I have an issue with my 2011 Chevy Cruze 1.4 Eco Turbo POS (Excuse my french). So far we have changed the purge connector valve, A/C Compressor clutch (Which I had to buy the whole thing to get the clutch), and a million little things replaced. I am a DIY kind of guy because, money is tight. Here is my question. My car was leaking Fluids… Oil and Coolant. We got the Oil problem fixed finally but, now the coolant issue has gotten worse very fast. If I start my car and idle it its doesnt overheat. I can run it till the gas runs out. If I hit 50+ it starts overheating but, once you slow down from that speed it comes back to normal heat. It not only comes back to normal it literally takes seconds (10 was the most) for it to return. I dont feel my car is overheating by any means but, I want to be sure. I have 4 children and dont want to be in a problem car while driving. I have to bleed the coolant about every 5 hours or a medium trip of 30 minutes. Does anyone know why my car seems to be overheating when I get to a certain speed and just quickly uncools when I slow, idle, or stop my car?
If you radiator is partially clogged you have limited cooling capacity and when you get up to speed the system cannot handle the extra heat load. Another could be a defective water pump.
You really need to go to a shop that specializes in cooling systems and get a realistic estimate for a fix. A Chevy dealer will want to rebuild the system and change everything that can be changed, resulting in a staggering bill.
Air in the cooling system because of leaking head gasket? Any loss of coolant? Signs of coolant in oil (high oil level, “milkshake” deposited on the filler cap?)
Bad head gasket would be my guess based on these 2 things. Have a pressure test run and a gas test of the cooling system to see if CO2 is getting into the coolant. Next run a compression test. I’d guess on cylinder will read low, these IS CO2 in the coolant and it will barely hold pressure, but leak down slowly.
Wouldn’t it be CO (carbon monoxide) and unburned HC (hydrocarbons)?
One way to detect a head gasket leak is to see bubbles with the rad cap off and the engine running. Those bubbles contain some hydrocarbons, that may be detected by an exhaust sniffer.
A family member mentioned something about it being my head gaskets also. So I will get the test done and have someone fix it. Looks a little hard for me. My friend restores cars and has a lift. He fixed my wheel bearings and put a straight pipe on my Chevy Trailblazer in only a hour.
The guy who was getting the oil leaks fixed said that water was comign out the exhaust. It looked like oil to me when he cupped the muffler and the air pushed it away. Looked like black oil like it was burnt.
Coolant leaking into the combustion chamber comes out the exhaust ports as steam. That steam condenses into water - black water - and makes its way out the exhaust. Normal exhause has a lot of water in it anyway because Air + Fuel + Spark = CO2 and water vapor (in the best situation!).
Add some coolant to the mix and you get more exhaust water that is sweet smelling
Engine damage usually isn’t good news. It seems that at one time when you were having cooling system problems the engine got hot enough to warp the cylinder head and cause the head gasket to leak. The cost to replace the cylinder head could be $2500 to $3000.
Okay i think I may have gotten it! My neighbor just came over. In 5 minutes looking it over he noticed a leak from the Coolant Resevoir Hose. The Quick connect had coolant around it. Took it off and it is cracked! He said this is probably the reason your having no buildup and your tempatures are shooting up when the thermostat doesnt open and close right. I should of seen that. What do you all think?
Yep! lol I have to order the whole hose. Ima do that now on Rockauto. I usually order parts there because they are cheaper and havent had any issues with them. I had to buy hoses for an older car I had. They are still good to go.
Thank you all for your help! If it doesnt work I will be back for more brainstorming. If this dosnt work I will take it to someone who specializes in the coolant side and have them test for blockages or anything else.
