Jump to content
Ultimate Subaru Message Board

Highway=overheating


Recommended Posts

Hey guys here is the issue. Driving around town car runs hot but not overheating but when I get on the highway I will go into the red then goes right between the red and white line. 1986 xt Ea82t. Yes I have replaced the t stat with one from subaru and bleed the air from the coolant system.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On my GL-10 wagon it turned out that I needed a new radiator.

 

Try taking out your radiator and see if the fins are full of crud. (try to shine a light through it from the back) You may just be able to blast it out with compressed air or water. If the fins are toast, probably have to replace it.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

you should know this is the most prone engine to blow a headgasket that subaru ever made. with 20+ year old headgaskets and cooling systems i would never touch the red on the temp gauge in this car.

 

is it actually overheating? is the coolant boiling, pushing into the overflow, bubbling, etc? sounds like it is given the predictability, but the gauges/sender can be inaccurate.

 

radiator could be clogged. radiatorbarn.com has cheap new ones.

 

doubtful but your water pump could be hosed.

 

most likely radiator is clogged or headgaskets.

 

are you loosing any coolant over time?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

There is coolant going to the overflow but it's not boiling but, the radiator pulls it back. When the gauge goes red it's not there for long and the car has not shutdown. I have not seen any coolant in the oil and the engine has not lost power.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hey guys here is the issue. Driving around town car runs hot but not overheating but when I get on the highway I will go into the red then goes right between the red and white line. 1986 xt Ea82t. Yes I have replaced the t stat with one from subaru and bleed the air from the coolant system.

 

Headgaskets. and by the way, overheating is technically over half way. I blew a headgasket on my 92k mile ea82 by just pegging the "red". A wire broke off my fan relay and caused me to overheat in traffic, just for a moment. same symptoms. overheat on highway etc etc. here's a hint also, stop driving it now before you trash the oil, once the oil overheats and breaks down, rod bearings go next.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I vote for an inefficient radiator or water pump, since the car only overheats at sustained highway driving.

 

I would rule out a ead gasket as a cause of the overheat, but yet, i would consider a bad head gasket if the motor gets overheated too hot or too often.

 

As you are now, address the radiator. Good radator makies happy motor.

 

ea82t's can be reliabla, but ONLY as reliable as the cooling system

Link to comment
Share on other sites

To the O.P., rent a block test kit (tests coolant for combustion gasses) from autozone/advance. all you really have to buy is the strips. then return the kit and they give you your money back. takes a few minutes and isn't hard.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Had simliar issues once when it was the radiator and also once when it was the HG's. I first suspected the rad becasue the symptom is classic(overheating on the highway and up hills/under load) but then I just pulled the rad and ran the garden hose through it - the rad had decent flow through it so changing the HG's actully fixed it for me that time. As far as the water pump goes, I have only had one fail and when it did it was the shaft bearings. They got so bad that I could wiggle the water pump pulley with all of the belts still on. When I took the pump off, the bearings just fell out. Note that there should not be ANY play in the shaft of the water pump.

 

Any excessive white smoke on startup? Excessive mayo under the cap? Unexplained (or obvious for that matter) coolant loss? Or is the overheating the only symptom? If it's just overheating, try pulling the rad and see if it has decent flow.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

i have symptoms same, replaced radiator, water pump, and dealer tstat. clogged radiator can do it for sure but if it started suddenly, look at hg. rent that test kit and backflush the radiator for starters.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Please sign in to comment

You will be able to leave a comment after signing in



Sign In Now
 Share

×
×
  • Create New...