Georgia Fiero Club Forum
All Things Fiero => Tech Tips, Tech Questions => Topic started by: Oval311 on September 08, 2009, 09:17:24 pm
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i was out driving my 87 fiero today when i noticed it was starting to overheat. i pulled over to investigate and noticed that there was coolant leaking sowhere from the front end of the car and even in the cabin. i recently replaced the thermostat and drove it around fine for a couple of weeks before this happened. someone please help!!
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Sounds like your heater core let go after 22 years or it could be a heater hose going to the heater core.
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If it's in the front compartment and also inside the cabin, like Rob says, it could simply be a hose leaking at the point where it connects to the heater core. There is usually enough hose that you can cut off about 1 inch and still have enough to reconnect without replacing the entire hose.
If it's the heater core, you will have to remove the right front speaker to access some of the screws that hold the cover onto the heater plenum. The remainder can be accessed from beneath the dash with a little bit of contortion. When replacing the heater core, be sure to tell them if your car is A/C equipped or non A/C.
If you can't or don't want to tackle the job yourself, tells us where you're located. There may be a Fiero mechanic nearby.
Welcome!
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i forgot to mention it's a GT. does that make a difference?
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No, it doesn't make a difference. The front end of the heater hose system is the same on all. The only thing that makes a difference is whether or not it has air conditioning.
Again, where are you located?
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im in atlanta, georgia in the midtown area
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The closest club member mechanic is in Douglasville, out I-20 West. Why don't you come out to the meeting Saturday and you can meet him. Get that car ready for the RFTH the following Saturday.
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well i would but the fiero is my only mode of transportation right now. so until i can get that fixed i won't be going anywhere.
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If you'd like to come to the meeting, take MARTA rail out to the Doraville station. Be there by 12:30 and I'll pick you up and take you back after the meeting. In the meantime, see if you can narrow down where the leak is coming from.
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I almost had the same problem with my 87GT. I was out in OKC for my job training for 6 weeks when mine started leaking and my fiero was my only transportation. Since I couldn't afford a heater core nor had the proper tools to repair it I simply went to the local parts store and got a package of hose clamps and little plastic elbow pipe and just connected the two hoses together bypassing my heater core. Got me home just fine!
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today i removed the heater core and inspected the hoses. the hoses look fine, but is there a way i can test the heater core to see if that's the problem for sure? the day it overheated i turned on the heater to try to take some of the heat away from the engine to drive it home and massive amounts of coolant started leaking into the cabin. maybe that would indicate heater core failure? i'm not sure. what do ya'll think?
by the way my car is equipped with a/c but it is not currently working.
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It sure sounds like the heater core to me. Bypass it like GMguy1987 said, and you should be good to go until Winter.
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Heater cores often weep coolant for a while before they leak enough to be detected. Usually the coolant will crystalize in the area of the leak. Do you have any indications on the heater core? You can test it by laying the core down flat and filling it through one of the tubes. If you can't see the leak, put down 4 or 5 paper towels and let the core sit on it overnight. It should show up with a wet spot if there's a leak.
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installed the new heater core and bled the cooling system. so far it's running good, but i had a couple of other questions. first what is the RFTH and second i have a radiator fan that runs all the time any ideas on what could be causing this and what i should check first?
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RFTH is Run For The Hills, an annual event hosted by the Georgia Fiero Club. Basically, what we do is take our Fieros on some twisty roads, to enjoy what they do best -- corner like they're on rails. You can read the details of this year's run here (http://gafiero.org/rfth14.shtml), and you're welcome to come along.
Does your car have AC, and do you use it? Your radiator fan will run all the time while it's on. Otherwise, it's controlled by a temperature switch on the engine, or in the case of a 1987 or 1988 4-cylinder Fiero, by the ECM. If it runs all the time with the AC off, the previous owner of your car may have installed a lower temperature switch, or even a bypass manual switch. Are there any unmarked switches on or under the dash?
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yeah i have the a/c on but only because the fan won't turn on unless the a/c is running. so what i should have asked is, "my fan won't turn on unless the a/c is running what do i do!??!?!" hahaha
and where are these twisty roads you speak of?
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Your fan doesn't turn on unless the AC or defroster is on! What do you do? Rejoice that you burped the system correctly and it's not overheating. It's not supposed to run at any other time.
Seriously, though. Pat suggestion is one possible cause. If it is overheating, and the fan doesn't come on it could be the fan switch or relay.
Run For The Hills 14 will be just over the border of the northeast corner of Georgia, in North Carolina. Information is on the home page, at the very top. It's this Friday thru Sunday.
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so let me get this straight, the radiator fan doesn't run at all unless the a/c or defroster is on?
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No, the fan is set to run when the temperature reaches a certain point. 220 if I recall. It will also run if you turn on your AC/Defrost. My 87 GT had the same overheating problem before. My temperature switch stopped working and my fan motor broke. After replacing the motor, I just ran with my AC on.
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The fan switch is located next to the thermostat housing it has a single green wire with a black connector. You can get a new one for about $14.00. The fan relay is located in front of the drivers side headlight.
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My temperature switch stopped working
I have one of Rodney Dickman's 200/210 degree fan switches that I was going offer as a drawing prize for the run. But if you need it, you can have it.
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is it hard to burp the fiero's coolant system or something?
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I didn't state it clearly. The fan should run only if the engine is over heating, or when the AC or defroster is on.
Burping the system isn't hard, but there is a prescribed step by step procedure. Some try to fill the system at the radiator. Because the engine is higher than the radiator, this leaves a bunch of air in the engine.
Fill the radiator and recovery tank. Remove the thermostat cap, lift out the thermostat, and fill the engine to the top of the hose outlet. Raplace the cap. Start the engine and let it run for about 5-10 minutes. This will bring all the air to the high point--The thermostat housing. Carefully remove the thermostat cap, top off to the top of the hose outlet, reinstall the thermostat and cap. Check the recovery tank to see that it's up to the HOT marker line.
You do not need to run the heater during this process since Fieros have a full-time circulation through the heater core and the temp is controlled by a mixer flap inside the heater plenum.
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Here's the way I burp mine (assuming it's been drained, and I'm re-filling it).
1) With both the radiator and thermostat cap off, and thermostat out, begin filling the system (with a 50-50 water/coolant mixture) at the thermostat tube until coolant flows out the radiator opening.
2) Install the radiator cap and continue filling until it seems to be full.
3) With the thermostat still out, install the thermostat cap to the first click, and run the engine a few seconds.
4) Remove the thermostat cap and re-fill.
5) Repeat 3 and 4 until you can't add any more coolant mixture.
6) Install thermostat, install thermostat cap fully, fill overflow bottle to the proper level, and drive the car.
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i found the same steps on the online fiero service guide. don't know if any of ya'll refer to this website, but i found it quite useful.
You guys sure do know alot about fieros.
I've got a couple more things i gotta do to get my fiero running the way i want it to. first, i haven't had working a/c for awhile apparently there's a freon leak somewhere in the system. i know this isn't a job i can't take on myself so where would be the cheapest place to take it to get it checked out? second, my headliner started caving in on me and it's starting to piss me off lol. cheap upholstry shop suggestions anyone?
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I've used Headliner Enterprises for several headliners. It's a mobile service that will come to you. Jesse Cone is the guy. 770-382-5793-Office, 678-986-6206-Cell.
There's also Charlene's Auto Trim in Bethlehem, Ga. out Hwy 316 toward Athens. She does great work. Specializes in Antiques, Classics and Aircraft. 770-867-7186
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The cheapest way to fix your headliner would be to get some appropriate colored headliner material from JC Whitney and some good contact cement. Remove your head board, remove all the old cloth and gunk, apply contact cement and the new material.