car overheating/ running hot '97 miata
Asked by ptrip6 Mar 25, 2013 at 05:19 PM about the 1997 Mazda MX-5 Miata Base
Question type: Maintenance & Repair
overheating issues, losing coolant in radiator, replaced with aftermarket radiator from autozone, might be leaking at seams. no coolant in motor oil, hoses do not leak. Replaced thermostat, and im still at a loss as to what it could be. Any help would be appreciated. going to get pressure tested today. With radiator under warranty I think I will replace and try again. Cooling fans don't seem to come on frequently enough. They do both work.
6 Answers
come back after the pressure test. your losing coolant somewhere the pressure test will reveal where
I would suspect the head gasket. It's leaking into the cylinder and going out the exhaust.
Hmm? Guess this is one reason Mazda went with the big old smiley face looking grill on my 2011 MX-5...that high revving, hard working 4 cylinder does make a fair amount of heat...smaller grills on the '97 models must not get as much air from it's front intake? Good Luck on fixing her up, I'm sure she'll be just fine :)
Your probly losing coolant from the waterpump, when it goes bad it will leak from the weep hole. Miata's require major maintenance at or around 60 to 80 thousand miles : Water pump , timming belt and tensioners, thermostat, valvecover gasket, hoses and radiator. These should all be done at the same time. Ive owned 13 miatas and I can tell you Ive done this maintenace many times. A good all around reference is: miata.net Good Luck and enjoy this great car
could even be a heater core but usually the coolant runs into the floor boards
