Posted by Tim Schroeder on February 26, 2000 at 22:13:43:
In Reply to: Car posted by Hogryder on February 26, 2000 at 17:16:08:
Greets,
I had a car a few years ago that began to overheat, and the head gasket was the problem. After fixing, it was fine and ran in the proper temp range. If the shop redid your head gasket, and now it's overheating, something's up, as Hogryder said. Did your car overheat like this before the gasket changeout? If not, the garage might have messed up the coolant passageways, or something. How's your water pump and thermostat? The thermostat is an item often overlooked, but if it sticks shut new coolant from the radiator can't reach the motor and it'll overheat. If it sticks open, the engine will run too cool and you'll get bad mileage and maybe even performance. I had to have my car towed once because of this $5 item. I'd change that right away and see if it helps, it's easy to do. It should be where the upper radiator hose comnnects to the engine. Two bolts, lift up the housing, drop in the new thermo and use a new gasket, which generally comes with a new thermo (make sure at the parts store that they give you a gasket).
As for the rear brake light, the "plunger" on the switch for the brake pedal can stick and be a pain. You might want to try changing the position of the adjustment nut for that switch and see it you can get to work. I redid my pedal position last spring so it'd be lower and easier to reach with my foot, and had to mess with that switch to get it to activate the light just as I pressed on the pedal. It took several times to get it just right, that switch seems finicky. Pull on the plunger gently and see if you can make the light work. Also check the wires and connectors and make sure they're tight, especially if work's been done around them.
Keep us posted, and remember, tomorrow must be better, you've had enough bad luck already !!
Tim