I'm having a total bitch of a time bleeding mine after I did the headswap. I've tried to bleed it maybe 10 times and I STILL have bubbles in the system.

Another question:

I'm just using straight water (from hose), could that cause a problem with bleeding it? I have dex-cool if so, i just wanted to run straight water in there for a bit to clean all the **** out, then drain it.

 

Water from your hose may cause more damage if it's left too long without any anti-corrosive coolant or additive.

 

Turns out I was doing it wrong (didn't have the radiator cap on). Once I did that, and bled the system that way (took all of 3 minutes), it seems to be cool now. I put about 80 miles on the car today, and it didn't even come close to getting hot. I was checking the underside periodically, and didn't see any leaks. I'll check the level tomorrow after the car has had a chance to cool off, and if it's good, I'll partially drain it and add coolant to bring the mix back to 50/50.

On that note, should I be using extended life coolant, or is the regular green stuff appropriate for 93's?

 

I use regular green coolant about 50/50 with distilled water only. I don't see a need for the extended life coolant, just like I don't see the need for the "extended mileage" oil.

I think the reason we need the rad cap on is because our coolant system is a closed system whereas the older styles are open systems. They bleed the air out by running with the cap off until water comes out and I don't think they even have bleed valves.

One last thing, does anyone know for certain if the bleed valves are one way or not?

 

No, they let air in too. Bleeders should ONLY be open with engine off, or it'll pull air back into the system.

And it's NOT necessary, usually, to fill then run with cap closed until it overheats to get it bled.

Simple method:
Open highest bleeder AND the one at the thermostat.
fill to neck, bleeders should weep. Close the one at the thermostat, that hose is now full.
Wait 5 minutes, rad cap still off.
Add more...
repeat until the level does not drop in 5 minutes.

You MAY need to top it off once after a heat cycle, but I usually don't need to doing it this way. I do however have a small (1/8) hole drilled in the thermostat to allow the air to bleed. This also staiblizes the head temps a bit as a tiny bit of water always flows, preventing thermal shock to the heads.

Our systems are NOT 'closed systems', Seawolf. It's just that the filler neck is not the lowest point in the system, so we have to use the bleeder at the highest point to get all the air out, and the one at the thermostat housing to allow the air to get past the thermostat (which is closed when cold).

 

Ok, cool. Thanks man.

 

Ok, so what does one do if after filling the system, the bleeders never even so much as let a drop out without running the engine?

 

They might be partially plugged. Take the small little screw out and try and clean them with a small piece of wire.

 

I like to use a long funnel that fits the rad fill neck ID well, so it extends the fill neck to be taller when using the bleeders. That way, you can get the fill level significantly higher than the bleeders. It leaks a little, so I fill the motor a bit on the heavy side with coolant mix, then top off with water only for less mess. A couple wraps of electrical tape on the funnel helps it seal better.