are you positive you have the thermostat installed in the right direction? if so, it could be a bad thermostat, I have got new ones that were bad, if this is not the fault then, if possible try this procedure, jack the front of the car up or drive the front up on ramps, you want the front of the car high, make sure the engine is cold, let car set for a few hours with the radiator cap off, now, add anti-freeze to the very top of the radiator, start the car, turn on the heat to high and thermostat to high, let car run and see if you can add any more anti-freeze to it, once the car becomes warmed up (normal operating temp.), top off the radiator once again. put the cap back on the radiator and make sure it is tight, let the car down off the ramps, now add anti-freeze to the plastic container (this is where you check the fluid level) fill it up to the warm full make, let the car run for another 10-15 min. then check the fluid level in the container, it should still be full (warm) if not add more until full again, check again in 10 min.

Try bleeding again...should be a solid flow of coolant from the bleeder. May have to bleed a few times with cool down period between bleedings. Helps to raise the front end of the car on a jack, blocks or angled driveway. Is the upper radiator hose hot to the touch when engine is warmed up?...if not, t-stat may be stuck closed or defective, etc.. Is the engine truly overheating?.... could be a bad temp sending unit, wires grounding out or bad dash gauge giving false readings.

Test for a bad head gasket too...either pressure test the system to see if it holds pressure...parts stores sell or rent pressure testers....or use a chemical kit to test for the presence of exhaust hydrocarbons in coolant...also sold at parts stores. Any white smoke from exhaust? Does engine oil look milky? Both conditions may show up under a head gasket leak. A compression test of the cylinders may show a leaking head gasket as well....compression of any cylinder should not read below 15% of the highest readings....I.E. if highest reading is 200 psi, the lowest reading for any cylinder cannot be below 170 although low readings could also be due to worn rings, bad valves, etc..

Check the plugs for any affected cylinders with low compression readings and/or look for wetness/coolant on spark plugs...bad head gasket ... or oily residue if bad rings/valves.

Yes, The 3.8L (Series II) engines have a common problem with the coolant elbows but, they also have a problem with cracking the plastic intake manifolds, (they crack around the EGR passage.



NOTE: best place to look is right under the throttle body, if you see coolant residue, then this is your problem!



ALSO: these cooling systems are NOT hard ones to burp!