2006 Pontiac Montana overheating

Cori Elizabeth

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I have taken my van to two different shops and spent $880 trying to have my overheating problem fixed without success. My van started overheating a month ago. It would cool down if I reved the engine but that stopped working a week later. It overheating into the red so I pulled into the nearest shop and they said I was low on coolant. They put some in and sent me on my way. It worked fine for two days. It overheated really quickly on my way to work so I took it back to the shop. They said it was my thermostat stuck closed so they replaced it. It worked for two days again then overheated. I decided to take it somewhere else because the shop wanted to try replacing this and that - which sounded expensive and not necessary. The new shop said I had a leak. They replaced the hose and flushed the coolant. He said lots of dirt came out of my block heater. He bleed the coolant, removed any air, and fixed an exhaust leak I didn't know I had. He then replaced the rad cap just in case. He drove the van for the day to make sure it worked and it did, but ran a bit cold idling he said. So I picked it up and not even ten minutes down the road it overheats! I had it towed back and asked if they checked the gasket or radiator or anything else because I can't keep pouring money into this van and I desperately need it to get to work (it's been in shops for 9 days now). He said he would test to see if the gasket was blown but he didn't think it was. I went to work and he hasn't called me back all day - they're closed now.
I am at a loss as to why my van keeps overheating. The cooling fans come on when it goes towards the red and they stay on when the van is off. It drives perfectly fine. No coolant in the oil, no white smoke, no steam, no boiling. Theres also no heat coming from my heater although the shop said it was blowing hot air after the flush - I never got to test it. There's nothing to even indicate it's hot except for the fans. I bought this car from a used car dealership and still have a years payment left and I have a warranty that covers some things like the water pump and gasket. I don't understand why they didn't test these things already. What does it sound like is the problem for the overheating???
 
Overheating can be caused by a whole list of things.
Stuck thermostat, even a new one can be bad, you test it in a pot of boiling water.
An external leak, you use a pressure tester to see if there is a loss of pressure/fluid and you pressure test the cap at the same time.
An internal leak, you do a hydrocarbon test of the engine coolant.
A blocked radiator due to deposits, chemical flushing usually clears it.
The radiator fans engaging at the proper temperature by using a IR gun and observing the fans.
Knowing how to properly bleed air out of the system, a non-functioning or poorly functioning heater are a clue to air in the system perhaps caused by a leak.
Do the shops you are going to have ASE certified mechanics?
 
Yes they do. The shop tested today for a blown or leaky head gasket and the gasket is fine. They changed the water pump and checked the thermostat that the first shop put it. They said the new thermostat was not correct for my Montana so they replaced it with the right one. They said the van is now running great and has hot air blowing too. They are keeping it over the weekend to test my two days all goes to hell theory because that's what keeps happening every two days - it overheats again. Anyways, the first shop charged me $305 for that thermostat and it was the wrong one. Can I take it back and get them to refund me? What if they won't? My new receipt from the shop says they too changed the thermostat because it was not the correct one. Thank you.
 
Thermostat must of been made out of gold, AutoZone lists them as low as $6 to as high as $30 for a fail-safe one.

Doug in P.R.:)
______________________________
 
It was $36. $40 for coolant and the rest was labour. I dont know why it took them 2.5 hours to change it :mad:
 
Yes they do. The shop tested today for a blown or leaky head gasket and the gasket is fine. They changed the water pump and checked the thermostat that the first shop put it. They said the new thermostat was not correct for my Montana so they replaced it with the right one. They said the van is now running great and has hot air blowing too. They are keeping it over the weekend to test my two days all goes to hell theory because that's what keeps happening every two days - it overheats again. Anyways, the first shop charged me $305 for that thermostat and it was the wrong one. Can I take it back and get them to refund me? What if they won't? My new receipt from the shop says they too changed the thermostat because it was not the correct one. Thank you.
did you find the cause?
 
Yes they do. The shop tested today for a blown or leaky head gasket and the gasket is fine. They changed the water pump and checked the thermostat that the first shop put it. They said the new thermostat was not correct for my Montana so they replaced it with the right one. They said the van is now running great and has hot air blowing too. They are keeping it over the weekend to test my two days all goes to hell theory because that's what keeps happening every two days - it overheats again. Anyways, the first shop charged me $305 for that thermostat and it was the wrong one. Can I take it back and get them to refund me? What if they won't? My new receipt from the shop says they too changed the thermostat because it was not the correct one. Thank you.
did you find the cause?
 
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