Jeep overheating

[jblake1986]

I have an 04 liberty that started overheating yesterday. I was driving down a major road when I heard the beep that it was too hot so I pulled over and turned off the car. I then had it towed to my home where I replaced the themastat hoping it would fix the issue, but it is still persistant. When it is overheating it seems like the heat from the vents is cool instead of hot, which seems kind of weird. With the cap from the resiovor off it seems to run a bit better, but still warmer than needed. I checked the hoses around the thermastat to make sure it wasn't leaking and it is dry, I also checked the oil to see if it was a head gasket, but it is fine. Only think i can think of is the cap or water pump at this point. I replaced the cap with a 13 psi cap and it did the same thing, but the 13 psi cap was just something I had in my garage so not for sure it is working. Does anyone have any ideas? I was thinking maybe the water pump is not pushing enough liquid to keep it cool? I really do not know at this point what to replace or look at. I have looked at the hose that comes out of the resivor and goes into the heater core? maybe? then I checked the hose that goes to the radiator. I just dont know the next steps. Any one else had this issue or have some guidence on where to go?

 

[jblake1986]

Also it looks like the electric fan is running.

 

[JeepINgeek]

backwash the outside of your radiator with a garden hose.. ( first cheapest step to do)
it cant hurt..

take off your fan and shrooud ( held on by two bolts) and wash away..
dont use a power washer.

 

[jblake1986]

Will do

That will be the first thing I try when i get home, do you think replacing the cap on the resiovor would be a good idea since it is so cheap?

 

[JeepJeepster]

Probably wont hurt but its probably not the issue. By looks like do you mean the fan is turning? Have you checked to see if its pulling lots of air? Does it over heat while idling or while going down the interstate? Both?

How many miles are on the Jeep?

 

[jnaut]

Based on the fact you report no heat coming out of the vents, it makes me think that coolant isn't flowing properly. That there could be an obstruction in the system.

Have you had anything done recently, such as a coolant flush or anything?

I would do a flush as previously suggested. You should see how well your pump is moving coolant when you do a flush.

 

[jblake1986]

Please advise on how to properly do a flush

 

[JeepINgeek]

there are two kinds of flushing..
one is the simple to do, my grandma coudl do it, hell i did it. external flush
which is just spraying water back and forth across the fins on the outside of the radiator ( removing the fan makes this very easy)

the other is to take it to a garage and have them take out all of the coolant and pump new coolant through the system in reverse to wash out impurites..

*waiting to get corrected on this*

 

[jblake1986]

Well and with the little testing I could do yesterday when I took the cap off the resiovor the heat became warm like it is supposed to. Almost like a vacuum is not being kept right. I have replaced the water pump before so it is under warranty and I will probably replace it just because. Also I will run the hose on the outside of the radiator.

 

[jnaut]

One thing, you might consider pulling the t-stat altogether. Run it without the thermostat at all and see if it overheats. I know you changed the thermostat but I would be curious to see what would happen if you have no thermostat at all.

How quickly (if idling in your driveway) does it take to go from cold to normal operating temperature (and then higher)?

If it was your waterpump, the only thing I could think of is if somehow the impeller within the pump itself had failed, but the shaft and bearing were still intact, and the impeller failed in a way where it's not making any noise.

Don't discount that you might have a bad temp-sending unit giving you a false reading.

 

[tjkj2002]

Was the coolant level low when it overheated? I bet it was but no real sign of a leak right?

With low level and no heat out the vents when on hot means you got air in the system which equals a leak.Check the upper right corner of the radiator(by the battery),look at the corner where it mounts to the body,bet you'll find your leak.

So that means replace the radiator,make sure you use HOAT coolant only.


Now if the coolant level was not low the impeller could have broken off inside the waterpump,it is plastic and has been known to happen now and again.It's super easy to change the waterpump as long as you don't have the mechanical fan,maybe 15mins max,no gasket either as it uses a giant o-ring so hardly any surface prep needed.

 

[jnaut]

Now if the coolant level was not low the impeller could have broken off inside the waterpump,it is plastic and has been known to happen now and again.It's super easy to change the waterpump as long as you don't have the mechanical fan,maybe 15mins max,no gasket either as it uses a giant o-ring so hardly any surface prep needed.

He could certainly pull the waterpump off and inspect it since it's an easy job.

 

[tjkj2002]

He could certainly pull the waterpump off and inspect it since it's an easy job.

Will need a new o-ring,they are a 1 time use item.

 

[ThunderbirdJunkie]

Was the coolant level low when it overheated? I bet it was but no real sign of a leak right?

With low level and no heat out the vents when on hot means you got air in the system which equals a leak.Check the upper right corner of the radiator(by the battery),look at the corner where it mounts to the body,bet you'll find your leak.

So that means replace the radiator,make sure you use HOAT coolant only.


Now if the coolant level was not low the impeller could have broken off inside the waterpump,it is plastic and has been known to happen now and again.It's super easy to change the waterpump as long as you don't have the mechanical fan,maybe 15mins max,no gasket either as it uses a giant o-ring so hardly any surface prep needed.

FWIW, every radiator ThunderbirdJunkie has had to replace in his KJ has been leaking on the driver's side.

 

[Nooby]

I have replaced the water pump before .

how long ago did you replace it?

 

[jblake1986]

The waterpump was replaced about 2 years ago. I went home last night and took off the water pump last night and sure enough the impeller had shattered. All the pieces were in there and I took it back to the parts store where I purchased it and was given a new one free of charge which had a metal housing around the impeller that mine did not. I can only think that this impeller has done this before and the metal housing it to stop the issue. So after replacing the water pump and putting in new coolant the Jeep is back to working order.

Here is a pricing breakdown for everyone

$17 tstat
3 gals of coolant $40
Water pump $0(covered under lifetime warranty)

Looks like I am good to go now with a new water pump, tstat, and coolant for just under $60 and 3-4 hrs of my time. I want to thank everyone on here for all the help that was given

 

[jnaut]

Excellent, jblake. Glad to hear it. Good call by TJKJ.

 

[Smeltn]

So mine is doing this as well. Just started were temp will go up to about 3/4. Today it did it on the way home, temp gauge showed it as 3/4 line, mostly when I stop, then started going back down. When I got home the water was boiling out, gauge showed in between 1/2 and 3/4..

Do you guys think its the thermostat? If so were is the thermostat located so I can change it. BTW mine is a 2005 Liberty 3.7.

 

[LibertyFever]

I thought it was the water pump. No heat from the heater core = no coolant flow.
You're lucky the water pump was covered under warranty and that you know how to use a wrench.

Righty Tighty, Lefty Loosey...:happy175:

 

[J-Thompson]

So mine is doing this as well. Just started were temp will go up to about 3/4. Today it did it on the way home, temp gauge showed it as 3/4 line, mostly when I stop, then started going back down. When I got home the water was boiling out, gauge showed in between 1/2 and 3/4..

Do you guys think its the thermostat? If so were is the thermostat located so I can change it. BTW mine is a 2005 Liberty 3.7.

Yours could be an completely different issue
you could have a bad fan, if it cools when you drive which forces
air through the radiator or could be a water pump or t-stat
or ........