Slymer you make it sound so easy. Thank you so much for the advice, I'll try to decode it and understand what it all means. Although I am completely new with this, I've done soldering before and mechanical work in a certain hobby. I am naturally good with mechanics but in no way am I giving myself any credibility with cars. I have owned this haynes book here for quite some time. It's useful but pretty confusing.


i edited this one too... no spam or extra editions relating to **** on this site....

 

I'm an electronics engineer... for me it is easy... I've been playing with multimeters and oscilloscopes for over a decade. it really does transfer well to cars. just have faith in yourself. the only real difference with cars is you need bigger wrenches. everything is 12V (unless you have a hybrid). it's all + and -. make sure you have ground at 0V and if you're unsure what a wire does, turn something on and see of you get 12V on that wire. then you know what it does. just don't try to do that in the engine compartment with much. just take your time and ask questions. the only stupid question is one not asked. but do search the site to make sure the questions isn't already answered.

 

I'm not quite sure why that guy quoted what I said and my origional post didn't contain any **** or anything...

Anyways, Today I was going to do the radiator flush and thermostat change. I asked firestone how much they charge for a thermostat replacement and they told me hundred's because its in the engine. I was kind of surprised.. is it really that hard to replace?

 

Okay there is a bit of an update. I just got home from work and the gym and really wanted to tend to my car and eliminate this overheating problem. I read my book and did as it said. It told me to check the upper radiator hose to see if its hot. If it isn't, the thermostat is probably stuck shut. I last drove my car about an hour ago and the upper hose is STILL hot so I'm not going to condemn the thermostat just yet. I have a new suspect altogether, the water pump. The book told me to pinch the upper radiator hose after the car had warmed up. I warmed it up for about 2 minutes, and checked the hose. There is a stream I can feel, but not a notable difference when it is pinched and then let go. It is also making a rattling noise that had once been occurring some months ago. In fact now that I recall the mechanic that checked it out said that the water pump was indeed bad. I hope I'm not mistaking the noise for the belt, but its a more distinct rattling noise like one of those baby rattles you can hear among the belts. I haven't done the radiator flush just yet because if I'm going to be working on the thermostat and water pump, I'm going to end up draining the new radiator fluid out again.

Sooo, I think I'm going to end up first draining the coolant, replacing the water pump, replacing the thermostat, doing the radiator flush, and then replacing the radiator fluid. Is there a certain order I should go about doing all of these in or a certain procedure for doing all of this in one day?

[edit]
If there's anything special I should need to perform these tasks, or anything you think I'm missing please let me know!


Thank you for your time and help.

~Stealthlead

 

no... just 2 bolts and the housing come right off, you replace the t-stat and put on a new gasket or some make-gasket (silicon gasket maker). bolt it back down and torque it to spec and you're done. takes about 30 minutes if you've done it before... about an hour for a careful newbie.

 

water pump and thermostat first (in that order so the hard one is done first). The main issue with the water pump is getting the fan shroud off and then the fan off. THEN take off the belt and get the pulley off (if the new pump doesn't have one) and then take the pump off the car. BE VERY CAREFUL WITH THE TOOLS TO NOT HIT THE RADIATOR. Any damage may puncture the radiator and cause need to replace it too. just remove the radiator to avoid this problem. with the hoses off of the radiator, just remove the top brackets and lift it out. I think there is a drain on the engine to get the remainder of coolant out of it, but I don't remember if that's actually true or not or where it is at the moment. Once you have everything back together, then do the flush with just water in the system along with the radiator/coolant flush bottle. The directions usually say to run the engine for about 20 minutes with the flush in it. then drain it all out and fill with coolant/water mix to specs for your vehicle. I generally drain the flush and then fill the system again and run it a bit (few minutes) and drain it again just to make sure to get as much of the flush out as I can. another method is to put a hose on the heater return line and just flow water through the engine until it's nice and clean (usually doesn't take very long for this after a flush treatment). Then button everything back up and fill er up and go. The draining part will be the water pump. you may have to remove other accessories to get to the pump than just the fan itself. I think the alternator has to come off as well as some brackets. I know on my car, the alternator and power steering pump would have to be at least moved to the side (take off the main bracket that holds them both) because they're mounted to about 4 of the bolts that hold the water pump on. Since yours is a 91, this may well be the case for you too. I just replaced the power steering pump on my car which is why I know this. I'm not sure if the AC compressor is on a bracket mounted to the water pump or not (let's hope not). If it is, try your best not to open the AC system and just rest the compressor off to the side a bit.

definitely good luck in all of this. you will spend a good half day on it if everything goes smoothly. a full day easy if stuff gets difficult (or bolts don't cooperate).

 

a/c, alternator, power steering and if i remember right the smog brackets all overlap the waterpump. lube the water pump bolts up good with pb blaster so the come loose and dont break.

when everything is out of the way and you start removing the water pump bolts here is a tip.... the bolts are about all different.

when removing the bolts one by one, set them in the correct holes of the new water pump. when old is off the car, switch the bolts from new to the old one this way you dont get the bolts confused and mixed up. i am crossing my fingers for ya since sometimes the timing cover loosens sometimes too and makes a bigger headache if that needs swapped.

 

Here is my list

• Water pump
• Water pump gasket
• Thermostat
• Thermostat gasket
• Radiator coolant
• Radiator flush fluid
• Scraper/putty knife
• 3/8 inch diameter hose for coolant
• RTV sealant
• Drain bucket

The water pump is connected to the AC unit. I'll have to work around that. I also may need to remove or adjust the alternator but that's pretty easy. I'll make sure to be careful not to damage the radiator.

"I think there is a drain on the engine to get the remainder of coolant out of it, but I don't remember if that's actually true or not or where it is at the moment." Yea, there is and I think It gets drained after the radiator has been drained. I'm still working on that part.

 

There is a drain plug on each side of the engine block.. But be warned they tend to be hella tight.. And unfortunately they usually used a plug with an allen head which makes them delighfully easy to strip...



One other small note... Upon reassembly of the water pump, put a little rtv sealer on the threads of the 4 really long bolts that go though the pump, timing cover and block...

Neverseize on everything else can be golden just in case you have to take any of that apart again...

 

Oh ****, not Allen wrenches.... this is going to be just delightful. Anyways, I went to auto zone. They were out of the water pump but they ordered it for me tomorrow, 38$. I additionally got the thermostat. I was talking with the guy about radiator flush fluid and he brought up a very good point.. saying it would destroy my internals because its so old and theirs probably so much corrosion that it would cause a chemical reaction. He said many of his technitians have seen it before and I'm extremelly grateful he told me this before I blew up my car. (Emphasis of course) I believed him so in conclusion I'm just going to stick with my garden hose which I checked and does reach my car.

Maxfax thanks for clearing up the engine block part of it. The book actually did not cover that. Neverseize? Never heard of it. I drain the radiator fluid out from the radiator until it stops dripping then the engine blocks then I do the flush correct? Also is there a certain correct way to flush it out (with the hose water)? such as flushing it and running the car, and then doing it again or something?