Problems... =(

[abcxyz]

Yesterday when I was driving, my heat didn't work. I turned it up to 90 degrees and it was still blowing out cool air. Well when I stopped the car, steam/smoke was coming out of the hood, i opened the hood and the coolant was everywhere, so there's obviously a leak or a blown hose. Would this cause the heater not to work?

Car is at the dealer now. Had to get it towed last night. sucks. Hopefully CPO warranty will cover it...does anyone know?

 

[BMWauge]

Your thermostat is stuck closed. The motor over heats because the valve won't open and the water won't circulate out of the motor. It won't get to the heater core so no heat. Cheap easy fix...as long as you didn't over heat the motor too badly. Good luck.

 

[jrt67ss350]

Ehhh....even when the thermostat is closed, coolant still circulates through the heater core. The thermostat only controls coolant flow to the radiator - the heater core is located prior to the thermostat in the cooling circuit. Think about it - you get heat after staring the car on a cold winter morning long before the coolant reaches the thermostat's opening temperature.

A stuck closed thermostat would also not result in coolant ending up all over the engine compartment unless a hose popped as a result of the increased pressure. Sounds to me like a coolant hose simply ruptured - either it was one of the heater hoses (which would directly result in a loss of coolant flow to the heater core and result in no interior heat) or another hose and the rapid loss of coolant resulted in a lack of coolant flow to the heater core.

 

[BMWauge]

Umm, no. If the thermostat is closed, the water will not flow to the heater core. The blocked thermostat will not let the water flow and therefore creates a block. The entire path has to flow for the water to circulate. The heater core, the radiator, and the coolant lines are all in one path. You will still get warm water to the heater core from the engine heating the water but until the thermostat opens, the water will not flow through the core and you will not get "much" heat. You do feel the heat, but it is the water that is heating up but not flowing.

As far as the coolant all over, the stuck thermostat would make the water overheat to the boiling point and the boiling water will over pressure the 8 or 9 lb cap. The water would blow EVERYWHERE. It is possible that a hose could have popped off or broke but usually, it is gonna have to get hot first. Usuaaly, htis happens in the summer time. It sounds like this happened before the car was able to over heat under a normal time????



REALLY BAD PICTURE BELOW...No artist here

 

[mjbst111]

Thermostate theory.... i would have to disagree... stuck thermostat.... yes that would cause the car to overheat, very true, but the heater core would be hot as hell. That would make air coming into the car very hot. That is why you can turn your heat and blower way up to help keep a car form over heating. water flows through the heater core regardless of the thermostate being open or closed. The only thing the thermostat does is regulate whether the coolant goes through the radiator or back through the engine again.

If your version of a thermostat was true then your theory would be correct but that is not how a coolant system works. Your picture is very compelling though.

A possibility is that you had such a major leak that you lost all of your coolant. Then there would not be any fluid flowing through the heater core and it would eventually cool off once the flow through it had ceased The result: cool air.

 

[BMWauge]

OK, I stand corrected. Damn...all those years of training in the field of radiators has failed me. Just so we know, will you report the final fix back to us ???

 

[mjbst111]

http://auto.howstuffworks.com/cooling-system8.htm

 

[mjbst111]

you know what the dealer is going to tell you.... you need a new alternator, head gasket, fuel pump, 3 new valves, clutch, 5th gear, fan, radiator, hoses, timing chain, accesory belt, shocks and springs, brakes, rotors, tires, exhaust, lower end bearings and an oil change.

And he'll do it for only $50,000... what a nice guy.

 

[318intelligance]

the heater doesn't work cuz there is no warm coolant to heat up the insides. to sum up your question.

oh yeah, i like the picture

 

[BMWauge]

LOL, 1st grade kicked my ass. Finger painting was never a stong "subject".

 

[318intelligance]

lol

 

[mjbst111]

So the dealer said it was indeed the thermostat (as said in his post at 'Getting new FREE tranny')..... strange, and good call BMWauge, I guess I now stand corrected.

 

[abcxyz]

Yep, it was the theromstat that died, and then the pressure blew the radiator, so now I got a new theromostat, new radiator, new tranny, power steering fluid leak repair, all for $50.

 

[BMWauge]

Cool! So I guess you are still under warranty? I wish I had that kinda luck. Hell , I can't even draw