95 cherokee over heating 4.0 v6

[lancifur]

I have a 95 jeep. It started to overheat over trips more then 30 minutes and when I would get out of work the radiator would be bone dry. So Ive since put in a new radiator. When we did this it went from taking 30 minutes to over heat to 5 minutes. The mechanic says its the head gasket. We didn't have any milky oil nor any oil in my radiators water. So we pulled it apart put a new one in rebuilt the engine and the same thing. Along the way we added a new water pump as well. It seems that when we turn it on it builds up a good amount of pressure. He had his pressure tester hooked up and said it was over 30 pounds. The reserve for the coolant starts to bubble up and when it does that sure enough the temp gauge is red. He now seems to say the head may be cracked. Which doesnt make sense to me since if it was cracked i would think it would be losing pressure! Now the first time it did this after putting in the radiator it sounded like popping coming from the front of the engine where the waterpump is mounted right above it. Im not sure if this is my thermostat or what. But thats the only thing we havent done. Would the thermostat do any of these things? Any help or insight would be greatly appreciated

 

[tjlboise]

I would say yes. Change the thermostat. That Was actually what I started thinking before I got all of the way through your post. The thermostat is designed to begin letting water through at a certain temp. Your mechanic sounds like he's starving for money.

 

[56cj5]

Yeah I agree it's the thermostat. Also make sure your hoses arnt collapsing for some reason. Sounds like it's stuck shut to me. The usally fail either open or shut

 

[XJsport95]

i would look at changing the theromstat and new hoses all around better safe then sorry in the long run.

 

[SteelHeadz]

X3, change the t.stat first since it's easier and cheaper. In the worst case scenario, remove the cylinder head and have a machine shop check it for a hairline crack.