Overheating problems

[LoneWolf]

Hi bros. I am experiencing overheating when the temperature gauge reaches the middle (1/2)..

I am using water (no coolant) to fill up my radiator & reservoir.
The car is a 1996 Galant S (4-cylinder, 4G63 SOHC).

What should I check or have checked? :sad:

Please let me know, and thank you in advance for dropping a line. Thank you. :thumb_rsvd:

[mko]

Thermostat stuck closed is the simplest thing to fix, and Id suggest you start form there

Water maybe cools the engine better but it builds deposits in the radiator causing possible clogs. Just hope you didint damage the head /warped/ when you overheat, cuz the head gasket wont be able to seal and will introduce air into the system, making it impossible for the water pump to operate.

[LoneWolf]

Ok, so here is how I interpret this bro:

- Make sure I use a mixture of coolant with water, or pure coolant as Radiator Fluid?
- Have my radiator cleaned, or checked for leaks that I probably am not aware of?
- Have the cylinder head gasket and water pump checked?

[mko]

IDK if you have the pre-mixed 50% water and 50% antifreeze solution, but dont use 100% antifreeze - You may have even more overheating problems. Its the water that cools off the engine, the antifreeze is just an additive for the winter and of course it creates less build up in the radiator and system.

You can start with replacing the thermostat. Its cheap and its worthy. The stock temp is set to 180, and when I had my temp measured it was 210 deg, so it needs replacing every once in a while

[LoneWolf]

What is the Stock Temp called in mechanical terms? Just asking because the local mechanics may know it by how it is read in the car manual.

Thanks in advance for your reply :)

[mko]

I think it is called - coolant temperature

[ShiZnitH]

mko: Water has a lower boiling temp then coolant ;) So if u running clean waterin the radiator the car will overheat much sooner. + the coolant is lubering the system and keep rust in the system away ;)

Lonewolf: Make shure u dont have air in the system. Take of the radiator cap and let the engine run utnil its warm. Fill in the container on ur right side if its goes under MAX level :)

[mko]

Water boils at approx 215 . If you reach these degrees youre overheating anyway, so it really doesnt matter. And yes antifreeze is added for rising the boiling point of the water, but the antifreeze doesnt transfer heat as well as water, and that why I said he might be overheating even more if he used 100% antifreeze. Its not recommended to mix over 70% of antifreeze due to the heat transfer capabilities of the antifreeze


............................Pure Water............50/50...................70/30

Freezing Point..........0 C / 32 F.........-37 C / -35 F.........-55 C / -67 F
Boiling Point...........100 C / 212 F.......106 C / 223 F........113 C / 235 F

[LoneWolf]

Ok, I'll buy coolant first and see if anything changes..
If nothing changes, I'll have my radiator overhauled, so we can get rid of possible clogs inside.

I'll let you guys know, thanks a lot for your help! :)

[kamenfaiz]

well check lower hose temperature
if the car both hose are hot when the gauge is 1/2 then that is normal
if the one is hot and the other one is not then it is thermostat

but what mko saying is true. water will carry away heat much faster than antifreeze. coolant is there to help raise the boiling point lower the freezing point. so ideally if you have 100% coolant it might over heat more.

[LoneWolf]

Here's another thing I found out: after I park from driving (home to office / office to home), I hear boiling water.
When I opened the hood, I saw that the boiling water was not actually from the Radiator water, but from the Reservoir!!! Is that normal? Does that narrow down the source of the problem?

By the way, definitely getting a coolant-water mixture ASAP. :032:

[mko]

As I said twice - change the thermostat, its cheap. I never got back from you if you actually did it. You drive it like this and youre asking for the worse - warping the head. You might have done that already.

The guys advised you on things and you dont tell if you checked or done any of it, you just add more info to the problem. Thats why its called troubleshooting - you go one step at the time and see what effect it makes afterward.

[DOHCstunr]

a new radiator cap is very inexpensive. Here in the stats for 20$ you can get a new radiator cap, and a thermostat.

You need to be running a mix of 50/50 distilled water/coolant

the coolant isn't jsut for lowering the freezing point. It is also for lubrication and anti corrosion. Your radiator will rust without coolant, as well as the inside of your block and your water pump can prematurely wear out without coolant.

[bronxbombr]

cosigned!