kibs

i have a 2005 base impala 4.3 w 90,000 miles, ive been having overheating issues which start about 2-3 weeks ago. i only drive my impala to work which is 76 miles one way almost all highway. Its only overheating when the car is at idle, i started to notice the temp go above normal(210-230) when i get off the highway and im sitting a red light, but it never got much higher until last night when i was in traffic for about an hr and the car almost got to 260. it was roughly 245-250 range and i put the car in nuetral and gave it some gas and the temp dropped back downto 230. Im thought it was just the thermostat but after reading about the impala's fan relay,gauge,sensor issues i was hoping to get some advice.

i could not get the car to duplecate the issue in my driveway. both radiatior hoses are hot and both fans are working around 208* . i did notice it sounded like they kick up speed around 215-220, and the temp drops down to 200. and i am not losing any coolant and there is not sign of coolant in the oil

any help is appriciated!

csawyer

I'm sure you'll get more replies from guys that know more about it than me, but I've heard the intake gasket on that model car had factory problems. I think there was a recall to replace those gaskets. I know it's summertime, but do you have heat coming out of your vents? What's the condition of your coolant? If the coolant needs to be replaced, you might as well go ahead and replace the thermostat and put in new coolant - I would think that would be the cheapest, easiest place to start. Make sure when filling with coolant to open the bleeder by the water pump and continue filling until coolant comes out of that bleeder. Then seal it up and start the car - you should have good pressure and see if that takes care of your overheating problem. If not, you may have to start looking into the water pump, radiator, or intake gaskets. Good luck!

__________________
Sawyer
"Never drive faster than your guardian angel can fly!"

mtimpala

i had the same problem with my 2000, a couple things you could try. first things first. check to make sure that you still have a front air dam(if the 05 has one) it will be a black peice of plastic that bolts on to the radiator under the car. its very noticable. you may hear it catch on curbs when you park and such. if you dont have this simple peice of plastic you can have overheating issues.

Next, flush your radiator. the drain plug is on the botom of the radiator on the drivers side. get a chilton manual or check out www.ALLDATAdiy.com for do-it-your-self instructions. this is better then a chilton or any of the other repair manuals. why? because the manuals may cover multiple models and years. where with alldata you search your exact vehicle year, make, model, submodel, engine, ect.

Put new radiator fluid in. if this does not fix the problem, then you may have to do what i did. start replaceing things. i ended up replaceing my fans, thermostat, coolent elbows, radiator, all hoses. after that the problem went away.

kingnutin

Honestly, it just sounds like you have air trapped in the system, if revving it made the temp go down, that tells me you moved an air pocket. I wouldn't worry about anything else till you do a proper bleed, and top the coolant off.

__________________
1978 Caprice Classic Landau
350 2-bolt, stock 4bbl
Stock rebuilt TH350
Edelbrock performer cam + intake
Dual 2 1/2" Flowmaster exhuast (waiting to be installed)
Edelbrock IAS Classic shocks
95 9C1 3.08 posi
4 wheel disc brakes!
16x8 American Racing Baja's with 225/60/16 Pirelli P4's

MixedImpala04

This^^^ try bleeding it first. Then proceed with new coolant, thermostat etc, good luck!!!