Coolent and heater issues

[95se]

I have my car in about a month ago to have maintenance done. They replaced hoses and put new antifreeze in. My car was overheating and I tried to put distilled water in the radiator after a few days b/c it was still doing it. Also I wasn't getting much heat. It overheating didn't stop so I opened the radiator cap and let it idle for a couple of minutes then the fluid came back up out of the radiator. I put the cap back on and turned it off. When I let it idle later it started to overheat quicker so I took it back and they said the gasket in the radiator was blown so I had a new aftermarket one put in. Now its not overheating but the temperature guage seems to level off slightly higher than before. I think before it had always leveled off just below the halfway mark now it is stopping halfway up. Just seems to be a tad higher than before. Also, the heater seemed to work ok at first but now its heating up slower than it used to, though, I'm getting heat but I think its taking longer to reach full heat. Anyone have any good ideas. Anyone even have a new radiator put in.

thanks,
C

[HalveBlue]

Gasket in the radiator?

Looking at the FSM I'm assuming they replaced the rubber gaskets for an OEM radiator. How much did that cost you?

If you had your car worked on at the dealership, I'm half tempted to say you could have bought a new radiator for the cost it took them to replace the rubber gasket. But maybe not.

Anyway, OEM temp gauge = shit. The difference between just below the halfway mark and right on the halfway mark probably don't correlate to any sort of meaningful difference (if any) in coolant temp.

As far as the time it takes to heat up, I'm guessing it's either psychological or something to do with the type of coolant you're using.

[MELLO*SOS]

Your dash temp sender could be broken... My KA never really gets up past the 3rd line.

Also there is no gasket in the radiator... I wonder what gasket they meant. Edit: Halveblue cleared it up... Is that the top/bottom tank gaskets you're talking about?

Dunno about your heater issue, was the thermostat replaced?

[projectRDM]

Thermostat is shot, it's sticking when overheating and staying open when it takes a while to warm up. Replace and bleed.

[O3DigitalBath]

Thermostat is shot, it's sticking when overheating and staying open when it takes a while to warm up. Replace and bleed.

+1

sounds like thermostat to me also

[Gnnr]

Agreed and change the radiator cap with an OEM one from the dealer while you're at it, its cheap .

[axiomatik]

On s13s at least, I think the temp gauge only has like 3 positions: cold, normal, and hot, so I wouldn't read too much into it being imperceptibly higher than before.

[MELLO*SOS]

it's pretty weak they made the gauge like that... I tested the dash temp sender the other day and it's actually pretty responsive/"accurate" through a wide range of temperatures.