Scoobywagon Posted December 20, 2010 Share Posted December 20, 2010 Ok, having gotten that out of the way.... The car is a 1988 GL wagon, SPFI, Auto. Recently swapped in a motor with about 130k or so on it. Got the engine in and running. When we added coolant and let it run up to temp the first time, we found that the upper radiator hose was showing signs of high pressure, but didn't feel like a lot of flow. Recently, when I run it up to temp the first time of the day, it will blow bubbles in the catch can when I shut it off. Now, I might think this is a sign of blown headgaskets except there are NO other signs of headgasket failure. No crankcase milkshake, no cloud of steam following me around, nothing. It doesn't seem to do the bubble blowing thing unless I let it cool all the way down. Any thoughts? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NorthWet Posted December 20, 2010 Share Posted December 20, 2010 Engine installed backwards? Next time, use a better mechanic. We never checked the lower hose for pressure/temp, did we? Top of my list would be thermostat... I don't remember touching it. Plugged radiator comes to mind, but the radiator worked with previous engine... (FWIW, I did HGs on an XT and it did some of this same weirdness. Didn't figure it out before I had to move on to my next crisis.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scoobywagon Posted December 20, 2010 Author Share Posted December 20, 2010 Yeah, I don't know what I was thinking taking it to that guy. What a tool! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
naru Posted December 20, 2010 Share Posted December 20, 2010 (edited) Ok, having gotten that out of the way.... The car is a 1988 GL wagon, SPFI, Auto. Recently swapped in a motor with about 130k or so on it. Got the engine in and running. When we added coolant and let it run up to temp the first time, we found that the upper radiator hose was showing signs of high pressure, but didn't feel like a lot of flow. Recently, when I run it up to temp the first time of the day, it will blow bubbles in the catch can when I shut it off. Now, I might think this is a sign of blown headgaskets except there are NO other signs of headgasket failure. No crankcase milkshake, no cloud of steam following me around, nothing. It doesn't seem to do the bubble blowing thing unless I let it cool all the way down. Any thoughts? Kinda sounds like the cooling system may have a vacuum leak that allows air to enter instead of just coolant from the overflow bottle when shut down.Sometimes these leaks are one-way(no coolant loss) I would heat up the engine w/the rad cap off,shut down and reinstall the cap,and then attach a vacuum pump and gauge to the overflow to see if the system holds vacuum. Or,just disconnect the overflow bottle and put the gauge(only) at the end of the tube. It should pull and hold vacuum as it cools down. Or, just tighten the hose clamps. Edited December 23, 2010 by naru easier method Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WASHroad Posted December 20, 2010 Share Posted December 20, 2010 How much water did it take to fill? Just sounds like a big-o air lock in the system. Running up to full temp with the radiator cap off change any thing? Was the themostate checked or changed? Did you have full heat while running the engine at full temp? If you had low heat temp. it is just an air lock and low on water in the system. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scoobywagon Posted December 21, 2010 Author Share Posted December 21, 2010 It took nearly 2 gallons of pre-mix but the engine we put in was not completely empty. It sloshed a bit. I'll try purging it again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Natureboy Posted December 21, 2010 Share Posted December 21, 2010 I'd suspect the thermostat-start with the simplest thing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Indrid cold Posted December 21, 2010 Share Posted December 21, 2010 weak radiator cap? or am I missing something here? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
naru Posted December 21, 2010 Share Posted December 21, 2010 weak radiator cap? or am I missing something here? Maybe this? "It doesn't seem to do the bubble blowing thing unless I let it cool all the way down." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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