Fiero cooling system

Check the base of the coolant fill tube on the engine. You'll probably have
to remove it to check it properly. I had one corrode through. The water
evaporates as soon as it comes out so doesn't leave much evidence.

You seen quite positive about this one John. Well, uh, um, NO. 84's are
notorious for cracking heads, and this is exhibiting the exact symptoms of
that.

Da Rev

p.s. Have (or do it yourself) the cooling system pressure tested. Also,
chances are you are going to find water in the oil (milky substance can be
seen on the underside of the oil fill cap) and will probably toast a bearing
soon if not rebuilt.

Your termostat is busted. If it has ever gotten over heated the wax pellet
inside will release and the thermostat will not open when needed. It is
basically bypassing the radiator completely and just running the same over
heated water around in the engine. Replace the thermostat  (remove it
temporarily NOW and save the money and your engine!) might be a good idea to use
Aluma-seal or Copper-seal radiator sealer in your system also it looks like
powdered metal flakes, since you'll be at the parts store anyway. :)
John Dade

Got simular problem with an 88 Formual...I think I have no coolant system
movement.  I have no milky oil value, so hopeful that I don't have cracked
head on my hands.  Will take Dave's advice and pressure check the system,
check the thermostate and water pump.  I've used Copperseal type products
before (different vehicles) with good success.
-Gary

Gasolene

I have fought the coolant system leak problem on my car. Here is a list of all
that I had to fix before I got rid of all of the sources of leaks
 Radiator had a leak (The engine did get hot)
 Water pump had a leak (it made alot of noise)
 Coolant hose by the intake manifold had a slow leak (no indication other than
antifreeze smell until the coolant got low then it overheated)

My advice is as follows:
 Fill up the coolant system
 Start the car and let it sit (maybe drive it a couple of miles to get it warm)
 Stop the car and look for a drip someplace
 Raise the trunk lid to see if steam vapor is coming from someplace obvious

If the leak is slow and the car warms up something is going to drip or turn to
steam

There may be water stains to help find the leak.

Philip

I had a leak that dripped onto the engine that made it so I could smell the leak
but it was so slow that nothing showed up. It only leaked when the car was
running. No wet carpet

I do smell coolent when I drive, but I keep my coolent filled and so far the
temp gauge stays normal.
Is there anyway to tell if the car is overheating other than the temp
gauge??

If you smell coolant while you're driving you may have a heater core leak.

I had those effects in a 92 Excel, six months later I lost the head gasket
with a cracked head.  Have your whole cooling system checked out
immediately.  The sensor, thermo, everything.

The thermostat was recently replaced & I think the coolent is circulating
because I get lots of heat.  There is lots of coolent in the reserve.

could it be the pump if I get heat??
if it is the pump, shouldn't it be overheating??

The reason the cooling system is designed to operate with pressure is to raise
the boiling point. Loss of pressure can cause some cars to overheat even when
there are no other problems.

I recommend taking your car to a shop and having them pressure test your system
to locate the leak. If there is no visible leaks then have them test the
coolant for presence of hydrocarbons (exhaust fumes) as this may show a head
crack or gasket problem.
-ANT
P.S. for 10,000 Quatloos, what was the first car to use a pressurized cooling
system? I'll give ya one hint, it was American.

Stab in the dark, but it sounds like any of 4 things:
1) Bad temp gauge/sensor
2) Bad thermostat
3) Plugged rad
4) Bad pump

Sean

--
"Duct Tape is Good To Mach 3"

84 used the swirl port cylinder head for the first time, I think. This was
the year they had many, many problems with cracking between the valves,
extremely bad on #s 1 and 4. Keep checking your oil fill cap and dipstick
for condensation (milky white substance). Had the same problem with my 84,
and after 2 heads and 3 engines (in 66,000 miles) I finally gave up and
started a v6 swap, only to sell it incomplete.

Da Rev

| The thermostat was recently replaced & I think the coolent is circulating
| because I get lots of heat.  There is lots of coolent in the reserve.
|
| could it be the pump if I get heat??
| if it is the pump, shouldn't it be overheating??
|
| "Sean Fogg" <umfog @mail.cc.umanitoba.ca> wrote in message
| | > Stab in the dark, but it sounds like any of 4 things:
| > 1) Bad temp gauge/sensor
| > 2) Bad thermostat
| > 3) Plugged rad
| > 4) Bad pump
| >
| > Sean
| >
| > --
| > "Duct Tape is Good To Mach 3"
| > "Fiero Racer" <fierora @home.net> wrote in message
| > | > > I had those effects in a 92 Excel, six months later I lost the head
| gasket
| > > with a cracked head.  Have your whole cooling system checked out
| > > immediately.  The sensor, thermo, everything.
| > > "Gasolene" <Gasolene2 @telusplanet.net> wrote in message
| > > | > > > 84 fiero 2m4, 2.5L, 4spd
| > > >
| > > > I have a very slow leak in my cooling system.  I've just been
filling
| > the
| > > > reserv once a month and so far that works fine.  However, my
radiator
| > > > doesn't get hot, even after 1 hour of driving.  my temp gage is
always
| > in
| > > > the middle.
| > > >
| > > > I can't find the leak because it is so slow.
| > > >
| > > > Is there a danger of overheating if the radiator doesn't get hot or
| > build
| > > up
| > > > pressure?
| > > >
| > > > gasol @hotmail.com
| >
|
|