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With all due deference to Donald Trump (which in case you haven't guessed in my case is not a lot) I'm feeling pumped and think I'm truly great.
My '89 NA just started running hot and I was sweating a little bit that it might need a head gasket.
But, quick diagnosis - - pop coolant reservoir cap in morning just after starting car - - showed no pressurizing of the reservoir by exhaust gases, so I ruled head gasket out.
And in June I had finally replaced the ratty radiator and worn-out cooling fan with ones from a newer Saab with the aluminum and plastic radiator, and it had been holding at a low point on the temp gauge like it was nailed there. Old copper radiator had lots of fins missing and the main fan had been chugging.
And no coolant was leaking, other than when it ran hot enough to burp at the filler cap. I'd squeeze the top hoses and not hear or see any leaking going on.
For the past week, gauge had been rising up not to red but darn high and if I drove far, higher. Most of my use had been grocery runs, a mile or so at most. Topped reservoir up every day, had lost some.
So I bought the cheapest thermostat at Autozone, $5 plus tax, and swapped it in Sat. a.m. and it did the trick.
The radiator drain on the old radiator was a slick piece of work but the plastic nozzle at bottom of the new one seems not to work at all, least as I unscrewed it farther and farther still not a trickle out of it. I feared it coming out entirely and all coolant gushing out so I screwed it back in and went to plan B.
I only needed coolant down a little, below thermostat at top of block. I unbolted the reservoir from the car and loosened the hose clamp on the fat hose over to water pump area. Had a cut-off gallon milk jug crammed in low just behind air cleaner. As I worked the hose off, just as it separated, I turned the fat hose over and into the milk jug, and twisted the reservoir up on its side so its outlet was vertical.
Then I wiped the outlet pipe off, and blew into the reservoir (fill cap tight and skinny hose to top of radiator still attached). This displaced lungfuls of coolant out the fat hose and into the cut-off milk jug. Balanced reservoir vertical, lifted hose, took jug out and emptied it into a bigger one, re-placed it and blew some more into it. Very little spillage and about a gallon of coolant removed.
Then unplugged AIC valve, removed 10mm head bolt on strap holding it to top of thermostat housing, slid it out and pulled one hose off from throttle body and bent it over out of the way.
Loosened hose clamp to top radiator hose and pried it off the thermostat housing. Unplugged temp sensor wire and got it out of the way, then cracked loose and removed the two 12mm head bolts holding thermostat housing on.
Whacked it with my short piece of cheater pipe to crack it loose, then pried it out from under the ear that holds that coolant pipe on, and took it off to clean up. Popped old thermostat free also. Square-shoulder groove in head where it sits looked remarkably like new, compared to the two 9000s I have had apart there, which had bad corrosion pits there. (Did Saab change the head alloy?)
Next as a check I boiled a little pot of water and dipped original thermostat (a Waxstat England-made 82 degree Centigrade model) in. Nothing moved. New thermostat (195 degree F cheap Chinese junk) opened wide.
Cleaned up thermostat housing with the nozzle where the hose attaches on a wire wheel, cleaned the two bolts the same, getting all white corrosion and rust out of the threads. Oiled the bolts and ran em in and out a couple times to clean up threads in the head, then wiped them clean and installed thermostat with never-seize on the bolt threads. Oiled each hose clamp and ran back and forth to loosen their action, wiped inside of hose ends, then reinstalled hoses, temp sender, AIC, coolant reservoir bolt.
Hacked another gallon milk jug in two to make a giant funnel that was free-standing when you stuck its neck into the coolant reservoir fill. Poured the drained coolant back in mostly, cracked brass bleed screw and when bubbles pretty much stopped there, started car and added rest of coolant, bleeding at screw again and topping coolant up to max mark as car came up to heat.
The new thermostat DIDN'T HAVE that little brass one-way toggle thing at the top meant to help purge air. (Did I just hear the entire Saabnet emit a collective shocked gasp?) But I'm convinced that's not needed for purging, it just speeds it up, and I can report not only did air come out of the system, it's working just fine, holding steady temp like the needle was nailed in place again, though higher up the gauge, just under half instead of about 1/4, due to the hotter thermostat.
How about me for president? I'd bring the same mix of care and pragmatic realism to the job which I'm sure I'd be great at. Oh, and LOTS and LOTS of humility!
posted by 71.173.7...
, Tue, 15 Sep 2015 07:40:13
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