My 1987 Jeep Cherokee is overheating, and we have been
Unable to fix the problem. A new therostat has been put in. It runs for about 10 minutes, and then we can see the coolant starting to bubble, so we turn it off. The fan is running, and there doesn't seems to be any leaks. HELP It has 67,000 miles on it, it that makes a difference If we don't get this problem figured out my husband may loose his mind. I only drive it 15 miles a week to work and back. Its been a good runner, but this has got him stumped. I hate to junk it, it's a nice looking little yellow thing.

Over heating usually occurs when your water radiator is some how clogged. Avoid cleaning it if its old, just replace it. If your radiator is also giving bubbles while heating then your engine combustion chamber (Head Gasket) needs to be changed and you are in big trouble now. Just change it and every thing will be fine.

Regards.

Salman.
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Originally Posted by ellabean3

My 1987 Jeep Cherokee is overheating, and we have been
unable to fix the problem. A new therostat has been put in. It runs for about 10 minutes, and then we can see the coolant starting to bubble, so we turn it off. The fan is running, and there doesn't seems to be any leaks. HELP It has 67,000 miles on it, it that makes a difference If we don't get this problem figured out my husband may loose his mind. I only drive it 15 miles a week to work and back. Its been a good runner, but this has got him stumped. I hate to junk it, its a nice looking little yellow thing.

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I had the same problem... 3 mechanics later it was the fan relay. Good luck!

Same problem. I have to turn on the heater in my car to get rid of some of the hot air near the engine. [Yeahh even in the summer. D: It overheats even during the winter] And open the windows. The radiator is probably broken or something. Don't let the car get so hot that the little marker for the heat is past the top of the normal bar. I suggest you go to a mechanic and get it fixed. If it's getting a new radiator consider if it's worth fixing. My car is really old so I didn't bother getting it fixed. So I settle with open windows and turning on the heater. If it DOES hit past the top of the normal you could stop and open your hood to let it cool off, but that kind of sucks. And you might get heat stroke driving in the summer with the heaters on full blast in a metal box. :/

Hello, I may be able to help you guys out. Jeep in there infinite wisdom used a "closed cooling system" for several years. They admit it was a very bad decision... lol.

So, the problem is that with age things like hoses an such start to leak a bit, introducing air into the closed system. They use a pressure bottle not to be confused with a resouvoir bottle. The bottle and cap must hold pressure. Once fluid boils out of it, you should replace with new.

The procedure to bleed the system is called "burping" yes "burping". The first step is to park the vehicle with nose down and rear axle in the air. The next step is to locate the temperature sending plug at the back of the engine on the drivers side. When vehicle is cooled down, unplug sender (a simple cap plug with one little wire) and remove using a 13mm deep socket with extension. DO NOT attempt to remove while vehicle is still hot or warm, as I did. Took 30 minutes or so to find the little sensor as it was launched into the hood an elsewhere's as I was ducking for cover. Ungodly amount of pressure builds in a hot system. So next you should unhook the radiator hose entering the thermostat housing, and open the pressure bottle. Now simply fill both engine side and hose with anti-freeze/distilled water until it flows out of the temperature sensor hole. I also had to blow into hose and engine side to help move air bubbles that were trapped.

It is a pain in the arse, but it is the only way I know, and I've researched this topic quite a lot.

One other note. I have read that two small holes 1/16th should be drilled opposite of each other in the thermostat and place said thermostat with holes at 12 and 6 o'clock position to make it a self burping system. Not sure if this works. It will be my next step, before converting to a regular open cooling system. There are several write-ups on this topic as well if you do a search.

Hope this helps.

The coolant starting to bubble clues to me one of two things. Leaking head gasket or improperly purged coolant system. Try the burping as described above and if that does not work, I would suggest getting it to a qualified radiator shop and have it pressure tested. They can also as I remember run a dye test to check for the presents of exhaust gasses in the coolant.

It could be a blocked rad, you can try flushing in reverse direction to normal flow. Take off top and bottom hose and use a hose. Remember rusty water will go everywhere, so drain on land you dont care about. If this does not cure a blocked rad, you will have to buy a new one. In England the garage/shop will do a trade in on your old rad. 2. With rad cap off, squeeze hose and see if bubble come out?

When engine is cold,is there resistance in the clutch fan while trying to turn by hand?