Haven't heard too many problems with refilling the minivan engines in any circumstance, so, after hoses are on, fill with fluid, listen for the hiss, which is the air leaking past the thermostat in the engine (I always drill an 1/8th inch hole to help this purge and any tiny bubbles that may collect under the thermostat), give it a couple minutes, squeeze the upper hose to help burp the hose itself, then comes the burping after the initial fill by turning on the van, let it idle. With the cap still off, watch the fluid circulate and possibly drop. Turn the heater on full so the most fluid will flow through it, keep an eye on the fluid, rev the engine a couple times, no need to really push it above 2500rpm or so, so just blip the throttle a few times, pushes fluid around harder to move air. When the temp rises and starts to overflow, cap and fill the overflow to the hot level on the overflow bottle, watch the temp gauge, blip the throttle a couple more times, drive it around the block. About a 20 minute job, and a five minute drive is about it.
'05 GC 3.8 - how to properly burp coolant?
2005 GC, 3.8L, 4speed, 130k
Need to replace the lower and upper radiator hoses before a trip to a very hot part of the country. Not planning to take out the thermostat...what is a proper way to 'burp' the system of air once I refill the system with Mopar coolant?
Need to replace the lower and upper radiator hoses before a trip to a very hot part of the country. Not planning to take out the thermostat...what is a proper way to 'burp' the system of air once I refill the system with Mopar coolant?
1 - 9 of 9 Posts
I advise a Stant Superstat. They have jiggle valves installed already for the 2.2/2.5 thermostats, no drilling necessary. Better quality, too, IMO
He's running a 3.8, B10. Do those Stants for the v-6 have the jiggle valve too?
I never had to worry about air trapped in the 3.3/3.8 engines I owned. I did try to park them nose uphill at work for a couple days after working on the cooling system but I don't think that was even necessary.
I agree with dana44 and valiant 67. I've flushed the cooling system three times in the nine years that I've had my 3.8 T&C. Never did anything but fill with coolant, idle the engine (with a few blips) until the fan goes on, and then top up the radiator and add coolant to the overflow bottle to the indicated level. Never had a problem with air in the system. I would advise replacing the steel coolant return pipe if it's rusty. It runs under the crank pulley and connects the lower radiator hose to the water pump housing. It's an easy R&R.
I would imagine they do, chuzz. The Superstat is Stant's "premium line", so I imagine that all the bells and whistles you can put in a thermostat are in there. None of the other 2.2/2.5 thermostats that I've seen have them.
Yes, perfect sized hole with a pin in it. I take wire ***** and snip the little rascal off, saves the hassle of gently drilling a hole in the face of the thermostat, but always have the hole, it works great.
By all means give a 130k engine a new thermostat while your servicing the cooling system. You will not enjoy the possibility of removing a failed-shut one in the middle of a trip and losing your antifreeze in the process. I had one go bad in a 90k car and almost fried the engine when the gauge pegged the dial. I didn't even have the right socket on board to remove it, so I limped from gas station to gas station putting in water trying to keep it alive. I managed to get it home with no engine damage... :scared:Zandersman1 said:2005 GC, 3.8L, 4speed, 130k
Need to replace the lower and upper radiator hoses before a trip to a very hot part of the country. Not planning to take out the thermostat...what is a proper way to 'burp' the system of air once I refill the system with Mopar coolant?
1 - 9 of 9 Posts
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