Ok, my buddy Thomas has a '97 S10 with the 2.2 four cylinder engine. A few months back, 2 of his valves got stuck and the head had a hole in it. He had a new head put on and everything was good. The only difference he was noticing was that it was running hotter (it would get to the red in the 30-45 mins it takes to get to his g/f's house) and when he let off the gas, the oil pressure would drop to zero.

A few days ago, his heat quit working. It's blowing air, but it's cold air. That would lead me to believe the heater core is bad. It's not leaking, but he said he can hear noises coming from the passenger side of the dash when he turns the truck off.

Well, Thursday, it started spark knockin and wouldn't accelerate and then cut off on him, just like when the head went bad last time. His antifreeze is milky as well.

I'm wondering if the heater core is stopped up and ran the cooling system dry and blew a head gasket?

Just thought I'd post and get some opinions. Any help is appreciated.

 

My 97 blazer blows cold air at low speeds and and low heat at higher speeds. Do I have a bad Heater coil?

 

Check your coolant level first. The heater core is pretty darn close to the highest point in the system. If you are low on coolant, your heat will be one of the first things to suffer.

 

*** never mind ...swart and I answered at the same time I think***

 

LOL you were just 17 seconds late with that one.

More on topic with the thread starter...

A plugged heater core will not affect the engine. The flow through the core is not necessary for the proper cooling of the engine. I suspect that if his coolant is getting milky that it is mixing with engine oil at some point. Is there also coolant in the oil - milky oil? If there is, DO NOT drive it. The main bearings will self destruct if run with coolant in the oil.

 

Looked in the resevoir (while engine is cold) the coolant level looks good but the resevoir looks a little dirty

 

Sorry but I cannot seem to creat a new post and I really need help with my heater, it is really cold her this week. I looked in the resevoir (while engine is cold) the coolant level looks good but the resevoir looks a little dirty. Please help

 

You can't simply look in the res. You need to pull the cap and have a look at what's in the radiator. Do it with the engine cold and possibly with the front passenger corner of the truck alittle higher than the rest to get the cap in the highest position possible. Pop off the cap and fill it all the way up. Start it up and let it come up to full operating temperature (feel the upper radiator hose for when the t-stat opens), then shut it off and let it cool down a bit and check it again. Be careful when pulling off the radiator cap after running it as pressure could still be present.

Oh and if you have red/orange coolant (Dexcool), DO NOT put in the green stuff!!! That can cause huge problems down the road.

 

Thanks I will do that. Filling up the Rad even if the resevoir is full will not break my Rad?

 

So I checked the coolant in the Rad and it is topped up to the brim. What do you think? thanks