You trapped air in the system. It got nice and hot in the engine, but there were air pockets that probably prevented the coolant from circulating. Your heater may never feel hot in the winter with a 160* thermostat and all the coolant in a Fiero. The original thermostat was 195*, and the engine is more efficient at the higher temperature.
You trapped air in the system. It got nice and hot in the engine, but there were air pockets that probably prevented the coolant from circulating. Your heater may never feel hot in the winter with a 160* thermostat and all the coolant in a Fiero. The original thermostat was 195*, and the engine is more efficient at the higher temperature.
Oh, I could have sworn I read on here a few times the 160 was beneficial. Guess for other applications? I assume it has a 195* installed now, the PO didn't mention changing that or the coolant. I'll call him to verify. A flush and refill following the proper procedure will eliminate the air pockets and get the system back to normal operating? I did notice a small crack in the reservoir at the very top when it boiled over, will that still be a source of air and require immediate replacement?
Thank you Patrick, very helpful. About to flush the system.
Any suggestions how to remove the star washer that holds the wiper blade on? Looks like the attached pin goes through the sideof the new blade, held on by a star looking washer
The reservoir should be fine as long as it does not leak the fluid. If fluid is lost, air will eventually enter the system as the coolant cools off. A correct radiator cap is critical on a Fiero, because that opening is actually lower than the coolant level. Visit the Ogre's cave to read all about radiator caps and the various problems that they can cause.
The computer takes over engine functions after the car is warm. If the car does not get to 185*F or thereabouts, the computer does not go into 'closed loop'. The result is bad mileage and some other stuff. It's more important in cold weather.....some Fiero owners in hot weather throw their thermostat away.....and the car will get up to temp anyway. This winter....probably not.
edit: I thought that wiper pin was just a press fit. Is that '84 only?
[This message has been edited by Gall757 (edited 02-02-2014).]
The reservoir should be fine as long as it does not leak the fluid. If fluid is lost, air will eventually enter the system as the coolant cools off.
As long as there's always some coolant in the reservoir tank, air entering the system shouldn't be an issue. I had a crack develop in the bottom of the reservoir tank on one of my Fieros. Now that was a problem which had to be rectified.
I picked up a thermostat and cap at AutoZone, I prefer NAPA but closed today. Also wanted NOS Delco but no time to wait this go around. Made in Israel both say. It's a CST model 7616, doesn't specify vented or non-vented or the PSI. per Ogre's article, the dime sized plate on this one pulls away and doesn't fit snug to the rubber, vented?
Car uses 3.5 gallons of Dex Cool, how much water do you mix in during the winter? 30%? The star washer/circlip looks like it's holding the blade from sliding off the attached pin that's on the wiper arm, never seen this setup before.
[This message has been edited by mckaymotoworks (edited 02-02-2014).]
I picked up a thermostat and cap at AutoZone, I prefer NAPA but closed today. Also wanted NOS Delco but no time to wait this go around. Made in Israel both say. It's a CST model 7616, doesn't specify vented or non-vented or the PSI. per Ogre's article, the dime sized plate on this one pulls away and doesn't fit snug to the rubber, vented?
As it states on Ogre's site, if the check valve isn't being held tight to the seal with a spring, then it's a vented cap... which is no good for a Fiero application.
In regards to the thermostat, you should've got a Stant SuperStat... part number 45819. Much more durable than most of the cheap crap available.
[This message has been edited by Patrick (edited 02-02-2014).]
Thanks, found the Stant at Advanced nearby. And....there wasn't a thermostat in the housing unless it's deep down. But I don't see how it could fit that far down, so it appears there isn't one installed. I am doing this all in the freezing rain in a slicker. Dedicated
There is only a 'handle' at the top, it probably goes across the diameter of the hole. That's the way it's supposed to be. If you see the thermostat itself it's in upside down, doing nothing for you. This is for the v6, but I think it's the same on the 4.
Yeah it's not in there. I've got it flushed, filling it back up now, it barely will take one gallon. The whole system is 3.5 gallon, I figured 1.5 Dexcool, 1.5 water, then half Dexcool in overflow. Following the DIY manual someone suggested on here to the step
Car did well on my 50 mile commute, though the temp gauge stayed at the 1st mark before 220, is this normal?
Also need to address the sunroof gasket, there's a gap in front and in back. Wind noise from the front, rained pretty heavily last night, no noticeable amount of water leaked in while parked. But have a feeling if windblown I'll have an issue. The bracket will not release the sunroof so I can inspect the gaskets, rails etc. Suggestions?
100 mile round trip, runs like a s top minus a little bit of stumble at cruising speed when gassed or at take off. My only immediate concern after changing coolant is the gauge reading correctly? That first tic before 220, what is that reading?
Will do, thanks. Just had me thinking as it read higher before the thermostat, makes sense. Was unsure what "normal" range was, thanks for the clarification.
I still can't figure out why temp gauge won't read over 160* with a 195* thermostat, when it was previously reading 220* when I discovered it did not have a thermostat installed. I thought I read on here when I first joined that the Duke likes a nice warm 220*
I noticed when I brought the car home a few weeks ago, there was small puddle of oil on top of the bellhousing, under the coolant hose. I wiped it clean, and it's taken it a few weeks to gather another small puddle. I notice all around the valve cover some weeps, time for a new gasket? Should I just order the Felpro HT 9405 kit?
That is odd about the temperature. When you say it was reading higher without a thermostat, do you mean when actually driving at speed, or just when it was idling? Perhaps in the course of flushing and refilling, the system gained a lot of lost efficiency? That's all I can come up with.
If you want to get a temperature reading directly from the sender, you can do it by checking the resistance across it's pins, and compare with this chart: This works for both the gauge sender and the sensor that talks to the ECM. Be aware those are separate items. From memory, I think the gauge sender is on the driver's side of the head. I don't remember the 84 as well, I used to have one several years ago.
You might want to get hold of the official service manual for this car. It used to be posted online but it isn't anymore. The Haynes/Chilton manuals aren't remotely as accurate or detailed.
Dexcool is controversial, so I don't mean to argue that. But I hope you made sure the system was thoroughly flushed before putting it in, because it's generally thought that mixing it with conventional coolant is one of the things that can trigger a sludge syndrome. I've also heard of this problem being associated with older cooling systems (like the Fiero's) that don't have a pressurized overflow tank. I don't know if that's actually a factor or not. I'm admittedly an extremist, I seek out the "traditional green", non extended life type which some places still sell.
For the headlight motors, you might be interested to watch this series of videos: BuddyCraigg headlight motor video That's just part 1, there are several parts to that series. If you go to BuddyCraigg's youtube channel you can see all his videos listed, most of his Fiero videos are the older ones. I think he doesn't have a Fiero anymore but he did for a long time and posted lots of helpful videos about them.
If you have a gauge, you might want to check the fuel pressure just to know what it is, since it was sitting for so long. Fuel system is likely to have issues on a car that has that history. Not that you appear to have any obvious signs of it right now.
[This message has been edited by armos (edited 02-14-2014).]
Thanks for all the detailed info. Yes, we drove the car back from KY after I bought it, 150 miles, temp gauge wasn't reading that we can remember. When I got home, I noticed the overflow tank was empty, so I added some coolant. I left the car running with the heater on because it was cold outside and I was inside cleaning the dash, checking which gauges/lights were not working, did notice the temp gauge was reading 220* at this point. I shut the car off, about a minute later as I stood in the garage I heard, then saw the overflow barfing onto the driveway. The next day I flushed/filled, discovered there wasn't a thermostat installed, added a 195* thermostat, car seems to be running well, heat blows nice and hot but the gauge reads low. Which has me concerned,
I'll use the above to troubleshoot, again thank you.
Originally posted by armos: From memory, I think the gauge sender is on the driver's side of the head. I don't remember the 84 as well, I used to have one several years ago.
I meant to say driver's side, not passenger. Edited the post. Anyway there's probably diagrams somewhere that show exactly where it is.
