05 base Vibe with a/t. about 176,000 miles. had it 10 years. replaced water pump several; years ago and only topped-off the coolant.
Today I was returning from a 900 miles round trip to Texas. Got hung up in a major traffic jam near Lafayette,La. In crawling traffic the temp gage needle went to 90%. This is the second Vibe and also 2 Corolla,s we,ve owned. I have never seen that needle move up there. Chances are the old coolant lost some of it,s cooling propertys?? Hoping the head and the head gasket ain,t been damaged. Planning to replace the old coolant with the "any kind-any color" stuff. What you say?
coolant question=--
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jamesmetairie
- Posts: 258
- Joined: Sat Aug 18, 2007 6:12 am
- Location: new orleans
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andrewclaus
- Posts: 487
- Joined: Tue Oct 03, 2017 6:38 pm
- Location: Golden, CO
Re: coolant question=--
I would do an engine compression or bleed-down test first, to check for damage.
Was any coolant lost during that event? Do you check level in the reservoir or the radiator? If there's damage, the reservoir system may not work correctly.
On my other car, a Subaru, spiking temp is a sign of head gasket failure, not a cause of it. I haven't heard of that happening with a Vibe.
When I bought my Vibe at 150K miles, I replaced the coolant with the pink Asian stuff, per what I read on this site. It looked like the original orange GM coolant was still in there. It's been fine and is now at 220K miles.
Was any coolant lost during that event? Do you check level in the reservoir or the radiator? If there's damage, the reservoir system may not work correctly.
On my other car, a Subaru, spiking temp is a sign of head gasket failure, not a cause of it. I haven't heard of that happening with a Vibe.
When I bought my Vibe at 150K miles, I replaced the coolant with the pink Asian stuff, per what I read on this site. It looked like the original orange GM coolant was still in there. It's been fine and is now at 220K miles.
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jamesmetairie
- Posts: 258
- Joined: Sat Aug 18, 2007 6:12 am
- Location: new orleans
Re: coolant question=--
the coolant color remains the same color. the radiator is full. the reservoir is at the usual level. On the oil dip stick , the oil color remains the same. There is a possible 3/4 quart of oil usage, but I was driving as much as possible 75 most of the trip with this old vibe. Probably normal.
It drove better than the 40 plus older cars I,ve had so far . The plentiful head room allowed me to use a big gel cushion on the seat.
We also have a 2023 Rav4 and I chose to drive the Vibe for this trip.
It drove better than the 40 plus older cars I,ve had so far . The plentiful head room allowed me to use a big gel cushion on the seat.
We also have a 2023 Rav4 and I chose to drive the Vibe for this trip.
Re: coolant question=--
Update? Where are you at now with this problem?
It seems unusual for a water pump to have failed this early (you said you had replaced it a few years ago).
It seems unusual for a water pump to have failed this early (you said you had replaced it a few years ago).
2005 Base - 220k
Re: coolant question=--
Did the cooling fan / fans come on when it was that hot? If the fans did not come on, you have a problem with the cooling fan controls. You may also what to change out the thermostat when you are changing the antifreeze. Make sure that no air is trapped in the cooling system when you change out the coolant. It is very easy to get air trapped in the heater core and can be hard to get the air worked out of the system. Check the radiator for core riot - make sure the fins are tight on the tubes. If the fins are loose, the radiator can not transfer the heat from the tubes to the air by way of the fins in the radiator.
Antifreeze does go bad but not in the way of conducting heat. Over time the antifreeze pH will change and the pH will drop to the acid side. This can be bad for aluminum and gaskets. You can put in a additive to get the pH numbers back up, but for cars that contain less then 2 gallons of coolant, you just replace the antifreeze. If you have not been testing your pH or changing out the antifreeze, I hope you do not have damage. Over heating will kill the tension in the piston rings, which leads to motor oil consumption. It can also cause cracked cylinder head, and blown head gasket. Overheating can be just as bad as running the engine completely out of oil. Good luck to you and hopefully it did not boil over.
Antifreeze does go bad but not in the way of conducting heat. Over time the antifreeze pH will change and the pH will drop to the acid side. This can be bad for aluminum and gaskets. You can put in a additive to get the pH numbers back up, but for cars that contain less then 2 gallons of coolant, you just replace the antifreeze. If you have not been testing your pH or changing out the antifreeze, I hope you do not have damage. Over heating will kill the tension in the piston rings, which leads to motor oil consumption. It can also cause cracked cylinder head, and blown head gasket. Overheating can be just as bad as running the engine completely out of oil. Good luck to you and hopefully it did not boil over.