i have a 99 2.2 cavalier... im having a problem with the car over heating. it will go into the red and the check gauges light will come on... so far i have giving the car a tune up, i have changed the thermostat and housing.. and also changed the water pump.. when i talked to my mechanic he told me the car had poor circulation (pipes that should be too hot to touch were cool enough to grab).. ive been keeping an eye on my antifreeze as well and every so often i need to add some in... i have bleed the system and also watched the fan and it does kick on... also the heat inside the car will go in and out. by this i mean that it will be hot one min then cold the next and sometimes will become hot again.. any help would be greatly appreciated..
Off topic: Wow, two identical posts on the same exact issue? Sorry my answer didn't help you...maybe you should have included all the details, and you might not have gotten suggestions for stuff you had already done...
On topic: Honestly, just because the fan kicks on and off doesn't mean it's kicking on at the RIGHT times. Bleed your system some more, sometimes air pockets get lodged, and it may take two or three attempts to get it all out. Took me like three tries...
ok thank you... i will try to bleed the system out again... but when you say about the fan not kicking on at the right times.. how do i know when it is supposed to come on... thanks again..
Well, it should kick in when the temp gauge gets a tick or two above the 195 degree point. It should kick off just below, and should not run constantly.
When ours was having issues, it was not kicking on until way over 195, like at the 3/4 point on the gauge. Sometimes it would not kick on at all.
It was showing all the other symptoms you describe--cold pipes/hoses, heat that would fade in and out, overheating, etc.
Also try squeezing the upper Rad hose in between bleeder screw openings to help move the air out of hiding places.
ok thanks very much im gonna give that a shot tomorrow in the light... quick question for you was you dont think that the problem has anything to do with a head gasket problem do you??
patrick wrote:quick question for you was you dont think that the problem has anything to do with a head gasket problem do you??
IMO At this point it very well could be a head problem specially if those air pockets keep coming back.
if the air pockets keep building up and don't go away, then resurface the head; that's carbon dioxide
People - the 3rd gen jbody was designed with a cast block and an aluminum head piss poor design Why ? different metal expands and contracts at different temperatures. I guarantee 95 percent of you are like me and start our cavs and go NOT ALLOWING YOUR CAV TO HEAT UP FROM IDLE TO OPERATING TEMP 90deg will cause the head to heat up faster than than the block it cools just as fast and contarcts the again and again causing it to twist hense needing a new head and head gasket.
Im trying to find out if the JDM (Japans) version of the Chev Cavalier ( Made by toyota) has an aluminum block to switch it with anyways good luck
