When driving up the canyon it overheats

the radiator may be clogged , have it checked

Roy

THanks I will def have it checked

My 2005 3.8 v6 Grand prix overheats while idle. No problem when the care is in motion. Even if temp gets to red, i can start driving and it cools down instantly. I have not noticed any coolant leaks yet. I watched the fans and they are pulling air through the radiator, when i turn the AC on it does not seem to increase any airflow.

Does anyone have any thoughts on what it could be? Or any other troubleshooting i should do?

What about not moving, and just increasing the engine speed? The only thing motion is doing is intruducing ram air through the radiator. I have not seen one, but it could be a logical symptom of a water pump that is not flowing adequately. Is this happening after something else had been done to the car, or just come on all of a sudden? Is this overheat occurring with only the A/C on, or does it overheat at idle with A/C off? You say you have not noticed any coolant leaks, but make no mention of coolant level, I would have to assume it has been checked and is full, with adequate coolant concentration.

just idling is all i have tried. As soon as it started to heat up it, i took off down the road to cool it off. This came on all of a sudden no new work. It heats up even with AC off. The coolant level was a little low at my last oil change but nothing significant. That was before this occured.

I have a 2003 pontiac grand prix. It started overheating a few weeks ago. Replaced the head and intake gaskits. Ran fine for a day or two. Began running hot again. Replaced thermostat, No change. Replaced water pump. No change. Flushed radiator. No change. Will idle cool , but when you press gas or try to drive it instantly begins to heat up. Heater does not get hot even after new thermostat.

Try raising the speed stationary, if it cools it down, it may be a water flow problem. The cooling fans should have at least two speeds, and should speed up when it starts getting hot, I am not sure of the temp breakpoint. With a temp gun, you might be able to spot cool areas of the radiator, perhaps there is restricted flow. How quickly does it overheat at an idle?

Does the radiator fan work? What is the temp gage reading? Is there any coolant flow?

Yes the fan is working. The temp gauge reads cool until you rev engine or drive, then it jumps almost to red instantly. we kill it before it reaches red. not sure of coolant flow. motor seems to be hot while radiator and cap stay cool.

What is engine litre size? Low speed fan comes on about 220F. Highspeed fan comes on about 230F. Hot coolant lite comes on about 260F.

Does your system use radiator cap? Can you see coolant with cap removed? Does the reservoir fill up in a hurry? Too hot is a boil over. Maybe your gage isn't reading correctly? Your radiator hoses don't get hot?

One way to check for coolant flow, is too remove the thermostat. Hook everything back up, just for testing, remove the cap, can you see or feel coolant flow?

Engine Cooling problem
2001 Pontiac Grand Prix 6 cyl Front Wheel Drive Automatic

in regards to last post about my over heating 3100 grand prix, i wanted to note that this is not a slow process. As soon as i start the car it begins to jump to overheating temps. i dont know if thats is too fast for a gasket issue or if i just missed a step in all the installs. thank you

not sure what the full story is but if the gauge goes to HOT almost instantly than the engine is not actually overheating, it will take a few minutes for the engine to overheat, an inaccurate temp gauge is caused by a faulty engine coolant temp. (ECT) sensor most of the time.

The engine is a 3100, 6 cylinder. The fans kick on but don't seem to help much. once it starts getting hot all you can do is kill the engine. Have not tried to drive. It does have a radiator cap. I can see water in radiator. And no the hose on the radiator does not get hot. Niether does cap. Just the motor. LIke there is no coolant or water flow. Will try what you suggested, maybe we bought a bad thermostat. Could it be a sensor ,aking it run hot.

You say it might be the temp sensor wiring or sensor its self......the inst. cluster in the vehicle also shows a full tank of gas all the time. when i put the key on acc the tack of the fuel level will quickly show the amount of gas in the vehicle. When i start the car it will shoot to full. Could the temp gauge also be screwing with me and i did this for nothing. Not for nothing, i know, i feel safer with everything being replaced in this car. could the instrument cluster be faulty....its not mis reading my rps or mph. ?????? I took the cluster out of the car and some one removed the " check engine light" bulb from out of the back of it. SOB'z. If this helps, there is a good amount of dex cool on the pump side, but theres none on the thermo side....

If you don't have any flow, check the water pump.

did you install a new bulb while you had cluster out? if so, does the engine light come on and did you try to pull trouble codes? that could lead straight to the culprit..

3.1 engine, replaced the water pump, thermostat, still over heats, the bottom hose is cold and the top hose is hot.

I did put a bulb in it, and yes the light was on. I have not ran a code to it. I have now replaced the temp sensor. It runs at lower temps but not where it should. I did notice that now my cooling fans were not turning on. I checked all the relays and they were good. I pulled the fans out of the engine bay and checked with a 12 v current. They both kicked on indivisdually. The fans work when they are out but not with the cooling system.

In degrees F, what does the temp gage show? What makes you think it is overheating? Does the coolant reservoir fill up in a hurry? For testing, leave thermostat out, hook everything up, run the engine, does it help? Can you see coolant flow in the radiator? If you have a radiator cap you should be able to see or feel coolant flow.

Maybe you have air trapped in the system causing overheat.

pulling the stored code(s) should pinpoint the culprit, it could be blow fuse or even the PCM at fault that is not letting the fans run

You might try a radiator flush.

hello, i have a 2001 potiac grand prix gtp. my gp continues to overheat after changing the waterpump,themastat,radiator,heater hoses, & freeze a plug in.i am stil confused on why it is overheating and am looking to fix the problem b4 i decide to sell it as is. i dont want to, i love my gtp. so plz help!!!

Does it overheat quicker when stopped or in slow traffic or at highway speeds?

it overheats quicker on highway & streets. everything is completely new.

You may have a blown head gasket from the previous overheating. Start out pressure testing the system and see if it holds pressure, then you may need to have it block tested.

Can there be a coolant leak from the exhaust manifold?
is it correct that the engine has water channels inside the block so that the coolant can flow throw to cool the engine? And if that is correct, how would the manifold gasket having anything to do with the engine cooling system?

coolant does not flow through the exhaust, i think your leaking from somewhere else and it just looks like its coming from the exhaust manifold. can you tell me the exact engine you have? the eigth letter of the vin will help in determining most likely cause.

alright, i will. is the pressure & block test complicated? meaning can i do it myself, or do i need to take it to the shop?

The pressure test you can easily do if you borrow/rent a pressure tester but the block testing can be tricky. It takes some real experience to be able to recognize the symptoms of a head gasket problem and chemical tests can be inconclusive.

My car has been overheating bad I took it to auto zone and hooked it up to the check engine thing and they said it was getting to 207 withing 10 secounds. It get hot fast and my heat doesnt work unless you drive like 80 and you can smell anitfreeze bad, they said it could be my etc sensor or a faulty thermostat.

First make sufre the system is full and all air is bled out.

With the engine at full operating temp, locate the 2 heater hoses where they go into the firewall and feel them to see if they are both hot to the touch. If they are both hot, the heat in that vehicle is controlled by a blend door that regulates heated air flow. it is operated by an electric motor/actuator. The problem can be that the actuator is stripped or inoperative or the door itself could be damaged. This is what needs to be determined by examining the actuator and see if it is responding to heat change commands or not.

My car said it is overheating but the hoses aren't even hot at all.and I opened up the radiator cap and the water would bubble up and then water would flow through it.

I hope you're not really using water in the cooling system. that will destroy it and cause it to overheat,

Have the system pressure tested. It sounds like it's getting air pockets in the system.

In 2012 summer, my car started overheating. I took it in, and they said when I arrived the coolant elbow was completely broken off. They replaced the coolant elbows, but they left a note saying they recommend further testing to check for unknown cooling system damage. I had no further work done that year because my vehicle stopped overheating after the elbows were replaced.
In mid-May (2014), the car was overheating again. I checked the coolant levels, and the fluid was just about gone, so I added more coolant mixture. A couple days later the coolant was almost gone again, so I assumed there was some kind of leak. I took it into a different mechanic (different city), and explained my past issue in 2012 and how the coolant levels were real low. After testing, they said unfortunately it was the head gasket. They went and replaced the cylinder head gasket/head bolt set, removed carbon, checked surfaces for warpage, adjusted valves and ignition timing where necessary. They also replaced the heater elbows. This seemed to have fixed the overheating problem for awhile.
About a month and a half later, my car was studdering and losing power. I took it in and had a complete tune-up done, as the mechanic requested that that was what I needed done. It fixed everything, but then a few weeks later my temperature gauge started rising again.... mostly when my car was running on idle or when I was in heavy stop-and-go traffic. I checked coolant levels again, but they're all fine. It still continues to rise steadily as I drive from one place to another, and sometimes it does it before I arrive at my destination, causing me to shut off my car for a few minutes just so that nothing worse happens. I guess I am confused and very frustrated at the fact that I just spent about $1100.00 in May to get the cooling system worked on, and it is still reaching the point of overheating almost every time I drive it.

make sure your cooling fans are working first then when oocar is hot put hand on several spots on radiator with engine off and fans disconnected. if you feel any cold spots the radiator is bad.

I have a 2003 pontiac grand prix with 104,000 miles on it. It started overheating last week when I was on the freeway. I pulled off and added water. That seemed to stop it for a short amount of time. I noticed a small leak coming from the bottom of the radiator reservior tank. Later that day I turned on my car and it was clicking real loud in the engine. When I push on the gas it would click louder. The clicking comes and goes. I continously add anti-freeze and it seems to help the overheating issue until it drains again, but the clicking still persists. I have checked the oil, and other fluids, they seem to be fine. What can the clicking be? Is there anything I can buy to stop the leak?

I've had the same issues with my 2003 as well. The loud clicking noise sounds like the same thing I had: A stuck lifter.
As far as the coolant leak, there are many variables I've found. The best thing you can do is buy a car manual at the auto parts store and look at the trouble shooting guide, if you're a do-it-yourselfer.

If you can afford the garage to do it, it'll save you much time.

Good luck.

I get a temp warning light but the coolant temp stays within normal operating range. Engine overheat protection kicks in (fires 3 alternating cylinders). Engine oil has gone black and smells burnt. Where do I look to fix this?

The coolant temp sender has failed, assuming the car is not overheating.

The oil color is probably due to gas getting into oil.

You can have the car scanned and see what the PCM coolant temp is, if high but engine is not overheated, then CLT sender is bad.

Engine Cooling problem
2002 Pontiac Grand Prix 6 cyl Front Wheel Drive Automatic

I have a 2002 pontiac grand prix with the 3100. While my sister was driving it the car over heated to the point to where the shut off. after gettin the car home i seen that there was water coming from the upper front driver side motor mount as if the water was coming from behind the mount. Do you think i have a blown head gasket or cracked block. I dont know if there is some kind of plud behind the mount or not. please help thank you