atfarris Posted January 31, 2014 Share Posted January 31, 2014 I still havent quite figured out this problem. I've been lucky its been cold, so it actually hasn't been getting hot on me, only a few times. But I know the problem is still there, because every time I stop my heater turns cold. Which sucks because when im delivering, I barely have heat. Some one did a pressure test, all 4 cylinders read about 140 and held. We even drove it around for about an hour and got it warm, and same results. radiator holds pressure. but it still seems to be leaking. I don't see it leak, at all. Could it be not passing through the pump, coming back out of the reserve tank. Could it be as simple as its not bled good enough? I have filled it several times. every time parking up hill, removing the screw, had the heat on, and filled it slowly. I'm stuck, and the closer i get to warm weather the more I will be stuck on the side of the road waiting for it to cool down. Any idea's and thoughts are appreciated, thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GreenMachine Posted January 31, 2014 Share Posted January 31, 2014 Bad thermostat? Bad radiator cap? Pin hole in radiator hose or heater core hose? I had a vehicle that had a tiny hole in a radiator hose and I couldn't figure out where I was losing coolant from. Finally I was messing around and had the car running with the hood open and low and behold I saw coolant shoot out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
monkeyposeur Posted February 1, 2014 Share Posted February 1, 2014 Only use an OEM tstat. It's possible you still have air bubbles in the system. Do a hydrocarbon test to rule out a head gasket issue. Try squeezing the upper and lower radiator hose with the cap off. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spooln30 Posted February 1, 2014 Share Posted February 1, 2014 A quick sign of a blown HG would be to look into the coolant overflow bottle and if there's any sign of oil then the gaskets are gone or going. If this looks good it's either a bad t stat, air in the system or a waterpump. If seen water pumps that the impeller would spin on the shaft and cause overheating no heat issues. GL. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnegg Posted February 1, 2014 Share Posted February 1, 2014 there are 2 basic and common causes of overheating, lack of flow or loss of coolant. lack of flow can be caused by bad pump or a clogged something or maybe an air lock (needs burping). loss of coolant can be caused by a leak or internal head gasket leak which forces the coolant out the over flow. i think the easiest thing to check is bubbles in the overflow bottle when the engine is over heating. (do not open radiator). when new and small, an internal head gasket leak, from combustion chamber to the coolant, can cause no issue when idling or around town, but will occasionlly overheat after 30 minutes on the hiway. as the leak progresses and gets worse it will over heat more often. if you have bubbles you likely have a head gasket leak. if no bubbles, replace the cap, it can't hurt and it is probably due. if you KNOW the t-stat is a subaru item i would leave it. they rarely fail. if you are not sure, replace it with a subaru item. or at least have it on hand when you look to see if it is a subaru item. (if you do not plan to repair the engine even if it is head gaskets, you may be wasting money on new parts.) but if the t-stat has not been changed recently, that is probably not the cause. usually they work or don't work. they don't often fail suddenly, but they can. clogged rads will cause no issue when idling or around town, but over heat when more cooling is needed. bad pumps may act similarly, but they may over heat when just idling. i had a water pump on my 90 nissan pick up where the impeller blades corroded away. it would run hot on the hiway but was ok around town. i had never seen a pump fail that did not leak, go figure? one last thing that should be mentioned if these overheats are happening in the extreme cold weather, there have been a few reports of overheats recently due to the cold weather. 50 / 50 coolant should not overheat even at -10 below. but if you have been topping off your coolant with water, occasionally, it may not be 50 / 50 coolant any more. maybe top it off with pure 100% anti freeze and see. good luck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
atfarris Posted February 2, 2014 Author Share Posted February 2, 2014 Thanks for the reply's. I have replaced the cap and t-stat. I didn't buy a subaru t-stat, but i did drill 2 small holes in the metal, so it has a little extra flow. I guess getting a subaru one would be my next step. When I bought the car, the guy said he had replaced the water pump, timing belt, etc. I wasn't for sure if he was lying or not, so I replaced the water pump with a napa one. He was telling the truth, because the one I pulled off looked brand new. I haven't ever noticed bubbles in the over flow tank. It's weird, when I drive straight no stopping, it doesn't come close to over heating. i drove for 2 hours on the highway the other day, nothing. It only happens when I am idling. I started the route the other day, and my 2nd stop was an apartment set of boxes. so i was stopped for about 20 minutes, about 10 minutes after i left the post office. during this time it started to over heat, so i had to keep reving it up to get the water flowing. i just delivered pretty fast the rest of the day, it didn't do it again. If it has a leak somewhere down low I may have missed it. but the radiator looks clean. I'll see if I can find a subaru dealer to get the t stat. but first I have to replace a wheel bearing. I havent had the best luck with this car lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Headtrauma89 Posted February 2, 2014 Share Posted February 2, 2014 Sounds like your electric fans aren't working. Let it idle and watch to see if your fans come on at normal operating temp.could be a fuse ore a bad coolant temp sensor. there are 2, one that sends the temp to the gage and the other goes to the ecu and tells the fans to kick on. Also, you really need to get an oem thermostat Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
atfarris Posted February 4, 2014 Author Share Posted February 4, 2014 Fans for sure come on. If the heater stops blowing hot air, when I am stopped,is that a for sure indication that the antifreeze isn't flowing through? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Idaho subaru Posted February 4, 2014 Share Posted February 4, 2014 Sounds like flow issue caused by low coolant. I had the same issues when my head gaskets went out. Not saying that yours are bad, just that the low coolant on mine was caused by the a bad head gasket. I was able to drive it for awhile with the problem by adding coolant now and then when the heater stopped working. To burp the air out of the system, do what you are doing parking uphill remove the screw ect.... But after you think its full, start squeezing the upper and lower hoses to force water through the system, and ideally get the air out. The heater core is the high spot in the system, so air gets trapped in there, and although it would seem like it would get flushed out by itself, it won't. Usually after I think its full, I get another quart or two in there just by squeezing the hoses a bunch of times. Do that until you truly can't get anymore coolant in, and you might be done. Also , make sure your overflow tank is at the proper level, or if your system decides it needs more coolant, it will suck more air in. Then guess what? You'll have to do it all again! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnegg Posted February 6, 2014 Share Posted February 6, 2014 If the heater stops blowing hot air, when I am stopped,is that a for sure indication that the antifreeze isn't flowing through? yes. no flow. hot coolant rises, cooler settles. or just no flow through the t-stat. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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