98 Camry Overheats Till I Turn on Heater

[WantToFixIt]

My 87 Camry overheats until I turn on the heater. I live in California and the weather is warming up here. Don't think I'll be able to take it! Once the gauge goes back down I can turn off the heater for awhile.

Does anyone knows what causes this? We removed the thermostat and it made no difference. Should I flush the radiator and core as some have suggested on overheating problems? My problem just seems a little different because the overheating disappears when I turn on the heater.

It's a Camry wagon, 4 cylinder, 250,000+ miles on it. Thank you!

Linda

[Mike Gerber]

It may be a clogged radiator and flushing it may or may not help the situation. Is this the original radiator? Does the overheating happen while moving or in stop and go traffic? Does driving at highway speeds improve or make the situation worse? Also, are the electric fan(s) turning on? If not, do they both come on when you turn on the A/C?

Mike

[WantToFixIt]

Here's what my husband says about the car. It had started overheating and the radiator was cracking. He had the radiator replaced by this small shop that hired recovering addicts. He was present when they changed the radiator and does not recall them flushing anything out at the time (just in case this is important).

The overheating occurs in stop and go traffic and on the freeway. It seems to be worse in hot weather than on cool nights. It also is worse going up hills. So then we blast the heater and it goes right back down to normal.

The fans are working. I have not tested them when I turn on the A/C and the car is not here right now, but I'll do that this evening. I recently turned on the A/C and it was blowing into the car, so I don't know if that means the fans are working or not.

Thanks for your response!

Linda

[Mike Gerber]

Did they replace the radiator with a new radiator or one from a salvage yard?

"I recently turned on the A/C and it was blowing into the car, so I don't know if that means the fans are working or not."

The air blowing in to he passenger compartment is produced by the interior fan for the heater. I'm talking about the 2 fans that cool the radiator/engine. They are in the engine compartment, attached to a plastic shroud, behind the radiator. Those 2 fans should come on when the A/C is turned on. This will tell us if the fans themselves are capable of operating.

Mike

[AlmightyCamry777]

If you park the car with the engine hot and idling, and open the hood, you should only have to wait a minute or two before you see and hear the radiator fans come on. if they do the fan and temperature swtich are probably functioning.
The thermostat should be reinstalled, as you know this is not often a fix.

Possible causes of overheating:
-lower radiator hose is worn out and squeezes itself shut when pressurized by the water pump
-air bubble in coolant
-radiator broken, has too many fins mashed over, or clogged by debris and rust
-coolant passages of engine heavily clogged
-timing belt tensioner weak and/or timing belt slipping (because the timing belt drives the water pump).
-blown head gasket