Novak Conversions Jeep Wrangler JK radiators

New to me Jeep, came with some problems

Jerrad10 said:
So I haven't necessarily gotten to a point to where I can burp the system. Without the brakes, I am unable to get it somewhere to lift the front end or get it on an incline.

I did however take the radiator cap off, filled the radiator to the brim with coolant, and make sure that the overflow reservoir had coolant in it as well. With the cap off I started the engine, turned the heat on and went back and forth between watching the temp gauge and watching the coolant level.

While doing so the coolant seemed to steadily seep out of the top of the radiator. The level did drop down once but then came right back up and poured out of the top again. The temp never got past the halfway point on the gauge, and the air coming from the heater never really got warm. I let it run like this for probably 10-15 minutes.

While I had it running I reinstalled the radiator cap, then watched the temp steadily rise. The radiator fans didn't kick on until the temp gauge was at approximately 3/4 but it steadily got warmer. Once the the gauge was between 3/4 and red, the fans kicked into high but again, it kept climbing, and I finally shut it down.

Last thing I noticed was while checking the coolant lines coming from and going to the radiator after I shut it down the line coming into the bottom was definitely hot to the touch but the top line coming out of the radiator wasn't hot at all.
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You can get car ramps on Amazon. Couple those with blocks to keep it from rolling back. The emergency brake should keep the vehicle from rolling anyway. Most ramps gain you about 6 inches. That should let you burp the engine. Have you found where the smoke was coming from? Under the hood, the two common sources are an oil leak or some form of cooling problem. You want to check for oil in the coolant and for coolant in the oil, and maybe, if you have an automatic transmission, check whether it is clean or not.
 
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BLACKJKU said:
You might want to also check the front axle to make sure it's sitting in the center of the Jeep. Use a 4' level against the tires if they stick past the fenders or set level so it's straight up and down against the fenders. Then measure either from the fenders to the tire or the tire to the fender on both sides. Measurement should be the same distance, if not hopefully you'll have a adjustable track bar and can center it back up.

That might straighten the steering wheel up if it isn't, if it doesn't straighten the wheel the drag link is adjustable.
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Appreciate the feedback, I will check on this tonight even though I may have found an entirely different cause of the issue. I found yesterday that I have a P0349 code showing which causes the same issue.
vaffanculo said:
Definitely check too make sure the fans are working ..another quick tip when you see it begin too overheat and your on the road put your heat on full blast had to do this once in the summer time and I was roasting for a 90 mile ride home from wildwood n.j. but I made it without the temperature going into the red..also feel both radiator hoses top and bottom make sure they are both getting hot if not it's an indication the thermostat is stuck closed or like the other guy said an air bubble in the system get a plastic water bottle cut it in half and put it in the hole where the radiator cap was this will allow you to see the bubbles coming up from the radiator and prevent a lose of antifreeze when it starts spewing out also put the heat on high be sure to have the front end higher then the rear wheels so the air bubbles come out ..this may take abot 20 to 30 minutes..I usually put the front wheels on a curb ..good luck brother
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Thank you for the input sir. I ended up replacing the thermostat and properly burping the system. I have driven a little over 100 miles since and no overheating issues
 
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Jerrad10 said:
Appreciate the feedback, I will check on this tonight even though I may have found an entirely different cause of the issue. I found yesterday that I have a P0349 code showing which causes the same issue.

Thank you for the input sir. I ended up replacing the thermostat and properly burping the system. I have driven a little over 100 miles since and no overheating issues
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Here is some interesting info, don't know if you saw this or not. But it backs up what some of us say to use OEM electrical parts.

www.ournextchapter.net

The Jeep is Finally….Fixed!(?) P0345, P0349, P0390, P0394

We finally have a resolution after more than a year of nightmares in trying to diagnose our 2017 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Rubicon issues with engine codes and performance problems. There are very fe…
www.ournextchapter.net www.ournextchapter.net
 
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Jerrad10 said:
Appreciate the feedback, I will check on this tonight even though I may have found an entirely different cause of the issue. I found yesterday that I have a P0349 code showing which causes the same issue.

Thank you for the input sir. I ended up replacing the thermostat and properly burping the system. I have driven a little over 100 miles since and no overheating issues
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Good luck ...
 
Pulled the following codes at lunch

P2245
P0456
P0455
P0369

I guess the only good news here is that the P0349 code that I had last night is gone
 
Novak Conversions Jeep Wrangler JK radiators
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