Hello, 93 ETC, some of you have been helpful with this car so far, thanks. Latest is that the car is still running hot. I had a thermostat replaced, even though the water was flowing through the overflow tank. It will run fine for 20 or 30 miles and then run hot. As I add more water it spills out bright green and eventually cools down. I brought it back to the shop, which did the thermostat because they had also said that it needed a radiator. They said that their inferred device had shown a difference in the radiator temps. I passed on the radiator replacement at that time. I figure that if the water is flowing and that could be seen, then it isn't the rad. The car ran hot once more after that so I returned the car to the mechanic. They called the next morning and said that the head gasket was blown. 20 hours to replace it and they couldn't do the work. 24 hours to replace the engine. They said that they could replace the engine for around $6500.
I am looking for a second opinion. Is there a way that I could easily tell if the head gasket is actually blown? It isn't the end of the world one way or another. It just seems strange to me that the car drives and runs great at all speeds and has power.
Forget the sealant tablets and forget the snake oil in a bottle. Repair the failing gaskets/bolt holes properly or you'll be looking for a new engine block, radiator, water crossover, heater core due to extensively clogged coolant passages from dumping in junk.
You say the overheating started after you did a coolant change - What made you dump in a bottle of stop leak after a simple coolant change ??? Did you check the system for proper fill levels, and also check purge line function ??
NEVER put sealant or tablets in the coolant reservoir: It's a low flow area and the stuff sits there and does essentially nothing. GM quit using them in about 2003 - 2004.
Perform a cylinder block exhaust gas test - thousands of posts on it - and prepare to overhaul the engine.
Either do it correctly or find another car. Cold, hard truth.
Another way to check for head gaskets as stated on northstar performance is take it on the highway and do some hard runs to 70mph and let rev down to 30 mph.do a few of those and the temp shouldn't go past 5/8 marks I think.www.northstarperformance.com
I realize this is an old thread, but is this guy still in business? The weblink doesn't work anymore, unfortunately. I may be having an issue with my N*, and being in Michigan this would be doable for me. For my beater I just used some OTC product like this - http://store.gobluedevil.com/head-gasket-sealer-38386/ when the head gaskets went, but even though I had good luck with that it ain't coming near my Caddy. So, if this guy's no longer an option, any other recommendations in or around the Midwest?
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Sorry, I'm an idiot with technology, this was in response to NoSaint55's post about the N* engine specialist in Ohio and the website at http://www.cadillac-doctor.com/
If Palatine Ill (Chicago suburb) is Midwest enough, call Joe Blau at Midwest Cadillac Repair, 847-776-1234. He's done well over 400 so he knows what he's doing.
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