First off, I want to appologize in advance for how long this write up is probably going to be. I just want to make sure of a fix or two before i try it, as money is tight (willing to spend, but trial and error is never fun)
Ok, so heres whatsup. I own a 2002 2.5rs. The motor has ~175k on it. 5spd Manual transmission. No modifications to the car, except for no muffler (was cut off when i got it). Stock heads were remachined in december 2013 due to a TB malfucntion/break. Also, during this repair car got new water pump as well as all new fluids.
Overheating: About 2 weeks ago, I got a CEL (had only seen it one time, for about 2 hours about 3 weeks into Jan 2014, not sure why). Luckily (not really), I happened to be in the same parking lot as an O'Reily's auto parts store. They scanned the code for me and it came back as "Generic Fan Fault". The guy asked me if the car had been over heating and it hadn't. So, he reset the CEL and told me to watch and make sure that it wasn't over heating. So, a week later, I notice the car is running slightly warm (barley over 1/2 on gauge). I figured it wasn't too big of a deal, and decided to go ahead and run my errands. I made it appx 1/4 of a mile before I was almost peaking my temp gauge. I pulled the car over and let it cool down. Opened the hood and checked to see if there was any coolant (there wasn't) and after a little while, took off the radiator cap and tried burping the system, and then refilling with more coolant. This worked to get me home. Then, I proceeded to take off the hoses to ensure they weren't damaged. The hoses were fine, possibly replaced along with the water pump. I reattached them and refilled and burped the system to ensure, once again that there was no air. The car then drove at its normal temp for 3 test drives. After that, I proceeded to take it on a slightly longer test drive, and to get it on the high way. Same thing happened. This time, when I got out of the car, I noticed that ALL of the coolant that i had put in the car was now on the road. This had not happened before, and seemed to be coming from where the bottom radiator hose connected to the radiator (could see main leak point on top of black shroud on drivers side). So, the car was then towed home and I removed the radiator to ensure that it wasn't cracked. The radiator looks fairly new to be honest, no visible damage. At this point i turned to subie forums for help. I have read that this could be an issue with either the thermostat, radiator cap, water pump, or head gasket. Now, my thinking was that since the head gasket and water pump were replaced 3 months ago, that they shouldn't (hopefully) be an issue. However, I replaced the thermostat and radiator cap, and the issue is still happening. That is where I am with the overheating issue. I have also verified that there is no oil in the coolant (as it is always spilling out of the car) as well as no coolant in the oil (did an oil change while the radiator was out since the car was up on ramps anyways)
Issue 2 (like i said, REALLY sorry for the length): After I replaced the hoses and refilled the system the first time, the CEL came back on. After the couple of test runs, I drove back to O'Reiley's to have it read again (closest auto parts store to my house). However, right about the time that the store came into view, my CEL started flashing and my car started sputtering and chugging REALLY bad. Almost as if the cat was clogged (experienced this in a 98 expedition). However, i limped/rolled the car to the autoparts store and had the code read, and it came back as a cylinder 3 misfire. I removed all of the plugs and wires, as I have heard that its common for OBDII scanners to misread which cylinder is actually misfiring, ensured that they werent wet, and then replaced with new plugs and wires.
As of my last test drive to see if either issue was fixed, the answer is no. CEL light is constantly on, and will randomly flash/car will chug really hard. Car is still overheating after 1/2 mile.
P.S. i didn't mention this, and i can't honestly remember when i noticed it/it started happening: The first drive right after i fill the coolant system, if it starts to over heat, it will fluxuate from hot to normal a few times before peaking. I do remember every time i refill to burp the system.
Seriously guys, any help at all is appreciated.
Ok, so heres whatsup. I own a 2002 2.5rs. The motor has ~175k on it. 5spd Manual transmission. No modifications to the car, except for no muffler (was cut off when i got it). Stock heads were remachined in december 2013 due to a TB malfucntion/break. Also, during this repair car got new water pump as well as all new fluids.
Overheating: About 2 weeks ago, I got a CEL (had only seen it one time, for about 2 hours about 3 weeks into Jan 2014, not sure why). Luckily (not really), I happened to be in the same parking lot as an O'Reily's auto parts store. They scanned the code for me and it came back as "Generic Fan Fault". The guy asked me if the car had been over heating and it hadn't. So, he reset the CEL and told me to watch and make sure that it wasn't over heating. So, a week later, I notice the car is running slightly warm (barley over 1/2 on gauge). I figured it wasn't too big of a deal, and decided to go ahead and run my errands. I made it appx 1/4 of a mile before I was almost peaking my temp gauge. I pulled the car over and let it cool down. Opened the hood and checked to see if there was any coolant (there wasn't) and after a little while, took off the radiator cap and tried burping the system, and then refilling with more coolant. This worked to get me home. Then, I proceeded to take off the hoses to ensure they weren't damaged. The hoses were fine, possibly replaced along with the water pump. I reattached them and refilled and burped the system to ensure, once again that there was no air. The car then drove at its normal temp for 3 test drives. After that, I proceeded to take it on a slightly longer test drive, and to get it on the high way. Same thing happened. This time, when I got out of the car, I noticed that ALL of the coolant that i had put in the car was now on the road. This had not happened before, and seemed to be coming from where the bottom radiator hose connected to the radiator (could see main leak point on top of black shroud on drivers side). So, the car was then towed home and I removed the radiator to ensure that it wasn't cracked. The radiator looks fairly new to be honest, no visible damage. At this point i turned to subie forums for help. I have read that this could be an issue with either the thermostat, radiator cap, water pump, or head gasket. Now, my thinking was that since the head gasket and water pump were replaced 3 months ago, that they shouldn't (hopefully) be an issue. However, I replaced the thermostat and radiator cap, and the issue is still happening. That is where I am with the overheating issue. I have also verified that there is no oil in the coolant (as it is always spilling out of the car) as well as no coolant in the oil (did an oil change while the radiator was out since the car was up on ramps anyways)
Issue 2 (like i said, REALLY sorry for the length): After I replaced the hoses and refilled the system the first time, the CEL came back on. After the couple of test runs, I drove back to O'Reiley's to have it read again (closest auto parts store to my house). However, right about the time that the store came into view, my CEL started flashing and my car started sputtering and chugging REALLY bad. Almost as if the cat was clogged (experienced this in a 98 expedition). However, i limped/rolled the car to the autoparts store and had the code read, and it came back as a cylinder 3 misfire. I removed all of the plugs and wires, as I have heard that its common for OBDII scanners to misread which cylinder is actually misfiring, ensured that they werent wet, and then replaced with new plugs and wires.
As of my last test drive to see if either issue was fixed, the answer is no. CEL light is constantly on, and will randomly flash/car will chug really hard. Car is still overheating after 1/2 mile.
P.S. i didn't mention this, and i can't honestly remember when i noticed it/it started happening: The first drive right after i fill the coolant system, if it starts to over heat, it will fluxuate from hot to normal a few times before peaking. I do remember every time i refill to burp the system.
Seriously guys, any help at all is appreciated.