Weather is pretty nicehere today as well. 70 degrees I believe.

Still no white smoke and no coolant or water in the oil. I got the sealant on my lunch break today and I will put them in before I leave my office.

Do you think that its possiblefor it to be getting to hot and just boiling out of the drain hose? Also, is there a seperate fuse for the fans? I really cant tell if the fans have been coming on or not.

How much do you think pressure test run? What exactly do they do?



Thanks, Sandi

 

A pressure test is a process where the tech will attach a pressurized line in place of the rad cap for an extended period of time. The hose has a guage which reads the pressure in the system. Any drop over the test period would indicate a leak. The pressure will usually pinpoint the leak if there is one. The test is time and equipment so I'd say $100 or less.

A compression test is a process where each spark plug is pulled and the gauge is attached while the cylinder is tested. I don't have the specs but generally no one cylinder should be less than 80% of the highest. This is a way to make sure the cylinder heads are solid which also is a measure of whether there is a head gasket issue. Again time and equipmentso $100 or less is my guess.

The Cooling Fans have their own relay in the MaxiFuse/Relay centre. This is on the drivers side in the engine compartmentlocated beside the fuse block. The fuse block is beside the air cleaner on the driver's side.The relay should be marked as COOL FNS.

For now I suggest that you get the pellet sealer in the car and see if things stabilize over the next few days. Normally one would expect to see evidence of overflowing coolant from the tank hose. Overall it is not uncommon in any car to have to periodically top up the resevoir tank. I also think that if your temperature gets up to 225 at idle then drops to 200 when drivingand that's it you are ok. The Northstars do run hotter than say your average Small Block and 225 is safe enough from 250 when the engine cuts off and goes into Limp Home Mode.

Coolant will turn the oil milky or you may see a milky residue on the rad cap. The sealer may turn the coolant darker and appear thicker.

Sorry to be so late answering, as I had a Board meeting for our Local Community Arena Board this evening.

 

Well, I plan on changing all the plugs and maybe the wires soon. I changed my oil last night just out of curiosity to see if there was water or coolant in it and it was just fine. I also put the pellets in. So we will see. The coolant level was down about 3.5 maybe 4 inches before I refilled and put the pellets in. The coolant did get milky once I put the pellets in.

I looked for a fan fuse a day or 2 ago and didnt see one that was or could have been associated with fans. There were 2 but didnt say anything about fans. That I can recall anyways. Ill check again in a little while.

Do you think it is possible for there to be a leak to where it only leaked out while driving?

 

Absolutely. As normal heat builds it expands metal and aluminum, cracks can open up and leak. Normal pressure built up in the sytemonce operational can also force leaks out. Leaks like this often are indisearnable because engine heat and wind etc...evaporate any signs of leakage. I gave you some hints for areas to look before. The generator is a good one because not too many people know it is liquid cooled. You will see the small diameter pipes going to and from it. If they leak the engine heat from where they are is going to evapoarte the signs of coolant fast.

One last tip and I have not mentioned it before is the base of the radiator and the bottom neck. Devilles of this vintage are known for bottoming out on curbs and driveways. I heard of one fellow who actaully cracked the bottom radiator neck from hitting the bottom of the car so often. The crack was hidden by the rad hose but would open up when hot and almost instantly evaporate.

 

Wow!! I didnt even think about anything like that. Would the sealer fix that or is that a radiator replacement?

 

Sealer helps seal areas around gaskets and hoses but cracks and warped parts not so good. New radiator would be the fix imo. I take it from your reply that you have wacked the front end a few times going up and down driveways?

 

maybe once or twice...lol...but only cause the places didnt look so steep. I have always been use to big trucks where I didnt have to worry about stuff like that.

 

Why? Is the car running poorly? If so that would be helpful information regarding the coolant problem.

 

When its idleling its like its jittery. I dont know any other way to explain it. And with the P0300 code all I can come up with is spark plugs.

 

P0300 misfire code -You are right about spark plugs being a possible cause. You also need to consider the wires because at your car's age they are probably worse than the plugs. There are also 4 coils that could go bad. I would change the plugs and wires together and see what happens. Also don't forget two overlooked items, the air filter and the fuel filter. Every engine needs fuel and air. In essence you will be doing a tune up.

When you leave a stop light does the car hesitate or stumble? How about on the freeway does it accelerate smoothly? Switch your DIS to engine speed and watch the RPM's at a stop or idle. I'd say they should be constant maybe a fluxuation of 25 rpm but no more. Mine stay solid at 650 RPM's when I'm at a stop light.