Chrysler 2000 Voyager radiator cap problem

Are you low on fluid?? Any air in the cooling system? Thermostat bad? Cooling fan coming on?

sounds like head gasket. get a coolant chemical test done to confirm.

with the radiator cap off and the system full does the coolant level rise out of the radiator?

that should be a yes - thermal expansion will make that happen on /any/ liquid cooled vehicle engine.

Blown head gasket. Time for a new engine.

It does come out.... but only after the temp comes up a little. Its strange now.....cause now its not as bad.. and now I drive around with the safety cap lever closed (as whereas I was driving around with the lever open to keep it from overheating and allowing it to expand to overfill jug) However now that the temps stay at midrange...heater still doesnt have heat in low speeds....only driving over 40mpg will the heater air start to get warm.

But wouldnt the signs be a milkshake like oil on dipstick and or white smoke? Which my van has neither. But I guess your right....It'll be easier to buy a block tester and do the test.

Before you go to that trouble though, you may want to test or get a new thermostat. Be aware that many are cheap junk. Ask for Stant.

Then do the combustion gas block test. You can use the liquid tester or if you know someone that has a gas analyzer at a shop... Its been my experience that coolant may not get into the oil and coolant may not be getting into the combustion chamber.

depends on the engine. open deck engines, this almost never happens, you just get gas in the coolant and overheating.

chemical test.

head gasket may not be the news you want to hear, but denial isn't going to help resolve it. need to do that test.

Before you listen to the amateurs here telling you - with no evidence - that a head gasket is blown, do the logical thing and check your cooling system. Fan going on? Thermostat opening? Water pump pumping? No collapsed hose? No radiator blockage?

before you listen to the "professionals" here telling you - with evidently no experience - to embark on a wild goose chase, pay attention to the facts: when an engine "boils" without overheating, that's not boiling at all, it's exhaust gas blowing into the coolant through a leaking head gasket. do the logical thing and get a chemical test done to confirm.

I second that, a chemical test. cuhulin

If you want to read up on the Blue Devil sealant here is a link to their website..

that stuff can ruin a cooling system. it's water glass and it can clog more than just gasket leakage. and even then it doesn't clog a leaking gasket for long.

bottom line is that you'd have to be either insane if you used this on a vehicle you intended to keep or recklessly irresponsible if this was used to mask problems on a vehicle you intended to sell.

A snake oil pedlar was trying to sell a new super duper penetrant, he claimed it will penetrate through anything.The guy he was trying to sell that stuff to asked him, How do you keep it in that can? cuhulin

ok...went out and bought a block tester. Poured blue liquid to marked line, turn on engine run for bout 3 min with tester inserted while slowly pumping squeezer.( radiator was already low enough so coolant did not enter tester) Air bubbles came into blue liquid as I squeezed. It did not turn yellow. Stayed full blue all the way. Now I guess I have to buy a radiator pressure tester with adapter. If assuming I did it correctly.

the bubbles are what you're interested in - unless there's some major airlock and they're temporary, their only source is leaking gasket, or worse but more unusually, cracked head/block.

as to the test, did you run it with the engine warmed up or cold? if cold, the combustion mixture is going to be rich and more of the exhaust is going to be carbon monoxide, not dioxide. the test basically measures CO? production, so if its amount is minimized by a cold engine, it may take longer for there to be a result. suggest re-testing with the engine fully warmed up.

either way though - bubbles is bad.

I have to agree.:) Check all those things first.