hey guys! new to the board i'va had a 96 xj for about 2 years now and loving it! anyways to my problem. my jeep overheats quite often and wont start for quite some time after. i have tried to add coolant to my radiator coutless times. but for some reason it will not go down into the radiator as it seems to spill out. WHY WONT IT TAKE COOLANT?? help needed. be friendly first post.

 

could be air trapped in the cooling system.

 

any quick easy ways to fix that?

 

Im in the process of trying to find a way to bleed the air from the cooling system as my XJ tends to runa little hot after I flushed the heater core. Im kind of mad at myself for not doing that beofre I had the cooling system flushed at the shop. The wanted to charge me $1200 to replace the heater core. That seemed like a rip off to me. It wasnt until I did my research that I figured I would just try to unclog the heater core on my own. I now have good heat but the XJ runs slightly hotter than it did before the service.

 

so should i start with flush first? i have tried this but could not find the drain plug on the radiator.. (this is the first car i have actually tried to work on.)

 

As much as I like to suggest someone doing work on their own cars there also comes a time when its better to leave it to the "pros" You might want to take it to the shop and have them do a cooling system flush. This will clean and clear out any deposits from wear and age. It probably wouldnt be a bad idea to have the heater core flushed as well.

I've been having a hard time finding a drain/bleeder valve to let the air escape from the cooling system.

 

the drain petcock on both my sealed system and looped system radiators are both on the pass side tank of the rad pointing straight at the fender. i had to reach up from the bottom to get to it

 

the drain valve on my radiator is located on the bottom passenger side facing the passenger quarter panel.

try to remove your passenger side front light housing, you should be able to see it there.

 

NEVER use the petcocks. They are subject to failure and are hard to get at on some models.

Drop the lower hose. Easy and foolproof.

You should start with a flush/fill, new 195 degree stat, new radiator cap, inspect hoses.

You need to resolve your overheating problem ASAP. Overheating is very hard on an engine and can result in a blown head gasket, cracked head, etc. Then you have bigger fish to fry!

Start with the above and see where you are at. 200-210 is the target coolant temp for the 4.0

 

which side of the lower? assuming the one connected to the rad? how much does a new thermo cost??

 

We need more info, dont bother flushing, prob wont help. It wont take any more coolant...... BECAUSE IT IS FULL already!! I really cant believe no one else said this. i would try with a thermostat replacement first.

Does it overheat while moving on the highway, or at idle? Is your fan turning on? Does your heat work? Does it run fine?

If it over heats that bad that it wont start for a while afterwords, u might have done some serious damage already.

 

i can hear the secondary fan turn on and off often all the time. it tends to overheat while in idle or when im on a trail (slowly driving less then 10mph). and when this happens usaully i pop the hood let it cool for about 15 mintues or throw some water over the motor. both heater and ac works. heater when set on defrost does squeak. figured just a bit dry.

 

WHO EVER TOLD YOU THAT THROWING WATER ON THE MOTOR WHEN ITS HOT IS A GOOD IDEA!!!???

That could cause a crack in the block and do more damage than good. Its one thing to pour water over the radiator but NEVER the motor when its hot.

 

well i figured since plenty of people drive through creeks, rivers, puddles that it would be alright...

 

still not good to throw water on the motor, do u have a clutch fan, or dual electric, i am assuming it is a clutch fan. With the MOTOR OFF spin the fan by hand, does it spin easy or stiff? If it spins real easy then it is probably a bad clutch, if it spins stiff.... Then its something else, look down at your radaitor on the battery side. See if the fins are corroded, green, leaking, or any of the above. They always seem to rot out on the battery side first.