Hi all, I need help! my vs v6 keeps overheating. had the heads replaced 14 mths ago, coz they cracked, was ok for 12 mths then started boiling again. Now overheats after 10mins. its not showing any signs you get when the head goes. just gets F###en hot quick and boils out. and also has slight nocking sound while its running. help!!!!!!!!
can you hear the fans running? if u leave the A/C on, does it overheat? how far up the gauge does it get to? when was the last time u had the cooling system flushed?
Had New Water Pump, Rad Flush, Heads Done, Thermostat I Think, All About 14 Mths Ago. But Its Been Off The Road For 6 Weeks. Temp Gauge Goes Past The Red And Wont Come Down. Yeah Fans Working Ok. Damn Thing Just Goes Through Coolant Heaps, But Still Heats Up After I Fill It
possibly the gauge could be reading incorrectly. where does it loose it coolant? if there is a high pressure leak then the system will loose pressure and boil etc. i'd replace the thermostat again and radiator cap also. how long does it take from starting the car for the gauge to get past the red mark? in which direction is the airflow with the fan on?
when i had a v6 i had nearly the exact same problem. i had just put in a new radiator and water pump and thort i had an air lock. tried everything and nothing worked. the last thing i tried and it was a simple thermostat. it's only a process of elimination and a thermostat is a good place to start
I'd be putting a new radiator cap on, new thermostat again, and also check the operation of the water pump. For the sake of $8 i would also replace the temperature gauge SENDER too. What coolant are you running? I would recommend using the genuine Holden stuff, 50% concentrate and 50% water, or any of the other brands suitable for the Holden V6, but definately not any of those premixed ones...
If its boiled heaps of times and you've kept adding coolant and had all that work done 14 mths ago then I'd be a bit worried that the heads have cracked or a head gasket has gone again. You can go to a radiator place and they can test your coolant for combustion gas - this will tell you if the head/gasket is buggered. Is it a high mileage motor?
thanks i will try the thermostat and new rad cap. it boils out the overflow, after about 10 mins running. the motor has done about 195000km. have been running genuine coolant since i had the work done.
mine had a similar problem, overheated a coupla times... hasn't done it since the put a blocking solution in the system, apparently thats not good tho.
The knocking sound since it overheated is not a good sign. The Ecotec doesn't handle heat very well. I have replaced 2 engines that knocked due to overheating (not mine). What happens is the heat distorts the block and 'pinches' the pistons and this bends the skirts. The noise is the pistons slapping around in the bore. If left for too long a piston will break. My opinion would be to take it to an engine recon place and get them to check it as they would have had more experience in this type of thing.
