Hi everybody! I own a 1988 Eldorado w/the 4.5 eng. The serp. belt let go ~ 1 mile from the freeway off ramp and had to hobble home. (about 4 mi. non-freeway mi.) Eng coolant indicator got to 273deg. for a brief time before I shut off. This happened 3 times before I finally made it home. This it a 4.5 engine and am asking for your thoughts as to whether I did any harm. Right now it's sitting in my drive cooling down. I really appreciate your thoughts! New member and Cadillac owner. Larry

 

IF and IF your coolant remained in the system, at 273F, you should be OK. IF any boiled out of the filler cap, drain it tomorrow, and re-fill with 50/50 mix. If it is more than 5 years old, same thing.

GUYS/ GALS .. belts, hoses, after 5 yrs or 50,000 miles you are asking for it .. big time.

common .. $25 vs $1,000 ? Gambling at Vegas is more fun !

Also, gotta tell you, the tow truck is a lot cheaper than an engine .. do NOT drive it even 1/4 mile next time ..

next solution? PARK IT .. walk to the parts store, walk back, install belt, drive home.





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Water at 273 degrees probably should have been going by your radiator cap. 250 degrees is something like 15psig. If that ever happens again, I would pull over and let it cool down for 30-40 minutes, drive a mile or two, let it cool again.

Stealth is correct, $100 in belts and hoses isn't worth a $1000 engine. At first thought I would say 270 degrees plus would harm an aluminum blocked engine, but as long as it starts and sound good, you're probably okay.

Let us know how it turns out.

-Dan