$230 Later, Truck Still Overheats

I don't need to be told that it's probably not wise to take a critical vehicle problem to a mechanic I've never delt with before but that is what I did.

I spoke with "George" on the phone for atleast 10 minutes about what he thought was wrong with the truck. The most important news is that the head gasket is not leaking. I will clarify thta statement. According George at the 309 Service Station, the head gasket is not leaking. However, I can see that oil appears to be leaking from the gasket.

George said he was unable to get the truck to overheat. He couldn't tell me with confidence that the water pump was not the culprit or that the pump was actually working but felt, based on what I told him and what he observed (I'm assuming he actually opened the hood), that the thermostat was the faulty part. I instructed him to go ahead and replace the thermostat and drain/flush/fill the cooling system.

Last night we loaded the two girls into the car (which is starting better but still not consistently on the first try) and drove the 10 minutes to the service station. As I drove the truck home I played with the heater controls to if the heater core was actually cleaned out; it wasn't. The truck temperature began to climb passed mid point on the gauge as we neared home. I let the truck run idle in the driveway for a few minutes and the temp continued to climb. I revved the engine to 4krpm several times then the heat started working and the engine temp began to drop. Letting the engine idle resulted in the engine temp rising but revving the engine lowered the engine temp.

The water hose running from the engine block to the top of the radiator was so hot I could not hold it and it felt hard or pressurized. The water hose connecting the water pump/thermostat to the radiator was cool and soft or not pressurized. It did not feel like there was coolant being pumped through the cool hose. I also felt a drastic temperature gradient across the thermostat housing; it was much hotter on the engine block side than the coolant side.

Does the water pump need to be working in order for the thermostat to open and close properly?

So that is what I know. It should also be noted that I heard what sounded like water under pressure spraying into the heater core when I revved the engine - as if one of the heater core hoses was clogged except for a small opening. It reminded me of the sound of milk being sqirted from cow's teet into a metal bucket.