Date: Wed, 7 Sep 2005 17:45:52 -0400
Reply-To: Dennis Haynes <dhaynes@OPTONLINE.NET>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Dennis Haynes <dhaynes@OPTONLINE.NET>
Subject: Re: overheating issues
In-Reply-To: <BAY104-F85F46E959EB83DD0F4EE4B3A60@phx.gbl>
Content-type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1
The bubbling indicates a bad pressure cap and or combustion gases
getting into the coolant, unless you have actually over heated. Try
replacing the pressure cap. If you still see bubbling after a few
heating/cooling cycles, then most likely you are getting gasses into the
system.
Dennis
-----Original Message-----
From: Vanagon Mailing List [mailto:vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com] On Behalf
Of John Smith
Sent: Wednesday, September 07, 2005 11:58 AM
To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
Subject: overheating issues
Hi Folks,
I’ve got a 91 Westy with about 5k on a rebuilt engine from NW Connecting
Rod
in Seattle. Everything is running great, except for a mild overheating
problem. I say mild because nothing has blown up or seized yet, and I
haven’t encountered massive amounts of steam or smoke coming from the
engine
compartment. Here’s what’s happening:
During normal conditions in the last 750 miles or so, the temp gauge is
running at about 5/8. When I use the A/C, the temp gauge goes up to ¾,
and
the light begins to blink. Same thing happens when I’m climbing steep
hills, or in heavy stop-and-go traffic (The good thing is that the fan
seems
to be turning on normally when it reaches this level). When I pull
over,
let it cool down and inspect the van, occasionally I’ll see the overfill
tank bubbling out very light amounts of coolant. I’ve also taken off
the
grill and felt around my radiator for any cool spots, which I did not
find.
I should also mention that the temp light will sometimes start blinking
under normal conditions as well, meaning that the temp gauge is at about
½,
driving on a flat road.
I recently took the van into the shop for a coolant system inspection.
There was a small coolant hose that needed to be replaced, which they
took
care of. After that they replaced the coolant, bled the system and
pressure
tested it- all came back normal, but it’s still behaving in the same
manner.
From searching the archives, I know that this could be caused by a
number of
things, including the water pump, thermostat, and radiator, and god
forbid,
leaking head gaskets. But here’s what else I know:
*The fan switch and sensor have all been replaced very recently. It
doesn’t
seem like I’m having any trouble in this department.
*A good portion of the cooling system hoses have also recently been
replaced, although the radiator has not.
*The 80 degree Thermostat and water pump were replaced 5k ago when the
rebuilt engine was put in, although I suppose these could be faulty.
The only thing I can tell from all of these observations is that the
coolant
sensor is going bad, but from what I’ve read, that’s rarely the case.
I’ve
also thought of the worst case scenario where the head gaskets need to
be
redone, and I have to go back to NW Connecting Rod and tell them to live
up
to their 12k warranty. Before I go this far, though, does anyone have
any
ideas on what else to check or remedy? Thanks in advance.
Cheers,
John
91 Westy
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