SS gets hot
Thread Starter
Banned
Joined: 12-17-2017
Posts: 34
From: Arz
Ok, Im driveing 90 miles a day. It’s a brand new zzp engine. Today the engine temp was 199° until I turned the heater selector on, all the way to red. The temp steadily increased to 223, then cooled down rapidly (I haven’t seen that happen yet). I turned the heater to midway and the temp stayed down at 194. I guess what I don’t understand is why this is so inconsistent. If the car has the potential to cool why does it get that high? I’ve had it running at idle with the fan running wide open and it wouldn’t cool, just stayed flat. My concern is now it’s 70° in a few months I’ll be back out to the desert and it’s going to 40° hotter. If I’m having this happen now, it’s probably not going to be better, except? I’ll be using the AC instead of the heater so maybe it will be better? Also no water fall sound in the dash. When the car is cool, I’ll take the cap off of the coolant as it warms it pushes coolant out. I don’t know if that’s air expanding or coolant expanding? I need to find a way to seal that coolant opening so it can rise and maybe burp out a bubble without spilling over the top of the cap?
Last edited by BlackSS200k; Oct 9, 2018 at 09:41 PM. Reason: Adding info
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From: Welland,Ont Canada
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From: Tampa, Florida
Remember to keep it simple when diagnosin issues....... our HHR's are actually incredibly simple machines when you look at them mechanically. All you need is a proper burp. You have air trapped somewhere or low coolant. I dont know if you installed the engine yourself or not, but something might have been missed during install. It happens.
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Joined: 04-09-2006
Posts: 7,043
From: Vancouver, BC, Canada
At this point he says he has replaced the turbo, water pump, 3 thermostats, timing chain, pump chain, radiator, fan then replaced the whole engine, and at some point used a stop leak for a possible head gasket issue.
So BlackSS200k what does that point to? Pretty much all the current suggestions: burp the system properly, check the heater core for being clogged, check the electrical connections as per Donbrew.
And please stop obsessing over a one or two degree change in temperature - they mean absolutely nothing.
So BlackSS200k what does that point to? Pretty much all the current suggestions: burp the system properly, check the heater core for being clogged, check the electrical connections as per Donbrew.
And please stop obsessing over a one or two degree change in temperature - they mean absolutely nothing.
Thread Starter
Banned
Joined: 12-17-2017
Posts: 34
From: Arz
Yes. I am attempt to burp the car every day. My driveway is on a steep slope that has the right front of the car 1.5 feet higher than the left rear. All the replacement parts were with the old engine, it had a bad head gasket. The 30° degree temp swing when the heater nob is turned on is newer problem. It sounds like airtime to me also. I don’t know what else it could be?
Thread Starter
Banned
Joined: 12-17-2017
Posts: 34
From: Arz
New day new experiment!
I tried to burb again today, the car will run all day long with the cap off. The fan comes on slightly and the coolant stays at 201. There are no air bubble in the coolant, and the lower hose isn’t getting warm. Maybe if I disconnect the fan more coolant will flow and force out air if indeed that’s the problem? When I turn the heater on after a minute or 2 it boiled over and burped coolant out the filler neck,not sure what the heck is going on with the heater. It’s like it’s short circuiting the thermostat and not letting it come open. I wish I knew more about this coolant system. I’m at a loss.
Whopper,
I replaced the timing set at 200k, I should have done the head gasket at that time, but I didn’t. My bad! It had a broken plastic guide. At 214k the turbo went out. At 218 I replaced the engine. Could have fixed the head gasket but what the heck. I did experiment with the thermostat I suspected I had the incorrect one.
I tried to burb again today, the car will run all day long with the cap off. The fan comes on slightly and the coolant stays at 201. There are no air bubble in the coolant, and the lower hose isn’t getting warm. Maybe if I disconnect the fan more coolant will flow and force out air if indeed that’s the problem? When I turn the heater on after a minute or 2 it boiled over and burped coolant out the filler neck,not sure what the heck is going on with the heater. It’s like it’s short circuiting the thermostat and not letting it come open. I wish I knew more about this coolant system. I’m at a loss.
Whopper,
I replaced the timing set at 200k, I should have done the head gasket at that time, but I didn’t. My bad! It had a broken plastic guide. At 214k the turbo went out. At 218 I replaced the engine. Could have fixed the head gasket but what the heck. I did experiment with the thermostat I suspected I had the incorrect one.
Thread Starter
Banned
Joined: 12-17-2017
Posts: 34
From: Arz
I still had a little energy in me, unplugged fan and tested. This time the coolant got 203° and was circulating great. No air bubbles at all ( old engine would have been pumping bubbles like crazy). The temp stayed about 201°-203° with out the fan fuse in. Turned on the heater, bubbles starting showing up in the filler neck, temp went up, plugged in the fan made no difference. Turned the heafter off bubbles went away and temp came down. Not sure what the damper/ heat selector would have to do with that but it sure does affect it somehow. It’s like it closes the thermostat somehow? I need to figure out the cooling system, I heard GM has a tech line? Maybe?
