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-   Equinox (https://chevroletforum.com/forum/equinox-23/)
-   -   08 Chevy Equinox overheating problems, "ENGINE HOT/ A/C OFF" (https://chevroletforum.com/forum/equinox-23/08-chevy-equinox-overheating-problems-engine-hot-c-off-91463/)

Benjoefoe February 8th, 2021 3:34 PM

Anyone ever figure this out? Im haveing same issues with a Colorado...changed parts mentionedabove.... I think its the computer

ruley73 February 8th, 2021 11:06 PM


Originally Posted by Benjoefoe (Post 460122)
Anyone ever figure this out? Im haveing same issues with a Colorado...changed parts mentionedabove.... I think its the computer

I doubt it's the computer. I recommend posting in the Colorado forum.

https://chevroletforum.com/forum/colorado-19/

Larry Hansen May 3rd, 2021 12:55 AM

Chevy equinox overheating FIXED
 
Ok so I’ll try and make this as short as possible, the Chevy equinox has a massive history of the head gaskets failing, 85% of the time you have an overheating issues with this model it IS the head gaskets. Don’t waist the time and energy replacing water pump, rad, thermostat, hoses etc. Do yourself a huge favour and have the head gaskets replaced or do it yourself if experienced. Chances are you have a lot of km/miles on the problem vehicle, but in some cases very few with this model and changing the head gaskets and intake gaskets from the garbage cheap factory ones the used will fix all your issues with the overheating. I just completed this job on my 2008, and learned the hard way I should have started first with changing all the gaskets. I wasted a lot of $$ trying the easier cheaper options first. The fix for this model 85% of the time is new head gaskets, new intake gaskets. Buy the complete kit 300$ Canadian.

ruley73 May 3rd, 2021 4:27 PM


Originally Posted by Larry Hansen (Post 464389)
Ok so I’ll try and make this as short as possible, the Chevy equinox has a massive history of the head gaskets failing, 85% of the time you have an overheating issues with this model it IS the head gaskets. Don’t waist the time and energy replacing water pump, rad, thermostat, hoses etc. Do yourself a huge favour and have the head gaskets replaced or do it yourself if experienced. Chances are you have a lot of km/miles on the problem vehicle, but in some cases very few with this model and changing the head gaskets and intake gaskets from the garbage cheap factory ones the used will fix all your issues with the overheating. I just completed this job on my 2008, and learned the hard way I should have started first with changing all the gaskets. I wasted a lot of $$ trying the easier cheaper options first. The fix for this model 85% of the time is new head gaskets, new intake gaskets. Buy the complete kit 300$ Canadian.

​​​​​​This is a textbook example of why proper troubleshooting/diagnosics is crucial. I strongly disagree with your assessment that 3.4L head gasket failures are rampant in these vehicles. It's just simply not true That's not to say the head gaskets never fail, but "85% of the time” is a gross exaggeration. The few head gasket failures that do occur are almost always caused by an external factor (lack of coolant maintenance, bad coolant lid not holding pressure, radiator fans not working, etc.) - not the gaskets themselves failing. The people saying the head gaskets fail all the time are just repeating misinformation that someone else posted. This has been demonstrated numerous times on this forum and the other Equinox forum. The intake gaskets almost never fail.

The aftermarket gaskets for this engine (specifically referring to the LNJ 3.4L, not the other variants used in other GM models) are no better than the OE gaskets. They have never been changed/improved because it's never been necessary.

Christydennis November 18th, 2021 9:21 PM

Overheating issue
 

Originally Posted by tdwilson (Post 360197)
I have a 2008 Chevy Equinox AWD, 3.4 V6

The weekend before 4th of July my car started having overheating problems it would be fine and then all of a sudden it was overheating and warning alarms were going off and giving me a warning on the dash saying "ENGINE HOT A/C TURNED OFF" and "ENGINE HOT IDLE ENGINE". The first time I got this warning I was waiting in the drive-thru. The second time it happened I was backing into my driveway after driving home from the store which is only 2 maybe 3 miles away. When I stopped and turned off the engine it dumped antifreeze out the overflow, and you could see a trail on the driveway from me backing up. On an important side note my thermostat gauge on my dash hadn't been working correctly for a while; it worked here and there. Sometimes the gauge would read like normal, sometimes it wouldn't read or move up at all and one time it went all the way to the top past the red, but the car wasnt overheating. Also I had been getting a "TRACTION CONTROL OFF/SERVICE STABILITRAK/ STABILTRAK OFF" warning as well.

At this point we changed the thermostat and flushed the system. Still had the same issue. We then changed the coolant temp sensor. Again still the same issue and warnings. Then the serpentine belt was replaced and then the water pump. Still not fixed, all issues are still happening.

So we borrowed a scan tool from a friend to read the codes on my car and it gave 6 codes:

-P0403 Exhaust Gas Recirculation Circuit Malfunction
-P0404 Exhaust Gas Recirculation Circuit Range/Performance
-P0405 EGR Sensor A Circuit Low
-P0442 Evaporative Emission Control System Leak Detected (small leak)
-P0455 Evap System Large Leak Detected
-P0469 Purge Flow Sensor Circuit Intermittent

So at this point we ordered the EGR valve as that needed replaced and has seemed to fix the issue on the first 3 codes P0403, P0404, and P0405; I also no longer get the "TRACTION CONTROL OFF/SERVICE STABILITRAK/ STABILTRAK OFF" warning going off and it previously would usually go off within a block or two. But we are still having the overheating issue, we have not driven it to the point to get the overheating warning to go off again though because we don't want to continue to overheat the engine. Although we can let the car run in the driveway for an hour and it won't overheat, we did this several times while trying to bleed all of the air out of the cooling system, and have been able to since the issue started. However if you take it out for a drive you can't really go further than 5 miles without it overheating and getting the alarms and warning on the dash.

We have thought about the possibility of a head gasket the car isn't really showing any signs of it being a head gasket, no white smoke or anything out the tail pipe and the oil is fine, not milky or anything. But could still be a possibility.

Also I'm pretty sure the P0442 and P0455 and possibly the P0469 are going to be covered on a recall on it, I have a letter for it cause my car was a "may be affected by it" list. Cause it had seemed like I had been smelling some gas, so with those codes and the letter I think that's covered and most likely not affecting the overheating issue.

So the following is what we have done:
-Replaced Thermostat
-Flushed cooling system
-Replaced Coolant temperature sensor
-Replaced Serpentine belt
-Replaced Water pump
-Replaced EGR vavle (this fixed the service stabilitrak/ traction control warning)

Also both of my fans are working and kick on. The first one will come on when it hits the halfway mark and then when it starts to to get really hot, the second fan kicks on, so pretty sure I don't have a fan issue.

I'm not really sure where to look and what to check next, PLEASE HELP!

Thank you!

mine has same issue exactly. We replaced everything you did and also radiator, it’s not losing antifreeze out of coolant thou ?

Christydennis November 18th, 2021 9:23 PM

Overheating issue.
 
We even had a friend to get on the highway and do 70 for about 2 miles and then bring it back doing the same speed and never got hotter than 248 and I didn’t lose anything out of my coolant

Fallenangel94 December 11th, 2021 5:06 PM

Having the same problem
 
My vehicle will overheat and I don't know why. I'll let it warm up before I leave anywhere because ya know it's December well the suv will be fine. It'll blow out hot air like a heater should and then I'll get to the gas station and turn it off and then turn it back on again and it's still warm but cold air will blow out and it'll overheat and say engine hot/ A/C off. I bleed the system and it'll be fine to get me home and then do it again the next day. Anyone know what this could be? Anything helps at this point.

ruley73 December 11th, 2021 6:18 PM


Originally Posted by Fallenangel94 (Post 473548)
My vehicle will overheat and I don't know why. I'll let it warm up before I leave anywhere because ya know it's December well the suv will be fine. It'll blow out hot air like a heater should and then I'll get to the gas station and turn it off and then turn it back on again and it's still warm but cold air will blow out and it'll overheat and say engine hot/ A/C off. I bleed the system and it'll be fine to get me home and then do it again the next day. Anyone know what this could be? Anything helps at this point.

What year/model/engine? Check the coolant level, make sure the water pump isn't weeping, and make sure the cooling fans run when they should. It also might not hurt to replace the coolant lid if it's a really old vehicle (like 10+ years old).

Colleen December 19th, 2021 9:59 AM

Head gasket
 

Originally Posted by tdwilson (Post 360197)
I have a 2008 Chevy Equinox AWD, 3.4 V6

The weekend before 4th of July my car started having overheating problems it would be fine and then all of a sudden it was overheating and warning alarms were going off and giving me a warning on the dash saying "ENGINE HOT A/C TURNED OFF" and "ENGINE HOT IDLE ENGINE". The first time I got this warning I was waiting in the drive-thru. The second time it happened I was backing into my driveway after driving home from the store which is only 2 maybe 3 miles away. When I stopped and turned off the engine it dumped antifreeze out the overflow, and you could see a trail on the driveway from me backing up. On an important side note my thermostat gauge on my dash hadn't been working correctly for a while; it worked here and there. Sometimes the gauge would read like normal, sometimes it wouldn't read or move up at all and one time it went all the way to the top past the red, but the car wasnt overheating. Also I had been getting a "TRACTION CONTROL OFF/SERVICE STABILITRAK/ STABILTRAK OFF" warning as well.

At this point we changed the thermostat and flushed the system. Still had the same issue. We then changed the coolant temp sensor. Again still the same issue and warnings. Then the serpentine belt was replaced and then the water pump. Still not fixed, all issues are still happening.

So we borrowed a scan tool from a friend to read the codes on my car and it gave 6 codes:

-P0403 Exhaust Gas Recirculation Circuit Malfunction
-P0404 Exhaust Gas Recirculation Circuit Range/Performance
-P0405 EGR Sensor A Circuit Low
-P0442 Evaporative Emission Control System Leak Detected (small leak)
-P0455 Evap System Large Leak Detected
-P0469 Purge Flow Sensor Circuit Intermittent

So at this point we ordered the EGR valve as that needed replaced and has seemed to fix the issue on the first 3 codes P0403, P0404, and P0405; I also no longer get the "TRACTION CONTROL OFF/SERVICE STABILITRAK/ STABILTRAK OFF" warning going off and it previously would usually go off within a block or two. But we are still having the overheating issue, we have not driven it to the point to get the overheating warning to go off again though because we don't want to continue to overheat the engine. Although we can let the car run in the driveway for an hour and it won't overheat, we did this several times while trying to bleed all of the air out of the cooling system, and have been able to since the issue started. However if you take it out for a drive you can't really go further than 5 miles without it overheating and getting the alarms and warning on the dash.

We have thought about the possibility of a head gasket the car isn't really showing any signs of it being a head gasket, no white smoke or anything out the tail pipe and the oil is fine, not milky or anything. But could still be a possibility.

Also I'm pretty sure the P0442 and P0455 and possibly the P0469 are going to be covered on a recall on it, I have a letter for it cause my car was a "may be affected by it" list. Cause it had seemed like I had been smelling some gas, so with those codes and the letter I think that's covered and most likely not affecting the overheating issue.

So the following is what we have done:
-Replaced Thermostat
-Flushed cooling system
-Replaced Coolant temperature sensor
-Replaced Serpentine belt
-Replaced Water pump
-Replaced EGR vavle (this fixed the service stabilitrak/ traction control warning)

Also both of my fans are working and kick on. The first one will come on when it hits the halfway mark and then when it starts to to get really hot, the second fan kicks on, so pretty sure I don't have a fan issue.

I'm not really sure where to look and what to check next, PLEASE HELP!

Thank you!

I had this issue with my 08 equinox it spontaneously over heated one day and would over heat once in a while took almost a year to confirm blown head gasket. I kept getting air in the system and had no heat. My heater core was bad and replaced and then a shop decided to replace my heater core again. I took my car to a local shop where they performed a block test. That revealed exhaust gas in the coolant. 2,000 and new head gaskets the over heating problem was solved.

Frustrated 2007 equinox December 5th, 2022 9:54 AM

Replaced head gaskets twice, heads once, thermostat 3 times, coolant cap cover, water pump, serpentine belt, ERG valve, and nothing's working still nothing worked
super frustrating


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