I was driving my GF's Z28 when it started over-heating & apparently something made the over-flow cap for the Anti-freeze open & all the fluid came out.. I stopped the car & replaced the antifreeze & water and it started running fine for about an hour & then it started over-heating again so I pulled over, shut the car off and the cap on the over-flow tank was off again & had to re-fill it again but when I tried to start the car up again the starter wasn't working.

Mechanic was quick to say water got in the cylinders & offered me $500 for the car because he said it would be too expensive to fix the car being that it already has 141,000 miles. I need help in trying to determine what the problem really is or if the mechanic was trying to pull my leg because he was very quick to offer me $500 for it.

 

It smells like scam to me.

 

Check your radiator cap, thermostat, water pump. with the mileage the car has on it and depending on the up keep your radiator might just be clogged. Also check your oil for a chocolate shake.

 

Rad is Overheating
Check thermostat, radiator for blockage, radiator fins for debris, ensure cooling fans go on at the appropriate temp. Look to make sure when the car is warming up from cold that there is a bit of coolant moving around in the radiator after a few minutes of it warming up (as the thermo opens).

Also follow the proper coolant bleeding procedures when refilling the system.

The Mechanic is definatly trying to rip you off. Your car wasn't blowing white smoke (coolant in the cylinders), theres no way he could have diagnosed it on the spot for something like that.

If you weren't smoking white smoke it means your cylinder was fine. (A tiny crack/leak of coolant into the cylinder is ruled out since you filled it up [properly i hope] with coolant and it overheated shortly after)

Starter could simply be not working because the battery is dead?

 

Going out on a limb... coolant in the opti?

 

i had a coolant problem but it was becuase the water pumps bearins in the back all fell out and coolant was leaking out in that spot so i just replaced the water pump

 

I can understand how the mechanic could jump to that conclusion. It does sound like he is looking for an "opportunity", though.

Try turning the engine over by hand. If it won't, pull the plugs and try it again.

 

If the air dam under the radiator is missing it can cause overheating.

 

mw... what makes you say that about the air dam? Does that guide air up to the radiator in some way? I thought it was just for debris?

 

It is the ONLY thing directing air to the radiator. It MUST be installed.

I'll give you $600 for it!!! lol... just kidding... that guy just knew it was something stupid and wanted a great deal on a quick fixer.

 

when i drove a couple hundred miles to buy my trans am my impala (lt1) started overheating and cpilling coolant every hour or so of highway driving. It was the thermostat. To bad i didnt figure it out till i got back home. Woulda saved alotta time $ and aggrevation. For 5 bux and 5 minutes instal time i would start there. Assuming your air damn is fine. Oh and a new radiator cap isnt a bad idea. Id replace both the thermostat and rad cap since they are so easy and cheap and it will give you some peice of mind.

 

Thank you all for the responses, I'm glad to know they have places like this on the internet.

When I tried to start the car it generated a screeching sound & when the mechanic had the car up on the lift he showed me that the starter had a crack on it so I think that is gone for sure.. He tried to charge me $350 for the starter & when I got a price at auto zone it was $120 w/ a core & $180 without a core.

The same day that all this happened I had gotten a full oil change on her car & the oil does not look like chocolate milk.. it looks normal.

However one of the times that I started the car for a brief short period I saw white smoke come out of the exhaust & it worried me so I shut the engine off and waited a few minutes before starting it back up again & it didn't smoke anymore & drove fine for 45 minutes to an hour before everything else happened.

I will attempt to print out all the advice I'm getting from here & really appreciate all the assistance & dedication that everyone is portraying to help one another. Thank you & GOD BLESS

 

Oh boy.... White smoke??? Did it smell sweet? Sounds like head gasket. That would also explain the pressure in the coolant system.... enough anyway to blow the overflow cap off.... still, don't sell it for $500. Get it fixed if you can't do it yourself. And the mechanic was probably right. A cylinder might be filled with coolant, which means hydrolock... which might have killed the starter... If that's what it is, you are lucky it didn't do any damage internally, like bend a rod. Sounds like the started took the hit. Whatever you do.... DON'T TRY AND START IT AGAIN WITHOUT TAKING THE PLUGS OUT!!!! You will probably bent a rod and that wouldn't be good. Good luck with it.

 

Yea, with no grill (opening in the front) I've seem them run hot at highway speeds with no air dam.