The car i bought 3 days is now overheating :(

[SellmeyourDVD]

Not very happy..... It started overheating so I turned the car off immediately, I sat for 30 seconds started the car back up and voila, cars' temperature is fine again. After I leave school later that night and almost get it home the car starts blowing ice cold air (even though i have it on hot) and it starts to overheat again. I pull over, sit for 30 seconds, and then the temp is back to normal and the car is not overheating. I just drove the car to work ( I had no other way to get to work, so I chanced it) and it drove fine the whole way here but my "hot" air is blowing ice cold still....

Anyone know what this could be? Radiator? Thermostat? Water pump? Do i just not have enough damn coolant in the car?

It's a 99 camaro with only 70k miles on it, carfax reported it has only 1 owner and never been into an accident

[PS3+HDDVD OWNER]

I've got an 96 Formula LT1 and 2002 Trans Am LS1.

Definately going to want to check your cooling system out. Is it holding pressure? Are you leaking any fluids(specifically coolant)? Your issue could be a number of things, but most commonly you'll find either your thermostat is bad, or you have a bad heater core which is causing your car to overheat. It's a fairly common issue among these cars.

Your camaro, is it a V6 or V8? From the problem your describing, i'm going to guess it's a V6 car. Those are well documented for having cooling issues.

[CanadianKrazyMods]

Check the coolant levels. No idea why you'd be getting cold air on the hot settings, sure the AC is not on? Also, unless the temp in the car is still rising, don't shut the car off, it has no way to cool it self that way, also check the rad fan.

[PS3+HDDVD OWNER]

Originally Posted by CanadianKrazyMods

Check the coolant levels. No idea why you'd be getting cold air on the hot settings, sure the AC is not on? Also, unless the temp in the car is still rising, don't shut the car off, it has no way to cool it self that way, also check the rad fan.

+100000000, forgot about that one.

Like i said, very common issue with the F-Body's

[VinnAY]

If there are no obvious leaks, I'd replace the thermostat since it sounds like it's stuck open or atleast not operating correctly; super cheap and easy to do, too.

[SellmeyourDVD]

Originally Posted by PS3+HDDVD OWNER

+100000000, forgot about that one.

Like i said, very common issue with the F-Body's

argh.... I'm hoping it's the thermostat.... that is an easy fix (or at least it was on my stealth). I still have an option to purchase a warranty for the car. Some people may think it's shaddy of me to purchase one AFTER something goes wrong with the car.... but imean shit, i've owned it for not even 72 hours yet....

[Moefiz]

Might be a stuck thermostat, its a cheap fix try that first and see what happen other than that it could be your coolant sensor also a major problem with GM cars.

[Bigdog]

Originally Posted by SellmeyourDVD

argh.... I'm hoping it's the thermostat.... that is an easy fix (or at least it was on my stealth). I still have an option to purchase a warranty for the car. Some people may think it's shaddy of me to purchase one AFTER something goes wrong with the car.... but imean shit, i've owned it for not even 72 hours yet....

I thought they had laws dictating that used cars must come with a month long warranty. If it was me i would go back and have a talk with who ever you bought it off of, maybe he would be willing to foot the bill for repairing it and IMO at only 72 hours of ownership he would be responsible for the repair by the letter of the law or at least in certain states he would be.

[CanadianKrazyMods]

What year did GM start using their own coolant?

[SellmeyourDVD]

Originally Posted by Bigdog

I thought they had laws dictating that used cars must come with a month long warranty. If it was me i would go back and have a talk with who ever you bought it off of, maybe he would be willing to foot the bill for repairing it and IMO at only 72 hours of ownership he would be responsible for the repair by the letter of the law or at least in certain states he would be.

every used car i've ever purchased they make you sign a waiver indicating there is no warranty that will come with the car

I'm giong to have it checked out today, i'm hoping it's nothing serious.

[Bigdog]

Originally Posted by SellmeyourDVD

every used car i've ever purchased they make you sign a waiver indicating there is no warranty that will come with the car

I'm giong to have it checked out today, i'm hoping it's nothing serious.

Maybe give a quick call to the dmv to see what your state laws are, or search your states website. Was this a private or lot sale?

[Moefiz]

Originally Posted by CanadianKrazyMods

What year did GM start using their own coolant?

Late 95...they went to Dex-cool the orange looking stuff..

[SDon1969]

Originally Posted by Bigdog

I thought they had laws dictating that used cars must come with a month long warranty. If it was me i would go back and have a talk with who ever you bought it off of, maybe he would be willing to foot the bill for repairing it and IMO at only 72 hours of ownership he would be responsible for the repair by the letter of the law or at least in certain states he would be.

Absolutely, the Lemon Law (in Mass.). Most other states have their own version of this, usually 30 days or 3000 miles from date of purchase...

[Ferris]

I had a problem like this in one of my older cars (84 Chevy Cavalier) and it turned out to be the thermostat. the FIRST thing you should do is check the coolant level, and the radiator fan. I would think that would help you resolve your overheating issue.

I think the A/C issue is something different, unless someone installed something REALLY wrong on the car before you bought it! Good luck.

Originally Posted by Bigdog

I thought they had laws dictating that used cars must come with a month long warranty. If it was me i would go back and have a talk with who ever you bought it off of, maybe he would be willing to foot the bill for repairing it and IMO at only 72 hours of ownership he would be responsible for the repair by the letter of the law or at least in certain states he would be.

Really??? I've never heard of this. Must not be a law (or have been considered to become a law over the last 15 years) in Florida.

[Uniquely]

To me it sounds like the thermostat or the heater core. The thermostat is an easy fix.... but the heater core can be quite a costly repair depending upon it's location. In many vehicles you have to actually pull the dash to get to the heater core which makes the labor pretty high.

[Ferris]

Originally Posted by SDon1969

Absolutely, the Lemon Law (in Mass.). Most other states have their own version of this, usually 30 days or 3000 miles from date of purchase...

I thought that was only on brand new cars or certified used cars?

[SDon1969]

Originally Posted by Ferris

I thought that was only on brand new cars or certified used cars?

In this state we have different Lemon Laws, one for new and one for used (not only certified, personal sales included).

Used: http://www.mass.gov/?pageID=ocatermi..._law&csid=Eoca

There's many conditions, and not every problem is covered.

Here's some links to a Lemon Law attorney and Guides by state:

http://www.carlemon.com/lemonstat.html

[Ferris]

Originally Posted by SDon1969

In this state we have different Lemon Laws, one for new and one for used (not only certified, personal sales included).

Used: http://www.mass.gov/?pageID=ocatermi..._law&csid=Eoca

There's many conditions, and not every problem is covered.

Here's some links to a Lemon Law attorney and Guides by state:

http://www.carlemon.com/lemonstat.html

Wow! Great resource. Thanks, SDon! It appears once the manufacturer's warranty period ends, you can no longer apply for Lemon Law qualification in florida.

To qualify under the Florida Lemon Law or the federal Lemon Law, you must generally have a product that suffered multiple repair attempts under the manufacturer’s factory warranty.

[SellmeyourDVD]

Originally Posted by SDon1969

In this state we have different Lemon Laws, one for new and one for used (not only certified, personal sales included).

Used: http://www.mass.gov/?pageID=ocatermi..._law&csid=Eoca

There's many conditions, and not every problem is covered.

Here's some links to a Lemon Law attorney and Guides by state:

http://www.carlemon.com/lemonstat.html

It looks like here in MI that the lemon laws will not help. I think i'm giong to get the car fixed and than just sell it. I refuse to deal with another sports car needing multiple repairs.

[Uniquely]

Originally Posted by SellmeyourDVD

It looks like here in MI that the lemon laws will not help. I think i'm giong to get the car fixed and than just sell it. I refuse to deal with another sports car needing multiple repairs.

If it turns out to be a stuck thermostat... I see no reason to sell it. It can happen at any time. OTOH.... a stuck thermostat could just be a symptom of a larger overheating problem as super heated water caused by another problem can actually cause the thermostat to stick in the first place.