deanshark

I drained my coolant just to change it and now it's not flowing. I don't know if it's the t-stat or the radiator. The upper radiator hose and all the heater hoses are hot. The lower radiator hose (the one that goes to the t-stat) is very slightly warm. (just above cold). There is pressure in the overflow tank so I know the water pump is working. Refilling only took 1 1/2 gallons of coolant. Could I have messed up the t-stat when I put the funnel in to fill it? It's less than a year old and only about 12k miles. Or does it sound like the radiator could be clogged now? Everything was perfectly fine before I drained it.

python

iTrader: (4)

i think it is flowing other wise u wouldnt have warm hoses,one would be warm the other cold. also the lower hose is supposed to be cooler than the upper....

deanshark

I don't think the lower hose is supposed to be this cold. I didn't start it today (I should have) but Sunday when I did have it running the overflow tank was full to the top, it wasn't going down at all. I just pulled the t-stat and submerged it in boiling water and it doesn't seem to be opening. I'm just gonna throw in a new one in a couple hours and see if that works and go from there. It's 95* and I have to walk to the parts store, this sucks. I was going to try running it without the t-stat, just to check, but then I'd have to put a gasket and/or sealant on it. Don't want to do that. We'll see what happens with the new one. I'll let you know.
Thanks

LiCelsior

iTrader: (32)

did u followed the www.lexls.com tutorial?

deanshark

I didn't follow it but yes that is what was done except I didn't flush it.

python

iTrader: (4)

u need to make sure u bleed the system....also if ur t-stat wasnt opening u would know it, ur car would overheat in a matter of minutes

deanshark

The temp gauge did go all the way up within a couple minutes but the engine wasn't really that hot. I figured it did that b/c it wasn't bled yet. I didn't bleed it b/c it wasn't flowing, so no sense bleeding it until it was working right. I just went and got the t-stat so I'll try that in a little bit. I gotta sit in the A/C for a few minutes. (sucks gettin old)

deanshark

All fixed I'm glad it was the t-stat and not the radiator. The temp gauge goes to almost half. (where it should be) I'm still going to have to top it off in the morning and bleed it again. I still don't have heat but I never did since I bought it last year. One of these days I might change that darn heater core.

j2b4o

how'd you bleed it just loosen the bolt above the therm and let it run?

LiCelsior

iTrader: (32)

jack up car and remove overflow pressure cap and run the car. it should bubble inside the tank if theres enough coolant.

deanshark

Yea, all I did was loosen the bolt on top of the t-stat. I'll check in the morning if it needs more.

LiCelsior, I thought bubbles in the tank were bad?

j2b4o

Why would you Jack the car up to remove the overflow cap and turn the car on???

PureDrifter

iTrader: (10)

because air rises, so you need to make the reservoir the highest point of the cooling system otherwise the air will remain trapped as a bubble in the system.

the alternative if you have the right socket is to open the coolant fill on the water inlet, as that's the highest point that you cna open when the vehicle is on a level surface. most don't do it that way as a lot of people dont have the right inverted hex socket.

deanshark

The bolt on top of the water inlet is a 17mm. I use that bolt to bleed it and I also jack it up just to make it that much higher. After driving it around yesterday I can smell some anti-freeze but nothing is leaking. Plus the A/C seems to be ALOT colder.

BRADSGS4

The UZ motor is usually very friendly to bleed. Once you've added thru the full port (17mm plug), Keep the RPM's around 2k with the heat on full blast (manually not auto). Leave the cap off of the tank and keep adding coolant. Once you're up to normal temp and the t-stat opens and no more air comes thru, its Mission accomplished.