Car overheats and pushes fluid back into the overflow tank.

Asked by gftmachine Jan 10, 2017 at 06:25 PM about the 1998 Subaru Legacy Outback Wagon AWD

Question type: Maintenance & Repair

I had a bad head gasket.I used Bars Leak Gasket Repair and it ran great for
about two years.I made a mistake by adding alittle more to a cold
engine.After that it started to overheat and the temp gauge would max out.It
already had a new waterpump and new belts.I replaced the thermostat and
the radiator.It overheats but no steam comes out.There is no water in the
oil.It pushes all the coolant into the overflow tank but when I start to loosen
the radiator cap,it draws it all back into the radiator.The hoses don't leak and
the heater works fine and I can see no leakage inside the cab.Also I see very
little water coming out the tailpipe.I am not sure what I should do next.

4 Answers

221,015

Did you do this before or after the new radiator? Radiator may be plugged, heater core is going to be plugged, thermostat may stick now. You have a boat load of problems now.

221,015

About all you can do is get it to a shop and see if they can get it all cleaned out.

1 people found this helpful.

You plugged it up with that crap! You may need a new radiator but they don't cost that much. Next time use Subaru brand anti-leak in the radiator or Alumaseal. You may want to go ahead and fix the head gaskets as eventually they are going to go out.

2 people found this helpful.

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