i posted it before , can not find it anyways, changed thermostat , coolant set at -15 , all fresh, changed cap, all air pockets gone, but it still seems to have the same problem as before, temp gauge goes up 3/4 way , thermostat opens ,goes to 1/2 , this seems good, but some times it will not open until it gets close to the red , but after a half hour on the road it will stay in the middle, all ok,

How's your water pump? The impellor could be badly erroded maybe?

new water pump, in fact oem , gasket, o ring

Hey Jim, are you still on the first replacement thermostat, or have you replaced it with a second new one? Over the years, I have had very bad luck with aftermarket t-stats (particularly Stant). I have had some in my Datsun last less than one week before they started sticking. IIRC, I even had one bad out of the box (think that was on my Aerostar).

 

As at least one person has said, your car's symptoms sound like nothing else except a sticking t-stat, one that resists opening at rated temp but stays reasonably open once operating temperature has been reached.

 

My suggestion, assuming that you haven't already done so, is to get an OE t-stat from the dealer and give it a try. I know many members have strong opinions towards using OE t-stats exclusively.

 

(I'll trade you problems: My wife's t-wagon has been overheating for a couple of weeks. I think that it is the electric fan not coming on due to a flakey connector, but since I have been working constantly I haven't been with her when it gets hot, and she hasn't pulled over to see if the fan is on. I picked up a fan with chassis-side connector that I will splice in when we both are home and there is some light.)

well after it cooled off a few hours it seemed to work alot better after i replaced the thermostat ,thanks

Hi Gang!!! I posted earlier along this same post but... I now have a consistant (grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr) overheating problem too. Maybe we can solve this problem together.

New water pump, new thermostat (which for now I have out). No leaks anywhere. The electric fan comes on just about 3/4 on the gauge. It takes about 6 miles of driving before it starts to overheat and then gradually heads for the red line. Belt is nice and tight, no weird sounds (other than the gurggggling from being hot). this is a EA82 '88 3 door coupe 1.8 thottlebody SOHC. Crud... I hate to think a new radiator maybe. GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR

HEEEEEEEEEEEELLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLPPPPPPPPPPPPPPP!!!

boing

boing, just feel the radiator core, top to bottom, while the engine is at operating temperature. If you feel cold regions these are plugged tubes. If you have A/C or something else that makes it difficult to feel the front of the core then pull the electric fan and feel on the backside.

i forgot to say also, both my belts were alittle loose , and they are not oem belts , both are tight now , today i will start it up again and see what she does , thanks

Hi Gang!!! I posted earlier along this same post but... I now have a consistant (grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr) overheating problem too. Maybe we can solve this problem together.

New water pump, new thermostat (which for now I have out). No leaks anywhere. The electric fan comes on just about 3/4 on the gauge. It takes about 6 miles of driving before it starts to overheat and then gradually heads for the red line. Belt is nice and tight, no weird sounds (other than the gurggggling from being hot). this is a EA82 '88 3 door coupe 1.8 thottlebody SOHC. Crud... I hate to think a new radiator maybe. GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR

HEEEEEEEEEEEELLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLPPPPPPPPPPPPPPP!!!

 

boing

 

This sounds like it may be a head gasket problem. Have you had a block check done?

talking to me or the other guy ? mine seems fine now , changed out thermostat ,

Glad that your heating problem went away 86Subaru... I have mine worse than ever still going on. I can drive 6 miles and all of a sudden it progressively gets hotter til it red lines ( I turn it off before it crosses the line). I can have the head tested.... Keep in mind that I didn't have this problem until my water pump went out and of course overheated at that time so I replaced the water pump but have the problem ever since. Perhaps the first overheating caused the head to gasket to go bad but I see no sign of water coming from the head or anywhere else except the overflow. No hoses leaking, no thermostat leak, no sign of water jacket leak. I will take the electric motor out and feel the radiatior like you suggest and see if I can find some cool spots too. grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr, I've been growling a lot lately over this thing but I'll keep plugging along.. it's the only car we have. If you have other suggestions please let me know.

 

Boing

Does the water in the radiator froth or bubble when the engine is running? Take the cap off and look. If it does, its a sure sign you have head gasket probs.

are you sure that your thermostat is working like it should? mine went bad and it was 1 month old or a air pocket some where , but it could be a hg problem also

It's pretty hard to keep the radiator equal at the full..... if I give gas the water lever goes down .... if I let off the water comes back to the full line. I will look close today for bubbling. I didn't see any frothing at all. My guess is... by now I'm running almost pure water and no coolant because I've added water from where the radiator overheated and spit steam into the overflow and I added water before starting it again. grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr dynomite is sounding pretty good to me right about now.... Have you ever roasted a hot dog over a subaru???????? If I didn't love this thing I would of given up long ago.

 

Boing

I tested it today and very little if any frothing. The radiator water lever decreased after I started the car so I kept on adding coolant. It actually took about a quart or more. I drove about 18 miles and it ran at normal. Is it possible to come and go? It did cool down here a bit tonight but sheeeesh....

 

Please help me get it here... I'm grateful for any suggestions, Boing

I would have a block check done at a service shop. This will tell you the state of the headgaskets.

I would have a block check done at a service shop. This will tell you the state of the headgaskets.

 

Out of curiosity and for future reference, please tell how they do this block check? Something about pressurizing the system? What?

 

Thanks

{Pyro

If I remember correctly the shop adds a chemical to the coolant and tests the gases from the coolant to see if there are any exhaust gases in the coolant. It is a cheap test to have done.

If I remember correctly the shop adds a chemical to the coolant and tests the gases from the coolant to see if there are any exhaust gases in the coolant. It is a cheap test to have done.

 

Interestin. I didn't know such a thing was availiable. Good to know! Thanks.

PYro