good luck.