****1989 camaro iroc z?

Question

i have a 1989 camaro iroc z that when i turn on the ac the car over heats to baout 240 and when i turn it off the car cool's down to about 205 to 220. but the cars redieater reserve tank is leaks so is always empty. so what do you think? get back

Answer 1

240 is a little hot but it is not in over heating territory. this sounds normal when it is 95 to 110 out side. your AC makes the engine work harder, thus producing more heat from the engine. I would take the car in and have the radiator and cooling system flushed out as well as have the over flow bottle replaced to remedy the leak. this should allow it to run a little cooler, but once the out side air reaches 100 degrees you lose a lot of cooling power. honestly it sounds normal to me other then the leak in the over flow. Are you sure it is leaking or are you losing the fluid to evaporation?

Answer 2

A/C on will make it run hotter at low speeds---check that the cooling fans are kicking on with a/c. Have the cooling system and radiator flushed well and make sure there's no debris blocking the cooling fins of the a/c condenser and radiator and that the lower air dam below the bumper is not damaged, bent or missing. Get a new reserve tank and fill to the proper level--- radiator cap might need to be replaced also--pretty cheap.
Final recommendation is to use a product like "Water Wetter" to lower cooling temps---available at parts stores or online http://www.redlineoil.com/products_coolant.asp?subCategoryID=4

Answer 3

The a/c condenser is located in front of the radiator. When the a/c is operating the condenser gets hot and this heat gets dissipated first by the airflow thus decreasing the efficiency of the radiator. Also the extra load on the engine from the a/c compressor causes extra heat.