well i had an oil leak somewhere and had been dripping for some time. so i decided to pull my valve cover off and start there, its easy and fast why not. so friday i pullit off and it looks like thats where the leak is so i change out the gasket and and put new seal on it and what not. bolt it back up and think hey while im here i might as well install the new temp switch and hoses too. so i pulled the old switch out and put a new one in and then put some new hoses on. i was pretty sure i put them all on right because i only took a few off at a time when replacing so i would not forget where they went. saturday i button it all back up check oil and fluids. start driving. get about 2 miles away.... and there is a large white smoke screen coming out of my exhaust. so i think water got in it somehow. i get it home let it set all day then just let it idle for a while . start it up at night and it runs fine no smoke, although it ran hot very fast. only a few blocks of normal driving and its hot. my coolant is fine, i dont know why it is so hot. then today same thing. drove like 4 miles and bam temp is high. now not only does it run hot, but there is little response from throttle. it feels as if something is restricting it (like when i had clogged exhaust) i have no clue what could have done it. except MAYBE if the switch is in too far and possibly not letting coolant pass into engine? any ideas where to start looking? i am going to flush radiator and change oil and filter tonight when it cools down and see if that helps. other than that i have no clue what to do.

 

Sounds like a non-related issue to the work you did. And it also sounds like the head gasket is toast, or you cracked the head.

However, if you think its the switch, pull it back out and compare the two side by side. Also, when you replaced the coolant did you properly bleed the system?

 

i have not replaced the coolant yet. if the head gasket is done can that be a home job or am i better off just taking it in and letting them worry about it. and if i cracked the head how do i know. and i still have the oil leak!

 

The oil leak is probably one of the half-moon shaped cam seals on either end of the head. A head gasket takes some work but you can do it at home just fine provided you have the proper tools and manual. I've done it twice, doesn't take more than a couple days if you've never done it before.

 

how can i tell if the head is cracked?

 

You stated changing hoses. Water hoses? If so, did you mess with the thermostat, possibly in backwards? DeathCougar mentioned a faulty temp sender. Possibly too long? Good place to look. A bad head gasket can over-pressuize the radiator and cause the overheating but that would be a real coincidence happening just after your previous repairs. Any water in the oil?

 

didnt notice oil and water mix. i didnt touch my thermo.. switch can possibly be wrong. guess i could putt it out and compare them

 

ill pull the switch out today, i notice a coolant leak today so i think maybe my switch did not seat right or it is the wrong size. so i will pull it out and compare it to the stock one and possible put the stocker back in. the oil leak is only like 3 drops over night, i dont know if that helps with either the gasket or a crack in head. if it were a crack would it still run and drive?