Hello everyone,
My son is in Phoenix AZ right now and his 1999 Sebring Convertible is overheating.
1- he called a mobile mechanic, he replaced the water pump . 1 day later still overheating,
2- called mobile mechanic again, replaced : head gasket , thermostat, and metal pipe from water pump. 1 day later… still overheating. Plastic overflow tank is full but radiator fill hole completely empty. I am 3000 miles away and cannot help. He already spent 1600$ in these repairs and it is still overheating.
what do you guys think?
anybody you could recommend in Phoenix to look at his car again. He is kind of losing faith in the mobile mechanic.

 

I would definitely have lost faith in the mobile mechanic a long time ago. When confronted with a problem of uncertain cause, one should always start with the cheapest things first. This guy seems to want to try the most expensive things first so as to be certain to run up the bill as fast and as much as possible. There are many possible causes of overheating. many of them are very cheap and easy to fix. Head gasket is pretty far down the list. Did he do a pressure test? Did he check the radiator cap? Did he inspect for debris in front of the radiator, leaks anywhere?, Proper mixture of coolant? Radiator flush?

 

Is this is the 2.5l v6?

 

yes it is.

 

I guess I will ask him to get a cap for around 10$, and get a cooling system pressure test.

thank you

 

A common coolant loss problem is a corroded filler tube where the radiator cap sits. One tell is a coolant stain at the top of the filler tube. The cap seals under pressure but as the engine cools and attempts to pull coolant back from the reservoir the vacuum seal fails. This results in the reservoir showing full but no coolant in the filler tube. This creates an air bubble which can cause overheating. Replacing the filler tube (and gasket) and cap will resolve this (note the engine is a mitubishi so the filler tube can be sourced as such). There is also the possibility the rubber tube from the filler tube over to the reservoir is not sealing at the filler tube so a clamp may be in order.

A pressure test is still in order but will not reveal that the filler tube is corroded.

 

thank you very much