Date: Wed, 7 Sep 2005 11:57:36 -0400
Reply-To: John Smith <johns3539@HOTMAIL.COM>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: John Smith <johns3539@HOTMAIL.COM>
Subject: overheating issues
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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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