coolant overflowed...

[notoptoy]

What's that foamy/bubbly looking yellowish blotch below the cap? Do you have a pinhole leak?

[onsight512]

What's that foamy/bubbly looking yellowish blotch below the cap? Do you have a pinhole leak?

No, I was blowing the foam away and that just splashed down there.

[Linda]

AutoZone loans a coolant tester kit which even supplies the liquid you use in the tester tube. It checks for combustion gases in your coolant. You drain down the coolant first well below the filler cap. Then you put the tube with a rubber fitting in the filler opening , add the tester liquid. Once the car is running any gases come up and "contaminate" the liquid to turn it to a different color. There is a little squeeze bulb you use with the tube as well. Complete instructions with the kit.
AutoZone will help with instructions as well.
You just leave a deposit that you get back when the tool is returned.
Linda

[onsight512]

AutoZone loans a coolant tester kit which even supplies the liquid you use in the tester tube. It checks for combustion gases in your coolant. You drain down the coolant first well below the filler cap. Then you put the tube with a rubber fitting in the filler opening , add the tester liquid. Once the car is running any gases come up and "contaminate" the liquid to turn it to a different color. There is a little squeeze bulb you use with the tube as well. Complete instructions with the kit.
AutoZone will help with instructions as well.
You just leave a deposit that you get back when the tool is returned.
Linda

Thanks Linda.

[RCMike]

Ok, just jumping in here..

It really sounds like everything is working as designed, except for the fan?

Have you tested the fan to see if it works?

Have you checked to see if the fan switch is actually switching, and sending power to the fan?

Have you checked to see if the relay is functioning to take the fan switch trigger and provide power to the fan?

The fan system is pretty simple on an SR.. The switch needs to switch on. The relay needs to send power. The fan needs to turn.

If that is not happening, then the fan will not cool the water, and the water will leave the overflow bottle when you get stuck in traffic..

Unless I missed a post in here, where the fan started working, I would STRONGLY recommend that you test this before worrying about coolant contamination. I have killed a fan relay, and a fan... The car worked fine as long as I was moving. I actually stopped to play a poker tournament because I was in Bell Gardens and the car started to overheat. At midnight, I had no problem driving 50 miles home without the fan, because I was just cruising at 70..

This sounds a LOT like what you are dealing with..

[RCMike]

My question is about the hose going to/from the heater. The PO removed it (heater core) and the hose just comes out and goes immediately back into the block (SR20, not that that should matter). That hose is so short that it is folded in half and I imagine nothing is able to flow through there. Does that matter?

When I lost the heater core in the mountains, I did the same thing. It is fine. I did not like it and I actually got a 180* hose, but Kevin laughed at me and told me it would have been fine..

[onsight512]

Ok, just jumping in here..

It really sounds like everything is working as designed, except for the fan?

Have you tested the fan to see if it works?

Have you checked to see if the fan switch is actually switching, and sending power to the fan?

Have you checked to see if the relay is functioning to take the fan switch trigger and provide power to the fan?

The fan system is pretty simple on an SR.. The switch needs to switch on. The relay needs to send power. The fan needs to turn.

If that is not happening, then the fan will not cool the water, and the water will leave the overflow bottle when you get stuck in traffic..

Unless I missed a post in here, where the fan started working, I would STRONGLY recommend that you test this before worrying about coolant contamination. I have killed a fan relay, and a fan... The car worked fine as long as I was moving. I actually stopped to play a poker tournament because I was in Bell Gardens and the car started to overheat. At midnight, I had no problem driving 50 miles home without the fan, because I was just cruising at 70..

This sounds a LOT like what you are dealing with..

So the fan works, sort of. I noticed that it is now coming on as soon as the engine is running. I believe it is constantly on at this point. I wonder if there's some issue with the relay?

Thanks for the input, Mike.

[onsight512]

Bumping this as the issue has been addressed. I ended up taking the car to Skip (Miller’s Sports & Imports) in Pasadena.
He said there is/was some issue with how the fan was wired into the car’s harness. It was running, albeit all the time and very slowly.
He thought it best to add an adjustable thermostat to the car and I’m happy to report that it runs great. Yesterday was the first real test in stop & go traffic (110N @ 4pm) and it never got over about 152f.

At some point I’ll pull the dash to get it redone and I imagine lots of the wiring will get cleaned up at that time. I’ll revisit the other fan switch at that point.