Overheating?!
 

So i pick up my car from the long term parking lot in Denver (it had been sitting for appx. 10 days). Starts fine...then i get on my way and i notice the water temp gauge is higher than normal. I pay close attention to it and its goes up to right below the red, i throw the climate control on and its fine for the next 2 hours of driving, right in the middle where it should be, only revealing the bottom half of the top wave on that little icon(my eyes were fixerd to the gauge for 2 hours). I figured maybe something was screwy before so i turned the climate control off when i got home and the same thing started to happen. The temperature of the air blowing didnt seem to affect it at all, just that it was on. I know putting the heat on is supposed to help the car if its overheating, but not to this extent and for such a long period of time. Is my water pump going? Do i need a new johnson rod or rotater splint? This whole thing is making me very upset, and damnit, i dont like being upset!
any ideas?

-Alex

It could be that one your fans is not working. Let the car idle a long time with the a/c off. Watch the temperature and see if a fan comes on. When the a/c is on, one of the fans is always on.:)

Have you checked your coolant level? (while it is cool of course).
How many miles on the water pump?

Matt

Overheating
 

Thermostat not opening??? As for turning the heat on high. Works great in my Brat. Even if its climbing in traffic and the fan doesn't kick on (the thermo switch is a little suspect at times) turning my heat on high ALWAYS brings it back down to normal. I'd check the fan first, thermo second then move on down the line. Most of all change your fluids NOW. You cooked 'em. Also, do your best not to let it rise much above normal. Subies have 2 head gaskets so its double the fun, double the $$$ to get them fixed. As for cracked heads. We won't even go there.

I have a water pump that is leaking severely ( it is using about 1/2 gallon per day :( ). Check your coolant frequently and look on the ground under the pump to see if it's dripping. Hopefully it's nothing more serious. As soon as the parts arrive, I'll be doing semi-major surgery: water pump / oil pump / timing belt / cam seals....