Car Repair Experts???

[Camman]

I have to bring my car into the shop tomorrow but I seriously have no idea whats the deal on this, figured some of the car repair experts might have some sort of idea whats going on if I explained this problem, just wanted some general idea.

Well, today I'm driving down the highway, just left my house and I get up to speed like 60-70mph and the heat was on, all of a sudden white smoke starts pouring into the passenger compartment of my car, so I freak out and pull over to the side of the highway, as Im pulling over I notice my temp gauge is at like 280F, yikes. I look back and see a not too big, but clearly visible trail of some sort of liquid that trailed behind my car from about maybe an 1/8 of a mile down the road. Also, the white smoke smelled alot like burning coolant. So I wait like 10minutes and then start her up again and limp down the highway to my class (I was like only a mile away from my school at this point), its still overheating and going up as I drive. So, my dad comes and drops off some coolant and stuff in my car. I put coolant into the resevoir because I saw that trail and thought I mightve lost some.

So on my way home the car is steadily heating up and so I turn on the heat full blast to try and cool it down but, funny thing is there is no heat AT ALL coming out the vents, even tho the temp gauge is at like 200F, so I think this problem has something to do with the heating system because the heat on the inside of the car never came on, it just blew cold air. Then again about a 1/2 mile from my house the white smoke like POURS out the vents, but this time the heat wasnt even on at all. I checked the radiator and hoses around there and everything looked good (radiator is only a little over a year old), again, I suspect its something involving the heating system since the heat no longer works even when the car is super hot.

The car is a 93 Pontiac Sunbird LE w/ the 2.0L OHC 4 cylinder and automatic transmission.

All you car gurus, let me know if you have any ideas!
I'm bringing the car down to the shop tomorrow anyway but figured I would ask in case any of you guys have any ideas as to what it could be.

The thing that pisses me off about this is I am planning on getting a new car at some point during the summer and I didnt want to have to put more money into this car, but I cant be without a car for the time being :(

[Mt_Goat]

First I needs to explain that the heater is the highest point in a car's cooling system and when you loose too much coolant the heater stops working because there is nothing going through the heater core. It sounds like one of two things are wrong here. It is either a broken hose or the water pump is bad. When a lot of water pumps wear out there is a "weep hole" that causes the coolant to escape to alert you to the problem. Let it cool all the way down and fill it up with the engine running so the water goes all the way through the system and visually look for where it is leaking. If it is coming from a hose it will be an easy fix. If it is coming from the water pump (in your car's case it will be on the passenger side down low) you will need to take it to a shop to be fixed as these are a biotch to get at and change.

[Camman]

Thanks for all the info mtgoat. I'm really hoping its not the water pump because it was just replaced a little over a year ago and it definitly wasnt a cheap job either :( I filled the coolant again as I said but I didnt notice any leaking this time as I did before. I started the car when I got home and visually inspected for leaks but I couldnt find any.

I didnt know about that thing with the heater being the highest point in the heating system, good info to have! I am basically a super n00b when it comes to car stuff which bothers me..I hate knowing so little about something I use and depend on every day.

[csimon]

does that car use a thermostat? might be broken in which case it is cheap to replace. On the other hand ...DO NOT LET THAT CAR OVERHEAT! The aluminum heads will warp for sure and possibly rods as well.

[primesuspect]

Might be the thermostat - $2.00 parts pwn!

[Camman]

the thermostat being messed up would cause all that smoke and overheating???

reiterates car newbness

[MrBill]

A thermostat stuck in the closed position will definitely cause the engine to overheat.

However, white smoke and the smell of coolant in the passenger compartment sounds more like a leaking heater core. This is generally not experienced from a bad water pump, busted hose or stuck thermostat.

My guess is going to be the heater core.

[croc_]

I didn't read any of the replys. I think your radiator hose came off and leaked out all the water/coolant. Happened to me a few times with my old car.

[Camman]

A thermostat stuck in the closed position will definitely cause the engine to overheat.

However, white smoke and the smell of coolant in the passenger compartment sounds more like a leaking heater core. This is generally not experienced from a bad water pump, busted hose or stuck thermostat.

My guess is going to be the heater core.


is that a really expensive repair? If the cost is going to be over like 4 or 5 hundred dollars than I'm probably going to be looking into a new car instead of waiting

[MrBill]

The part will probably be around $75 guessing. The labor is what might be expensive, but I doubt you are looking at over $200 IF it is the heater core.

//edit: another common sign of a bad heater core is the windshield fogging up.

[madmat]

Here's my 2 cents worth, my first thought was the thermostat as well and as mtgoat said the water level being too low will cause you to not get heat.
The water could have come from the overflow resevoir after the water expansion caused it to overfill and the pressure from the engine overheating could have caused the heatercore to spring a leak and blow steam into the passenger compartment.
A heatercore will cost $100-$150 to replace and if it is the thermostat the totals for your repairs should be in the area of about $200 if you have the shop do it all.
If the head is warped from overheating you're looking at $800 to $1700 to fix it.

[KingFish]

Is your car running rough too like it's "missing", aka all of the cylinders doesn't seem to be firing? Is there any smoke coming from the tailpipe? Those two in combination can be a sign that you cracked the head, which is frighteningly common on those small engines. Check your engine oil also to see if there is a white pasty stuff in it. If there is, that means that water is getting inside your crankcase and you can definitely count on your head being cracked. If all is running smooth and you are just losing coolant, it will be a leak somewhere in the system. If you had a leak in your heater core you'd definitely smell the coolant on the inside of your car. You will likely have a soggy carpet too. The white smoke theoretically could have originated from under your hood and got into your vehicle through the ventilation system. If you don't suspect your car of having a cracked head, fill it with coolant and let it idle up to temp. Make sure if you have an electrical powered fan behind your radiator that it kicks on. It's possible the white smoke could have been an electrical relay blowing inside your vehicle causing the fan to not work anymore,which then lead to overheating. Report back with the info and we'll go from there.

KingFish

[289Mustang]

Sounds like a heater core to me based on the smoke from the vents. The parts are usually around $50, the labor is what kills you. I used to work doing car insurance claims like these all day. Some cars are easy and take about 3 hrs, some suck and take 8+ hrs. Just hope yours is easy. Labor rates around Boston is pretty pricey, maybe $80/hr+ if I remember right, I hope you're far enough away from there to get down into the $50-60/hr range.

If it got as hot as you say (I wouldn't trust stock gauges too much for exact numbers, just general ideas) the head could easily be warped or cracked. Repair for that is probably more than the car is worth in NADA.

[[R3D]KJ]

I'll add another vote for heater core. A lot of good information here, I commend you guys :respect:

[Gargoyle]

Another vote for heater core. Man I hope your head isn't warped :-/. If you take it out on another test drive, pull over ASAP if it gets above normal operating temp.

That's what I love about my old Volvo. It overheated like a biotch when I first tried to drive it home, but it has an iron head :D. Oh, my problem was the $2 thermostat.

[Camman]

Ding ding ding: we have a winner, the shop replaced the heater core this afternoon, the damage was $253 :(

$75 for the core
$175 for labor

thanks for the info guys!

[MrBill]

Ding ding ding: we have a winner, the shop replaced the heater core this afternoon, the damage was $253 :(

$75 for the core
$175 for labor

thanks for the info guys!
I diagnosed it correctly and that's just about what I estimated it would cost you. ;)

/me pats himself on the back. :D