I've been battling with my coolant system since I replaced the IAC...don't ask me why, but the water pump **** itself right after.

So, after debugging countless issues, the car runs better than when I got it. Warms up slowly, holds at 210*. This is a little high for my tastes, but it has a 195* thermostat and no fan mod. That comes next. I got a whiff of anti-freeze after pulling into the driveway, so I checked the coolant, and it was oozing out of the surge tank (I did accidentaly overfill it after the WP install). I went out today to check it out again. The coolant level had settled to the "Full Hot". I started the car cold with the rad cap off. No bubbles in the radiator...but it IMMEDIATELY started slowly rising in the radiator and spilled out. I let the thermo open, and still no bubbles, but if I blip the throttle, it would leak out faster. No bubbles though.

Is this normal? Bled the system per the suggestions on the site. Car runs fine. Temp doesn't shoot up quickly. Oil level is rock solid, and normal "needs to be changed in 1000 miles" brown. Some condensation in tailpipes, but it's been cold, and it's just clear water. No coolant smell.

Does this all sound normal? I read somewhere that I might need to change the radiator cap, which, if it was anything like the water pump, is a 95,000 mile original. Any suggestions?

Thanks,
Paranoid New Guy.

 

yea its definitely the radiator cap... No way to overfill the system

BTW: Make sure you get an OEM cap. Don't go to Autozone and get a cap with the same PSI. I F*cked a radiator and Head Gasket doing that... Spend the money and get one from the dealership...