OHH the pain !! my car seems to be running a little hot on highway around 204.. it used to stay in the low 190's .but I could not find a leak in the water pump.. but the white extra cooling container has dropped a level in it .. I have added more (dex gm aprroved)and it has dropped again to about 2 inched from the bottom..It never stays at the top where it says hot.. I have also got some sort of fluid underneath my hood?? arrghh!! I wiped it off drove it again and it reappeared?? I don't know if I over oiled the k and n filter or if it is moisture from the ac or is it radiator fluid..??? Right behind the mass air flow has a tube into the coupler moister was coming out of there.. I have no idea why that would ever be wet?? I store the car in the garage under a cover.?? Has anyone experienced this problem>>?? There is no fluid on my garage floor; I would think if the waterpump was failing it would drip until it was empty am I wrong?? Thanks again for any help..It seems as if my dream car is slowly becoming a nightmare. It has 52k original miles I bought it used with 33k in 2000.. I hardly drive it but now i want to start to get it back to new condition , interior, window seals, engine hot part bolt ons-and new brakes..Thanks again for any help..

Engine temps for a 96 at 204 is not too hot, so I would not be worried about 204. As they age the radiators get gunked up with road debris and miniscule pebbles and stones that clogg the radiator cooling fins. You can knock these litte buggers out of a radiator for days. However, since you say you have fluid leaking I'd be concerened about a water pump failure or impending failure which could cost you more down the road. Is the car missing or running poorly? Where are you noticing the fluid? on the hood itself or just on the air inlet tube? I think the tube that feeds into the air inlet is your optispark vacumn line and that should not be spewing fluid. That's what its for... but if it is, that could mean you have moisture in the opti that is getting sucked out. You want to get a light down there and check the bottom of the water pump for leakage. There is a tiny hole on the bottom of the water pump that is called a weap hole and if its leaking its time replace the pump. Also water pump bearings are common areas for leakage as the bearings just fall apart over time, usually with a gusher. Mine did that once.

Oh yeah. Welcome to CG!

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Along with what Don just said, 204 isn't a problem but I do like it in the mid 190's myself.
No the pump may not necessaraly leak until it's empty. When cold, there's no pressure in the system, when hot it can be 20 psi, enough to push past a slightly worn seal.

We need to know exactly where the fluid is showing up.

And, take a papertowel and clean the bottom of the waterpump just above the opti. That's where the weep hole is.
Drive the car and check the bottom of the w/p again for moisture.

And, it's quite possible that you have just a little bit of air in there from the pump leaking (if it is) and you may be able to get the temps back down by burping the air bleeder.

When my water pump started to go, I got coolant spray on the underside of the hood (the serpentine belt was slinging it up):

BTW, mine went out at 39K miles, so it's not uncommon, especially for cars that sit a while.

yes piano guys picture is close to what mine looks like but has a red tint and is not as heavy.. it looks like time to call napa///I would greatly apprecite if you could tell me which waterpump to buy.. i have seen them from 90 to 0ver 300 bucks.. bosch is around 135 napa 204 gm 300.. thank you in advance.. also i was going to change the thermostat to a 160 i read in gm hitech those help alot for cruising temps to drop..

I got mine from thepartsladi on ebay (a GM part) for around $175. I read a while back that the partsladi had some problems and may have gone under. I haven't checked prices, but rockauto has been an excellent source of parts for me as well (and a forum vendor to boot). I do think you want to stick with the GM part for the water pump, though.

HHhhhmmmmm.

" is close to what mine looks like but has a red tint and is not as heavy"

I'd also check power steering lines and AC compressor for possible leaks.

That spray in the pic was actually orange-tinted. Coolant has a pretty distinctive smell, too.

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Yea, red is power steering. You need to check the back of the p/s pulley.
The only good way to be sure on this leak is to clean up the front of the motor and drive it again.

Don;t change the thermostat, it's such a myth and always has been. The only thing a 160 will do is make the car warm up slower.
Once a t-stat opens, it's open and has zero affect on coolant flow. So, you would get the same affect by just taking the t-stat out.
When an LT1 is warmed up and you are crusing, the stock thermostat will not close at all (neither will a 160).
Both thermostats have no affect on engine temps in warm weather.

It is a proven fact that the LT1 will run cooler on the highway with a 160* stat.

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I'm not disputing you, but how is that? When the T-stat is open... its open and coolant is flowing at the same rate and volume as any other T-stat?

Don, all I know is you can put a 160* stat in an LT1 and it will run 177*-182* on the highway compared to a stock 180* stat that will run 190*+.

have any of you seen this video.????http;//www.youtube.com/watch?vT16UNMKjLc....wow he made me feel like it won't be that bad after all am I wrong
??

I have a 160* stat and it runs 185* on the highway, winter or summer. On the 100* summer days with the AC on (fans on) it will get to 200*, even 210* in traffic. My fans are also reprogrammed to come on sooner.

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Oh puleeze!! Proven by whom? Maybe if it has two radiators.

Well I have gotten all my parts except the new hoses and thermostate gasket. I did go with the 160 thermo not to start a brawl but if all goes well I will post if it did help run cooler during normal driving. I would also like to post pics as I attempt to replace the waterpump myself...The only problem is how do I load pictures to this site??? I hope to install the new waterpump next weekend or the following. I hope i can do it correctly and help those who need to do this job also....Thanks again guru patrons !!

Best way to post pictures is to use a photo sharing/hosting website such as photobucket, flikr, etc. If you use photobucket, there will be an html code under the photo, just cut and paste it into your posts.

Matthew

Make sure that you have a new o-ring for the engine side of the water pump drive. The new pump should come with one installed on its shaft, but the one on the engine shaft will likely be hard as a rock.

thx piano i got the rings..lol i still could not post a picture of my car here danggedit..