# 2002 Impala 3.4l Runs hot only when pulling a grade

**URL:** <https://community.cartalk.com/t/2002-impala-3-4l-runs-hot-only-when-pulling-a-grade/67854>\
**Category:** Maintenance/Repairs\
**Tags:** chevrolet, overheating, impala\
**Created:** [September 12, 2011, 3:39pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/2002-impala-3-4l-runs-hot-only-when-pulling-a-grade/67854 "2011-09-12T15:39:22Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![jbroulette](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/d26b3c/32.png) [@jbroulette](https://community.cartalk.com/u/jbroulette)\
**Post date:** [September 12, 2011, 3:39pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/2002-impala-3-4l-runs-hot-only-when-pulling-a-grade/67854/1 "2011-09-12T15:39:22Z")

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My 2002 Impala runs hot when pulling a long grade and I have to turn off the a/c. It runs fine every other time. New belts, hoses, thermostat and flushed completely with new coolant. The radiator is fine and a/c coils are clean also

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**Author:** ![keith](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/keith/32/5518_2.png) [@keith](https://community.cartalk.com/u/keith)\
**Post date:** [September 13, 2011, 2:07am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/2002-impala-3-4l-runs-hot-only-when-pulling-a-grade/67854/2 "2011-09-13T02:07:00Z")

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This is a typical symptom for a radiator cap that is not holding pressure. You can do a lot of tests, but caps are cheap.

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**Author:** ![Tester](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/tester/32/15976_2.png) [@Tester](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Tester)\
**Post date:** [September 13, 2011, 2:10am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/2002-impala-3-4l-runs-hot-only-when-pulling-a-grade/67854/3 "2011-09-13T02:10:39Z")

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How are you determinating that the engine engine is running hot?

Tester