Hey everyone! New to the site in terms of posting, but I frequently stumble upon posts here when googling information on my truck.
Well onto my problem. But first I wanted to mention that I've tried going through the other over heating threads and nothing seemed to work.

My truck has 218k miles on it and runs like a champ... that is when it doesn't decide to over heat. Right now it's winter and very very cold in northern michigan. I've been letting my truck warm up every morning and then drive for an hour to get to work with no issues.

This morning, I drove it a bit sooner than I should have. I got maybe a mile and it was over heating but didn't touch the red on the gauge, just up and back down. So I kept going. at the light, roughly a half mile further down the road, I started over heating again. Not sure what else to try.
I had tried burping the system and didn't get much air out of it. let the system warm up and squeezed the top rad hose to get air out of there, and again i got very little. when i turn on my heater and turn it off I hear bubbling which makes me think there is air in the system. I just can't get it. I've elevated the front of the truck and performed the same process, and again only got small bubbles from the system. I've checked the exhaust gases in the system and came back negative.

about 2 weeks ago I had a similar issue and had my thermostat changed at a shop. then everything was fine until today.


Not sure what else to do except take it back to the shop and have them look at it again and charge me through the nose.

 

I'm not there and won't be doing the physical troubleshooting, but...
What brand of thermostat did your shop put in your truck?
The aftermarket parts supply business is a race to the bottom and I'm highly suspect of what they used.

 

honestly not sure. I tried looking up the part number online but no luck.


part number is 13859-390 if you were interested

 

with it being >10degrees outside... should I still be able to start my truck and drive off without worrying about it overheating?
or should I let it warm up to running temp before I drive away?

 

Was hoping for a little more info,,,,,is your overflow tank full or at least half full ???? Is fan belt in good shape ?? sometimes a slipping belt will cause overheating at stop lights . Do you have a straight fan or a clutch fan ??? Sometimes a weak clutch fan will cause overheating at lights !!!Last and not least is your rad cap holding pressure,,,I had a similar issue years back and it ended up being a bad rad cap.. Spin your fan by hand if it is a clutch fan and see if it spins easy or has some resistance and see if it wobbles any,,,,let us know what you find,,, and I agree with above post the new thermostat could be a problem if it is a aftermarket one !!!!

 

I know this will sound stupid, but do you have enough antifreeze in it? Slush in the radiator can make it overheat because there is no flow. You should have 50/50 antifreeze water, or a bit higher in antifreeze. Don't run straight antifreeze as it can also freeze.