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Overheating can be caused by many things. First thing to do is determine if the water pump is functioning properly. When the engine is cold, remove the radiator cap and make sure the radiator is full. Now start the engine and watch and see if the coolant is flowing in the radiator. If you see the coolant flowing, that is a good sign the pump is OK. Also watch for air bubbles. If you see air bubbles this is a sign of a blown head gasket. Also smell the exhaust, and if it smells sweet or you see white smoke, look at the dipstick for moisture & under the oil cap, these are signs of a blown head gasket. Also the thermostat may be malfunctioning which can cause the radiator to not get enough coolant to cool off your engine. remove two screws that hold down the throttle body and use a c wrench the get the the second screw that is under the manifold and loosing it that way which will say you LOTS of time. boil so water and make sure that the thermostat contracts together when the water starts to boil. if it doesn't contract or only half of the coil is contracting then that is your problem. your options would be to buy a new run for about ten bucks or run without it which makes the car run cooler than ever but the heater will now take around 20 min to get warm. Now make sure the cooling fans, if electric are functioning as they should. The fan should come on any time the A/C is engaged. The fan will also come on once the engine reaches a preset temperature. If the fan is not working, check the fuse first, and then the fan itself. If both are good, look at the thermo sensor. If all of this appears fine, then you need to drain the coolant, and remove and replace the thermostat. Back flush the system with clean water, and then add a 50/50 mixture of the proper Antifreeze and Distilled water. Be sure and bleed the cooling system to remove any air in the system. Do this by means of bleeder valves, if equipped, or by leaving the radiator cap off, keeping the system full, front of car jacked up as high as possible, while the engine is running. You may also need to remove the radiator and have it chemically flushed, depending on how well the cooling system was serviced over it's lifetime. Caution: This particular engine sometimes has a problem with the intake plenum gasket leaking. This is serious and can damage the engine due to coolant entering the combustion chamber and also the possibility of hydro-lock. If coolant enters the combustion chamber in sufficient quantity and you attempt to start the engine, you can bend rods and do severe damage. Bobby Burgan -- bobby_burgan@Yahoo.com

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16y ago

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