95 Camaro Overheating

We've owned the car since September. Only issue we noticed during test drives was that the gas gauge didn't work. Common issue among these cars according to google. We can live with that, for now. It's the least of my worries.

The car would get worm (but not overheat) if the fan wasn't turned on. It's on a toggle switch under the radio. Ever hear of that? Guy we bought it from said it was a Florida car yet title said Clarence, NY. Undercarriage is rust free so someone took fairly good care of it.

It started getting colder out and we noticed there was no heat. So we changed the thermostat. The one we removed was missing the spring that closes it. My boyfriend asked why it would look like that. I said that's usually done if the car is having overheating problems and they can't figure out what is causing it. Of course the car now overheats fairly quickly since replacing the thermostat. Blows water out of the overflow.

There were receipts in the glove box for all the work that was done and parts that were bought. Most of them were performance replacements. Like some funky air intake that really didn't fit. But there was one receipt in there for a water pump. Problem is that it looked as though someone dumped stop leak into it. And it looked like it was all the way through the coolant system.

So we replaced the radiator, the water pump (again), the heater core, and the hoses that go to and from the radiator. Put it all back together and it ran fine as long as it was sitting in park idling. As soon as we tried to drive it anywhere it would still overheat and blow water out of the overflow.

We went last night and bought a new radiator cap. Tried to run the car today and it just overheated and white smoke poured out of it.

Did we buy a paperweight? Is this indicative of a blown head gasket? Is it worth fixing? The body is in excellent condition.

Thanks,
Jessica

White smoke means head gasket is leaking bad. Put a bread sack over the radiator where radiator cap goes (with cap off) seal it on with rubber band- then watch if it blows up like a balloon, if head gasket is bad, exhaust gases are pouring out into coolant cavity and expanding out radiator- hence the puking off coolant all the time with cap on...Your engine is toast if the coolant got into the oil-- how does oil look? is level up? Coolant ruins the engine bearings-- knocking is next if that happened.

The oil looked fine the last time I looked at it. I will pull the dip stick tomorrow and look again. It's cold and dark out there right now. LOL

It's just odd because it drove fine with the broken thermostat. We should have just left it alone and wore a snow suit to keep warm while driving it. LOL

Thanks,
Jessica

My 94 Formula did the same thing- is how I know-- first no heat, then second it throws up coolant all the time- it blew up my bread sack in less than 1 minute. I got rid of it after that....

Which engine is in this?

3.4/3.8/5.7?

And yes, because of the toggle switch for the fan and the missing spring on the therm, the car was overheating....

3.4

Well, the 3.4 was famous for lower intake and head gasket leaks....

However, I would still warm the engine, and attach a coolant pressure tester overnight.....next day look for external leaks......

If none, then remove the spark plugs.......disconnect the power and ground connector to the ICM(this is the two wire harness by itself on one side, the opposite side has two connectors)......this prevents spark and fuel injection.....have someone crank over the engine.....if coolant comes out of one of the spark plug holes, that's the cylinder with the head gasket problem,,,,,

So I'm thinking this puddle of antifreeze under the exhaust is not a good sign #$@&$%^#

Probably not worth trying any pressure tests. Maybe time to look for a new engine?

Well, you have been driving it like this for several months....no telling how much coolant has been moving through oil galleys during this time....

These engines are plentiful in a junkyard......

LOL I wish we had been able to drive it. It's sat since changing the thermostat. Other than a couple test drives after repairs, it hasn't gone any further than a block. But I'm sure most of the damage was already started before we got it.

That's ok. The body is in great shape so I guess we look for an engine. My cousin said the same thing - shouldn't have a problem finding one in a junk yard. Or Auto Zone sells them brand new for just under 2k.

You can find low mileage ones in the junkyard for A SONG.....

Seeings I have to replace the engine, is it worth converting to a Z28? It has the emblems on it but I think the prior owner was a little overzealous. LOL

I have a 2000 3.8...overheated ...head gasket leaking...after overheating....Mechanic put in BLUE DEVIL...head gasket sealer....so far so good but its only been about 55 miles. Replaced water pump, housing and connectors..

Expect that the entire upper end will require resealing soon. Of course, the coolant could leak into the oil and wipe out the cam and crank bearings before that, so your new replacement engine should already have the new gaskets that your "mechanic" did not replace.

I plant to sell the car after I fix cosmetic issues.....buying a Subura

In that case it might warrant doing a temporary repair. The sealant/stop leak will be very temporary.

Yes.

So after you fix the car cosmetically, you screw the guy who buys it, with the engine

...buying a Subura

Hopefully it is air-cooled. I can't be certain, because admittedly I don't know what that is. I thought it might be some kind of Malaysian sword.

ITs 18 years old....when you buy an 18 year old car....there are risks...if you don't want to take any risks..U buy a new car...duh...any 18 year old Camaro can have and frequently does have cooling problems.....

Interesting attitude to have.......

Yeah that's pretty much what happened to us. Looked great cosmetically but had all kinds of engine issues.
We replaced the engine. Bought a new/rebuilt engine from AutoZone and had it installed. Cost us about $4500 total but completely worth it. My neighbor has the same car and had to park it yesterday because his floor is falling out in the backseat. Ours has not one speck of rust on it.
When the car looks that good you don't expect it to have those kind of engine issues. You hope that whoever had the car took as good care of the engine as the rest of it. Because of this I will NEVER buy another used car without having a certified mechanic look at it. I don't care if I have to flatbed the car to a mechanic and back to the seller. We could have saved a ton of money had we not had to replace an engine, or had the seller not lied to us. 18 years old or not. Our 87 Monte Carlo doesn't have and never has had any cooling issues. So just because it's old doesn't mean it will have issues. If it was properly taken care of it shouldn't have any issues.

Just remember Karma is a bitch. Whatever you do will come back to you 3-fold. Good luck with your Subura. Whatever that is. LOL