Cooling system once again... Jason's found my car...

[Ferendon]

Got everything back together, and it runs great. Didn't have any coolant so we ran straight water. Got to "OR" and i figured it's all water, it's ok... Stopped at a gas station to check everything out, and pulled the tab on the rad cap. the radiator lurched and made a fellow bellowing popping noises. There was a miniscule stream of water dripping under the car, but I couldn't tell where from. I started it back up and headed for a friends house. (After cooling down a good bit). Right as we got there, my CEL came on. I parked it and left it alone for the night. Now I have to decide whether to get a tstat, pump, and gasket, or flush out half of the cooling system and add coolant... BUT WHY THE CEL?!?!?!? Any ideas?!

 

[40BelowSummer]

BUT WHY THE CEL?!?!?!??!

you could always check the codes and see which code triggered the CEL

 

[sdpatt]

NEVER use only water in the cooling system of a mixed metal (iron/aluminum) engine. That allows the destructive electrolytic corrosion to eat the internals of your engine. Anti-freeze is cheap compared to the cost of corroded blocks and heads.

 

[Ferendon]

Ok, so go to a 50/50 mix, and then what? I don't have any way to pull codes at the moment, as my car is at my friends house, and I have his SHO (1990, white/black)

 

[Ferendon]

I read how to check the codes and I'm curious. Say I get a code 112. Will it blink 112 times, or once, once, twice?

 

[Ferendon]

Another thing, I noticed that the ECT circuit being open or grounded can cause a CEL. How would I check? and is it something I can fix w/o replacing it?

 

[ckinart]

Check Your Codes

Have a look here for an excellent description on how to check your codes. I suggest you start there since it's easy and free, and report back. Then go from there.

 

[autobahnsho]

Will it blink 112 times... ?

Sorry, I had never thought about that. Seems like a funny thought after you do it once. That would take forever to read all the codes.

Yes, it will blink, pause, blink, pause, blink blink, several second pause before the next one. It will go through them all twice so you don't miss them.

I'm dealing with coolant- related issues right now, too, but not near as serious as yours.
Good luck!

 

[Ferendon]

I started it up and hit Max A/C and the fan came on. I remember reading somewhere (shotimes I believe), that if the fan came on, the ECT was fine. If so, what else could it be???? T-Stat?

 

[Ferendon]

I'll pull codes when I get home, but I'll have to have my wife post them, as my car is at a friends house, and the only computer in the house is in his roommates bedroom, and the door's always locked. I call them in to Sylvia and have her post them on here. (SerenityWynd)

 

[K-Dawg]

I run straight water in my car with no problems. This wouldn't be your problem either.

My guess is that the CEL is totally irrelevant to your coolant issues.

 

[Ferendon]

Codes where 111 and 117
Running rich, and still warming up too fast and too much. Replaced the ECT and water pump gasket/seals... Only things left are t-stat, and radiator... ALl my hoses are fine... I ran the car at 2k for a minute or two to warm it up, and I could smell coolant a little. I guess a KOER test is in order.

 

[Ferendon]

I remembered spilling a little coolant on the engine when I was filling it up, and that was the coolant smell. How would I go about taking the temperature of the coolant, to see if maybe it's the temp sending unit that sends the temp to the gauge... Cause I thought maybe it's a bad gauge. When the gauge was at about L, I popped the radiator cap, got a small puff of steam, but the coolant was still very cool to the touch... Where should I take the temp at?

 

[SHOZ123]

Big difference between the temperature of the coolant at the temp senders, which should be the very near temp of the t-stat rating, and what is in the radiator. If your radiator coolant was as hot as the t-stat rating you would quickly overheat the motor.

The best way to check you sender and t-stat is to take the upper hose off and measure the coolant as it comes out when the t-stat opens and closes. Other than that using an IR thermometer on the T-stat housing is a way but not as reliable due to surface radiation losses..

 

[SHO Type U]

I run straight water in my car with no problems.

The problem I see with that is, water evaporates.

 

[NoFlipping]

The coolant also raises the boiling point of the water rather significantly which might keep the over system pressure(s) lower.

 

[SonicRiot]

It's perfectly ok to run straight water in the car. Mixture of water doesn't matter... it's what kind of water it is.
It's not great for extreme boiling or freeze protection, but it can sometimes get you home without problems. You cannot EVER use well water in the system... no matter what mixture. The minerals in hard water will eat holes in the heater and radiator cores. Most city water is ok, in fact that is what manufacturers and dealer garages use.

The best water to use - with any mixture - is distilled water. Your 2 year antifreeze will be good for 4 to 5 years and the freeze and boiling protections are maximized.

EDIT: Also, water will not evaporate at a high rate in a leak-less system. No more than it will in a 50/50 mix...

 

[Ferendon]

so I need to actually pull the hose off and let coolant pump out onto a thermometer? Is the single wire unit (Wells p/n SU201) the sending unit for the gauge??? I replaced that and I'm still overheating. Even after I did a 50/50 mix. I wanna get everything to spec to find my problem. I'm still running rich, and the gas smell is as strong as the exhaust smell (when I get down by my pipes). This is my daily driver, and I need it up and running ASAP. I replaced the ECT sensor, and redid all the O-rings and the gaskets on the water pump. I was spinning freely, and quietly, and very smoothly. The only thing I can think of is t-stat or radiator. And where the **** is the 2-wire unit everyone's talking about?

 

[Ferendon]

Got a code 511... Probably the reason i'm running rich. I think I need to pull my superchip... Anyone got Ted B's e-mail? lol

 

[K-Dawg]

I still don't quite understand what your problem is. It's overheating? What makes you think this? Reading the stock gauge? The gauge will read high if there is air in the system.