JGrimm Posted October 6, 2020 Report Share Posted October 6, 2020 So my g/f was driving our Journey back to the her house which is about 30 miles from mine when she got a check engine light. I went over the next day and the CEL was for low oil. I checked her oil level and it was dangerously low. It was the Famous Oil Cooler Gasket leak, I replaced the gaskets, and the pressure and Temp Sensors. Took the Car on some errands for a day and it was fine, checked the oil and the level was good. The next day she was driving on the highway when her High Engine Temperature Alert went off, she immediately got off, parked and shut the engine off. The Coolant Reservoir was steaming and boiling over. I got there about an hour later, engine was mostly cooled off. I first decided to bleed the coolant system and there was air in it, I had forgotten to do that after replacing the Oil Cooler. I got the engine to operating temperature and it was running a little hot at idle between 210 and 212 and was hovering there just fine. But as soon as I rev'd the engine to about 3000 rpms the Reservoir would start boiling over and the temperature would start to climb. I had this happen to my Charger and it was a bad thermostat, so I got it home and I drained the coolant, replaced the thermostat, bleed the system. And no change, same issue. Engine idles hot, and temps increase when I step on the gas, Reservoir boils over. I checked the fan, and it doesn't turn on until the car hits about 220 degrees, and doesn't go to high speed until 228, I don't think that is right? She doesn't have white smoke out of the tail pipe, nor milky coolant or oil, so I don't think it's a head gasket? Any ideas what else could be causing this sudden overheating issue and reservoir boil? I am not finding any coolant leaks or cracked hoses Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JGrimm Posted October 6, 2020 Author Report Share Posted October 6, 2020 Oh also I don't get any heat blowing through the cabin, but this was an issue before the overheating happened Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
larryl Posted October 6, 2020 Report Share Posted October 6, 2020 Reads like air in the system and not enough coolant Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2late4u Posted October 6, 2020 Report Share Posted October 6, 2020 doesn't the journey have 2 thermostats? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
5rebel9 Posted October 6, 2020 Report Share Posted October 6, 2020 1 hour ago, 2late4u said: doesn't the journey have 2 thermostats? I'm almost certain that only the 2.4 motor employs 2 thermostats. BUT all engine options are notorious for air entrapment that will cause problems if not "bled" properly out before "taking off" and driving the vehicle. OhareFred and 2late4u 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
5rebel9 Posted October 6, 2020 Report Share Posted October 6, 2020 You may also want to put a new cap on the res. Other than that I fear cracked head or bad water pump. Cap is cheap and easy to try, the "boil over" thru there can wreck the cap. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JGrimm Posted October 6, 2020 Author Report Share Posted October 6, 2020 I will try a new cap Another important thing I forgot to mention, is after she got the low oil and I went to her place and filled it up with oil, she drove it 40 miles on the highway back to my house. No issues, it then sat in my garage for over a week while I changed the oil cooler gaskets and we went on a trip with my car. It did not start this over heat thing until after worked the oil cooler and she got it back on the highway. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JGrimm Posted October 7, 2020 Author Report Share Posted October 7, 2020 Okay update I left the radiator cap off overnight and the reservoir was full when I went to bed. When I checked it today, it was empty. I filled it up and put a new cap on that I got at o'reilys. I think the issue may have been fixed, I was able to rev the engine quite a bit without getting a boil over with the new cap and I took it out for a drive on city streets and didn't get an overheat. Going to test on the highway tonight. The only issue is it is still running hot to me, hanging around 212 degrees while idle and driving. Possible bad radiator? Also on a plus, I'm suddenly getting heat blowing in the cab, not as hot as it should be but it's way more than before. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2late4u Posted October 7, 2020 Report Share Posted October 7, 2020 (edited) well being a 2012 you might have a heater core starting to plug up since you said it wasn't working great before this happened.you might trying flushing heater core in a reverse flush to see if you have trash or contaminants in the core. also there is a quick way to remove the heater core and replace with a new one on you tube. good luck Edited October 7, 2020 by 2late4u Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JGrimm Posted October 7, 2020 Author Report Share Posted October 7, 2020 I just bought the hoses to reverse flush the heater core, I'm also going to replace the radiator since they are so cheap. 2late4u 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JGrimm Posted October 7, 2020 Author Report Share Posted October 7, 2020 Whelp looks like it was completely my fault on this one. Just took it on a 20min drive on the highway, Temps stayed at 210-212F. No boiling Needed a proper bleeding and a new rad cap, thanks guys NavalLacrosse, 2late4u and OhareFred 1 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2late4u Posted October 7, 2020 Report Share Posted October 7, 2020 15 hours ago, JGrimm said: Whelp looks like it was completely my fault on this one. Just took it on a 20min drive on the highway, Temps stayed at 210-212F. No boiling Needed a proper bleeding and a new rad cap, thanks guys glad you got it fixed and also for reporting back on what happened ,,take care Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike 817 Anthony Posted November 24, 2021 Report Share Posted November 24, 2021 Help! I’m having same issues. I’ve changed water pump thermostat top hose and radiator cap. Starting to think it’s my head gasket. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John/Horace Posted November 24, 2021 Report Share Posted November 24, 2021 There are additives you can add to glycol that will indicate if this is happening. The 3.6 is more prone to this problem. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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