Engine overheating Please help!!!!

[lismarmis]

Originally Posted by WJC

Be prepared for bad news...

Im trying to think positive... maybe new therm is just bad.. water pump bad... or belts bad.. also thinking water pump is beginning to fail since this car is a 2002 with 216,000 miles on it.. I have never changed it yet and not sure about previous owner... I do know though engine was totally rebuilt at 167,000 miles( I also know drive belt has some cracks in it) so maybe the one for the water pump is too)

[Automender12345]

Why was it rebuilt at 167k miles. That is low for a 3.0 engine unless it was a head gasket. All my 3.0s make it easy over 200K actually never had to rebuild one.

[lismarmis]

Originally Posted by lismarmis

Im trying to think positive... maybe new therm is just bad.. water pump bad... or belts bad.. also thinking water pump is beginning to fail since this car is a 2002 with 216,000 miles on it.. I have never changed it yet and not sure about previous owner... I do know though engine was totally rebuilt at 167,000 miles( I also know drive belt has some cracks in it) so maybe the one for the water pump is too)

So told my mechanic to check my water pump and belt.. Belt was fine pump was fine... He then took the belt off and the belt adjuster was shot!! My water pump belt was slipping.. which heated up and melted the plastic ribbing on the pully..

So finally almost $800 later car is running beautiful again.. Makes me wonder though if I really needed those damn radiator hoses 1st garage replaced! :/

[WJC]

Congrats, glad it wasn't a big problem. Funny how belts can slip sometimes and not make noise.

[Lgbpop]

Originally Posted by lismarmis

So finally almost $800 later car is running beautiful again.. Makes me wonder though if I really needed those damn radiator hoses 1st garage replaced! :/

My heart goes out to ya, it's things such as those that convinced me learning about auto repair was not beneath my dignity...and also convinced me that our government's insistence that we all be college-educated is largely a waste of time. Fixing stuff is where the money is. People who know how to fix stuff are smarter than college professors, too. Professors may be more intelligent, but repair people are smarter. (Dad explained the difference to me, years ago. According to him, I'm more intelligent than Sheldon Cooper but not as smart as Goober Pyle.) I should explain...in Dad's words, intelligence is what God gave you to work with; smart or stupid is what you do with your intelligence.

Think of it this way - hoses degrade, and yours would have needed replacement someday. At least you weren't sold new head gaskets and a transmission rebuild.