roumieh200

My car is overheating on idle even though the fans are working.



When driving the temperature decrease eventually.

I've tried stopping the car "Turn key to ON position without starting the car" the fans only were kicking on and the temperature came down to normal.





Could it be a water-pump problem and how to check up for that

deanshark

Doesn't look too bad. Does it go all the way to hot and actually overheat or is that as high as the gauge goes? If you had a problem with the water pump you would either see coolant leaking or if it seized up it would overheat quick b/c the coolant wouldn't be flowing.
Problems you could have are; thermostat sticking closed a little, (easy fix to change) or you might just need to flush your coolant. Those are the 2 common and cheapest ways to start with. Both tutorials are here; http://www.lexls.com/tutorials/cooling/

roumieh200

Actually it could go up more than that and it would take 5-10 minutes to do so as it reached once the 5th bar before I started moving with the car, but I didn't wait for it to do so again.

Right now I have no coolant leaks at all and I think I will check up with the thermostat as a start.

steve2006

You could also have a sludged up radiator,sometimes these can be cleared by back flushing or using some flushing solution then replacing the coolant but try the other things mentioned 1st.

avalon42

iTrader: (1)

+1. I think Steve is onto something...when is the last time you checked between your condensor and radiator? That little spongy insulation thing gets all nasty and starts mixing with dirt and blocking a good portion of the radiator. I took mine out and had a hayday spraying down every fin with a pressure washer.

sdls

I would change the radiator. I changed mine recently because it let the car get hot. I use a Scangauge and noticed my temperatures going from 184 deg. (normal) and creeping up to 186, 191, sometimes even 200 degrees.
With the new radiator, my temperature NEVER exceeds 184 degrees.
My old one wasn't leaking, but it was clogged up bad. The driver side got HOT but the passenger side remained cool, while the car was running hot. It was not doing its job.
The cheap eBay radiators are fine. Mine was $70 shipped, and it's all-aluminum, 1-core, exact OE fit, good performance. I would avoid getting the 2-core copper/brass ones though due to galvanic corrosion issues with the aluminum components of our motors.

firefly

I have the same symptoms. I change the water pump, thermostat, and temp sender. The temp gauge will go beyond hot, but when I shut the car off and turn the key to the on position it will be on the half way mark. I think the temp gauge is the problem.

python

iTrader: (4)

sludged up radiator? check upper and lower coolant hoses..should be about the same..if one is a lot hotter then u have blockage problems

hirosada

Or the fan clutch is shot. We had a similar problem after doing the 90k service. It looked like the fan was on, until a crazy old tech reached in and just grabbed a blade with no trouble. Chuckled and said, "what else did you replace before looking at this?"

PureDrifter

iTrader: (10)

also could be a BIG air bubble...

willhickey

iTrader: (1)

or a slight leak letting air get in right?

deanshark

Wow, I wouldn't tell someone to change a radiator when the problem might be a $15 thermostat, or like PD suggested, a free bubble of air. Start by bleeding the air out, if that doesn't work then start with the cheapest stuff first.

firefly

what about the temp on the gauge when the key is in the on position?

LS4Lalonde

My '93 LS is doing the EXACT same thing. Did you ever solve the problem?

RA40

iTrader: (6)

If you haven't had the cooling system serviced, do the flush and thermostat. That doesn't get it, start working down the list of cooling system checks. Each car can have different cooling problems so no one answer may be applicable to all.