Overheating 97 GTS

[Bill Pemberton Woodhouse]

There is a point where when issues continue it is time to spend the funds to let a Master Tech find the cause. With a 22 year old car there could be a myriad of issues, but spending 20K for another motor , rebuild ,etc. is at the other end of the spectrum of not getting a fix and exact diagnosis. Believe there are a couple of quite reliable sources of repair near your part of Texas?

 

[steve e]

Jtbird I feel your frustration, but it sounds like you can't find the leak, if you have exhausted all your friends and resources, it might be time to take it to a Viper tech like Bill mentioned, at least to find out where the leak is. Once you find out you might be able to fix it yourself or let the tech keep going and bite the bullet, in the long run it will be the cheapest way to go, if the engine blows thats much more than what ever they find is wrong , hope it turns out to not be to bad, let us know, Good luck.

 

[jthunderbird]

No, you do not need to remove the front fascia to identify the recovery bottle. There is a view port through the fender wheel liner which must be clean...noting that I found one painted over two weeks ago !! This is a vertical "slit" in the liner right in front of the inner edge of the right front tire. Once you remove the 4 inch diameter rubber cover over the access hole to the fog light connector area, you can place a small, bright LED light right up against the bottle itself, the fluid level in the bottle can be evaluated through the viewing "slit". Admittedly, I have also seen one Viper with a missing bottle, and many with holes in the bottom. In those cases, the fluid just spills out on the ground...which will also occur if the bottle is full and there is a vacuum leak on cool down preventing the "overflow" from returning to the system. Give me a call and I can guide you more easily. 317-402-9013

That is extremely kind of you and I will likely take you up on that! Thank you for all the help.

JT

 

[jthunderbird]

Jtbird I feel your frustration, but it sounds like you can't find the leak, if you have exhausted all your friends and resources, it might be time to take it to a Viper tech like Bill mentioned, at least to find out where the leak is. Once you find out you might be able to fix it yourself or let the tech keep going and bite the bullet, in the long run it will be the cheapest way to go, if the engine blows thats much more than what ever they find is wrong , hope it turns out to not be to bad, let us know, Good luck.

There was a Viper tech down the road at a Dodge dealership that I used a few years ago named Fred I believe. He adjusted the aftermarket rockers that the PO had installed. I planned on reaching out to him soon if I can't make any more progress... want my damn car back. Vipers look way less cool jacked up on stands.

 

[steve e]

Vipers look cool even on jack stands.

 

[lane_viper]

I just pretty much replaced all the front engine gaskets minus the head gaskets with Cometic gaskets from Dan Lesser http://viperspecialtyperformance.com/catalog/index.php/cPath/22_85

These gaskets seem so much better than the mopar factory paper gaskets that glue themselves to the mating surfaces.

I did, water pump, timing cover, oil filter adapter, thermostat housing, IAC, and Intake gaskets

I'm pretty sure this fixed my coolant leak, as I see no more leaks coming from where it was before. I was like you and didn't know 100% the source, but was worth a shot. Gaskets needed replacement anyway on my 96 GTS.

I'm sure it's been mentioned already, but in addition to the timing cover gasket, check the 2 hoses that come off the water pump.

If the leak is coming from your oil filter area, its prob a good chance its not the fascia bottle. To be sure you, check the level through the "wheel window", fill it up and see if it changes level over time.

 

[jthunderbird]

Just wanted to update everyone. I took the Viper to my local Viper tech in Seguin.

It turned out to be the timing chain cover after all. I got it back and it is running like normal again. Now I have an issue with my radio and AC cutting out every 2 seconds... damn it. Made another thread for that issue though.

Thanks everyone for your help, this is a great forum!

 

[Bill Westall]

I followed all the good advice on this forum to solve my overheating problem. What finally solved the problem was a new temp sensor. All other measures (fan switch, thermostat, etc.) helped but did not solve the problem completely. The temp sensor did and now it is running at a steady 190 degrees. The sensor that was recommended is a WVE/AIRTEX model WVE1T1106 vailable from RockAuto for around $75. Hope this helps.

 

[Steve-Indy]

Thanks, Guys..your follow up posts help all of us.

 

[InTheZoneAC]

Just a follow up on my initial response since it was in fact a leak. You can always rent a pressure tester that goes on the radiator, match the pressure of the radiator cap and you can then pinpoint leaks better without having to start the car and risk overheating in the process.

And if the shop repaired the timing cover gasket and your electrical stuff is acting up I'd say they kinked or cut some wires in the process.