what could be the problem here...
 

i have an 87 camaro and whenever i drive it i fear it overheating. its got to the point where im kind of double thinking going on longer type trips because i may have to stop on the side of the road to let the motor cool down a bit. i was talking to my friend tonight, who owns the same generation camaro, and almost the same set up i have and said it could be the water pump, radiator, or headgaskets, and also that the temperature should not be going as high as it does.

the car hits 220-230 on normal drives around town, 240 on extended trips. the wierd thing is, the water pump has less than 500 miles on it, so does the radiator...but should i rule those out? could there be anything else to look at besides the waterpump radiator or headgaskets?

the car gets so hot i can feel the heat from the motor on my legs sometimes

any help would be greatly appreciated thanks guys.

The fan and all the related shrouding and air dams must be in proper working order for a third gen to cool properly.

If everything is up to snuff try changing out your thermostat with a fresh 160* unit.

Also check the hoses, sometimes they can collaps when hot, restricting flow.

Did you try back flushing the coolant system?

Is the air dam that bolts to the bottom of the car still in place? This is the number one cause of overheating in a thirdgen. Somewhere along the way people lose them to parking blocks, the elements, speed bumps, etc and there is no airflow up to the radiator at that point.

If that's good check that your fans are working properly and as stated above check out the hoses.

the air dam behind the bumper is in working order...under the car though, i cant seem to find one so i guess its not there. im going to try to go to a junk yard tomorow to find one hopefully, unless anyone knows anyone who has one laying around.

i havent tryed backflushing the coolant yet but after the air dam if it persists ill give that a shot. i may also get the radiator diagnosed...its a new radiator but there always is a chance that its faulty

its a clutch fan right? Is the clutch working?

Flush the radiator

see if there are any leaves stuck between the condensor and the radiator

If you're missing that undercar airdam I'd put money on that being your problem. You'd know it if you saw it....about 2.5-3 feet long and 3 or 4 inches tall. It's black and has a right angle on the top with bolt holes for mounting it to the bottom side of the car.

yeah the clutch fan is working fine

add an electric fan!

lol i already have 2 electric fans...one in front of the radiator and one behind it

so you have a clutch fan, and 2 electric fans and your still overheating? sounds like your electric fans arent blowing correctly and creating a neutral air flow. make sure the one in front isnt blowing out. ive accidently crossed wires and had it do that. it sure felt like air was moving towards the engine but holding a piece of paper next to the fan showed which way it was really moving

its the air damn deflector. you need that black piece. look under any third or fourth gen f body. they are "bottom breathers" and suck air from underneath the car. if this piece is missing, your coolant won't cool in the radiator and eventually you will overheat. install an air damn first specific to your application, then continue with the diagnosis.

a 4th gen bottom air dam will also fit a third gen?

get the air dam from a junkyard...if theres none there...try the junkyard in williamstown...the camaro graveyard...or so i call it....i dont know what its really called.

if you wanna do a quick check for head gaskets for peace of mind check your oil...if its not milky white then your not leaking coolant into the oil...also pull your cap off the radiator (make sure its cool first) then run the car. watch for bubbles in the coolant system....air in a properly bled radiator is usually a sign of leaking compression through the headgasket into the cooling system causing the coolant not to cool properly.

look for bubbles in the coolant tank? the good news is i checked the dipstick and it wasnt milky white...it looked like normal motor oil.

i went to absolute junkyard in bound brook and found an air dam...i installed it and still it climbs pretty high...i drove it to autozone and back and it hit 210 pretty quick, im sure if i still drove it it wouldnt have stopped... what should i troubleshoot for now?

pull the thermostat out all together and drive it

what am i looking for when i do that

increased coolant flow.

also if it helps the car overheats just sitting in traffic...

anyone think the carb may have to be retuned?

a cooler temp thermostat helps...

also, the state of your coolant is important...if its fresh, and everything is in working order...you may want to check your plugs to see if you are running lean.

you put on a third gen air damn right? they are different. your fans work? ensure the coolant is clean and still good (ph level) then double check the thermostat and hoses

I think running the clutch fan as well as a pusher and puller electric fan could be hurting you more than helping. That fan in the front of the radiator isn't doing anything but blocking that air that the air dam is pushing up - get rid of it. Also, where do you have the other electric fan mounted? the fan shroud for the clutch fan should cover the entire radiator. If that isn't properly in place, then the clutch fan isn't effectively pulling air through the radiator, and that would be another major cause of overheating.

Final point - in the weather we have been having the last few days I wold expect a car with a stock 195* thermostat to jump to operating temp (approx. 210) pretty fast. That doesn't mean that it's gonna overheat.

- Justin

check the coolant while the car is running with the radiator cap open. if theres bubbles in there you either need to bleed the system or have compression leaking into the coolant system causing inefficient cooling.

another thing to try is to run the heater. running the coolant through the heater core gives the coolant a little extra time to cool down.

Let's clear something up. Do you have a clutch fan or electric fans? IF you have a clutch fan (bolts to the water pump) I would suggest removing the electric fans and see if that helps. If you have electric fans why would you have them on both sides of the radiator? You are just blocking the airflow for both fans. If you only have elctric fans get that one up front out of the way so air can pass all the way through the radiator.

If that doesn't work, before you go nuts lets go over a couple things.
1. Are you losing coolant?
2. Is the raditor full? (the radiator not the overflow bottle)
3. Are there air bubbles in the radiator coolant? (check by pulling the radiator cap when the engine is COLD, and runing the car.)
4. Is the thermostat opening? You can check this by feeling your top hose while it is nice and cool, it should be fairly soft. Start your car and let it run until it gets hot, once it hits around 195-200 the T-stat should be open, go back to the top hose and if it is hot and more solid coolant is flowing and the thermostat is opening.

If you have to change the T-stat I would recommend aldo doing upper and lower radiator hoses, goodyear makes some really nice ones or just get some new stockers. Sometimes when they get old they start to collapse and restrict coolant flow. But I wouldn't turn a single bolt until i did all these checks first or you might be throwing a bunch of money away because you have too many fans. Let's get the fan situation clarified cause I amgoing to bet that is your problem. Also you did get the right air dam for your year car right? I think there are 3 different 3rd gen ones