Cant take much more ! Overheating again and again

[Avrio]

new radiator , new overflow, new thermostat, seems to last about 3 months in between these incidents of overheating, then bingo it happens again.
I getting close to bailing on my first Disco ..does anyone have a genius mechanic in melbourne preferably north or east ?

Thanks

[defenderkev]

Is it a tdi? When it over heats is it using water?

If so check around the water pump its pretty common for the tdi to develop a small leak.It took me a while to work out where mine was leaking from.

If your over it try Roverland on Dorset Rd

[Avrio]

thanks for that its a V8i 1996 .

[spudboy]

How's the viscous fan?

Check out post #15 on this thread: http://www.aulro.com/afvb/technical-chatter/89054-disco-1-overheating-help-needed.html

[PAT303]

How's the viscous fan?

Check out post #15 on this thread: http://www.aulro.com/afvb/technical-chatter/89054-disco-1-overheating-help-needed.html

With the engine at operating temp put a paint brush against the fan,it shouldn't change speed,if it does you have your problem. Pat

[p38arover]

It's a 3.9. It's possible you have a slipped liner.

Is it using any water?

If you have a borescope, you could put that down the spark plug hole to look. See if there is water in there or if the piston looks clean (although it might be if the head has been off).

Steam Cleaned Piston
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2010/02/541.jpg

If you pull that head off, run your fingernail over the liner/deck junction. It should be dead smooth. If there is any lip, I'd say the liner has moved.

See these pix I took of a block I have:

Good:
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2010/02/542.jpg

Slipped
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2010/02/543.jpg

Re block pressure testing, see
YouTube - Land Rover Engine Block Leak Tester

[Avrio]

And the prize for genius of the week goes to...SPUDBOY ! Not only does the paintbrush stop the fan but i can stop it with my fingers ! Thanks very much - will try Britparts for the new viscous.

Cheers to everyone who took the time to reply

Steve

[spudboy]

Genuis of the week!!! I'll be telling my missus that :D

Glad you got the the bottom of the problem.

[p38arover]

And the prize for genius of the week goes to...SPUDBOY ! Not only does the paintbrush stop the fan but i can stop it with my fingers ! Thanks very much - will try Britparts for the new viscous.

Warning! Do not get an Allmakes VC.

They lock up too much and drag a lot of power. Replacing my near-new Allmakes VC with the genuine item improved the 0-100km/h times by 5 seconds.

[landrover dave]

If the viscous coupling is good and still getting hot take radiator to a specialist and get it rodded. if you are using anti freeze the glycol deposits in the core creating an insultating coating. A 10% blockage can cut your cooling by up to 25%. I run a corrosion inhibitor that does not have glycol. Y only need only need anti freeze if you are staying in the snow for an extended period. Glycol also eats gaskets and likes to find any leak! Call Dave on 0431300629 for any more info

[Mudsloth]

new radiator , new overflow, new thermostat, seems to last about 3 months in between these incidents of overheating, then bingo it happens again.
I getting close to bailing on my first Disco ..does anyone have a genius mechanic in melbourne preferably north or east ?

Thanks

I send mine to Penisuala Ramgie in Frankston, they built most of mine and all they do is Land/range rovers. They are bloody brilliant and won't cost you the earth. Talk to Damian and tell him Adam sent you. They are in Frankston but trust me, it's worth the trip.

97834303

[dirtdawg]

fred smith in bayswater is very good aswell

[nzlandies]

If you can stop it, then it means it's spinning. If it's spinning then it's cooling. It's not causing the over heating but it is buggered. You have a slipped liner as suggested by others or a blown head gasket, IMHO.

[nzlandies]

sorry "CAN" stop it

I have had a V8 that did this and it was a gasket. very slow leak.

[scott oz]

If you can stop it, then it means it's spinning. If it's spinning then it's cooling. It's not causing the over heating but it is buggered. You have a slipped liner as suggested by others or a blown head gasket, IMHO.


OK,

I’m confused. I was under the impression that with the viscous fans that they would “spin” naturally. When I start my 2001 TD5 the fan “spins” but I can stop I with a brush. I was under the impression that if on start up you couldn’t stop it with a brush the vicious coupling was stuffed because it was “locked in”. Basically if the fan “spins” and you can stop it when cold it’s OK. If you motor is hot above operating temp and you can stop the fan with a brush it’s similarly stuffed?

[PhilipA]

I’m confused. I was under the impression that with the viscous fans that they would “spin” naturally. When I start my 2001 TD5 the fan “spins” but I can stop I with a brush. I was under the impression that if on start up you couldn’t stop it with a brush the vicious coupling was stuffed because it was “locked in”. Basically if the fan “spins” and you can stop it when cold it’s OK. If you motor is hot above operating temp and you can stop the fan with a brush it’s similarly

When cold a viscous fan will usually roar for a couple of minutes. This is because the viscous fluid has pooled in the bottom of the fan and takes a bit of time to redistribute. It will be relatively hard to turn if the car has been off for a while. Once the roaring stops it will be relatively easy to turn.


There is a bimetallic "spring thing" in the front of most fans. When at low and normal operating temp the fan will be easy to spin as the orifices are all open to let the fluid through.

As the air through the radiator gets hotter the metal "spring" expands and closes off the fluid orifices in the fan and stiffens it up. So if the car is quite hot the fan will roar and you will feel a loss of power,and it will be hard to turn.
Regards Philip A

[roverv8]

My Disco would go up to half on the temp gauge, then the temp would slowly creep up,
I soon relised the Viscous was not engageing when the temp was rising.
I took mine off and have locked the fan, as i have a new viscous on order.
Now the temp doesn't move past half.
Luke

[PhilipA]

Be careful to keep the revs low, or you may have a lovely vented bonnet,particularly if a white V8 fan.
Regards Philip A

[wally]

When my viscous fan was stuffed the temp was fine just running around town. But with more load on the engine - on the highway or driving up a range it would overheat.

[Avrio]

oh gawd, its a bit of a roller coaster ride this one...changed the viscous and bled the cooling but there was bubbles coming out of the rad ..my mate thinks its the head now...running fine at the moment but just waiting for the next drama. Is it better to get a recon engine ??

[Avrio]

slipped liner...does anyone know who can test this for me melb northern suburbs ?

[mike 90 RR]

slipped liner...does anyone know who can test this for me melb northern suburbs ?

I would chill a bit and not think so dramatic ....
I answered and gave you a suggestion on that "Disco thread" ... (disconnect the heater and refill it up on ramps) ... so check it out

If it's a worst case
Slipped liner is a visual thing to see & check // must take heads off ;)

Head gaskets are easy & inexpensive to do, compared to a new motor ;)


I'm in Perth WA .. can't help on Melbourne mechanics ;)

Mike
:)

[Avrio]

OK,

I’m confused. I was under the impression that with the viscous fans that they would “spin” naturally. When I start my 2001 TD5 the fan “spins” but I can stop I with a brush. I was under the impression that if on start up you couldn’t stop it with a brush the vicious coupling was stuffed because it was “locked in”. Basically if the fan “spins” and you can stop it when cold it’s OK. If you motor is hot above operating temp and you can stop the fan with a brush it’s similarly stuffed?

yeah the advice i got here was that if you can stop it with a brush then the viscous needs replacing..it gets worn over time.
Someone said here that if the fan is turning its ok but i have not found that to be the case.
Put it this way when the new viscous went on a cloud of dust blew out of the engine compartment.
You'd have to do a test in stop start traffic to see if your fan is good enough, mine was fine whilst moving but engine slowly overheated when in traffic.I have already had replaced the rad and the thermostat.
Now when the temp gets halfway the viscous roars and brings it back down under half on the guage

[Avrio]

With the engine at operating temp put a paint brush against the fan,it shouldn't change speed,if it does you have your problem. Pat

forgot to thank you for this post Pat , whilst SPUD suggested the problem you offered a way to check it. Many thanks

steve

[PAT303]

No worries mate. Pat

[tempestv8]

Hi Avrio,

Looks like this week of hot weather will be a real test for your cooling system! If you experienced a cloud of dust from the radiator after the new VC was fitted, this can possibly mean that there's probably a lot of blocked fins on either your engine radiator or your a/c radiator. Especially if you've "visited" a number of muddy bog holes.

You might want to fashion yourself a radiator cleaning wand and use it to flush out your radiator - when I did this a couple of years ago, I was totally amazed by just how much crud had completely blocked the lower third of the a/c radiator *and* the engine radiator.

What happens is that when you go into a muddy bog hole, the heat of radiator fins dries up the mud and this bakes it on. Over time, more and more of the bottom fins get completely starved of air.

Since you are in the eastern suburbs of Melbourne, if you want to borrow my radiator cleaning wand, feel free to contact me via Private Message.

:)

[Avrio]

well all s been running well since the new fiscous fan , got my mate to Tee kay and pressure test the system. Tee Kay colour didnt change at all ! Great !
several leaks were found in hoses that hadnt been tightened since my new rad went in..thanks guys..didnt you have breakfast that day ??

ALSO my 9 mth old expansion tank lid wasnt holding any pressure
whatsoever.

Total cost - 1 long lunch, a six pack and 19 for the new lid .

I really hope i dont have to post any more on this but WOULD like to thank all contributors who have managed to solve the problems that 4 mechanics missed.

Deeply humbled and a special thaks to MikeRR and to the guy who sent the piccies
cheers..if you ever need a good therapist ...

[Avrio]

tempestV8 , thanks a lot but The radiator is 8 months old ...the only muddy bogs i go to are the ones at the local shopping mall...ashamedly a city tractor boy, but hoping to move to the bush soon.

[PAT303]

It's funny but the advice I gave you I used myself and guess what,my fan's stuffed!!.I service the cooling system every year and I did the paint brush trick on my fan the day before getting it done and sure enough it stopped very easily,it's never overheated and never runs hot so stuffed if I know how long it's been like it.I had a falcon fan as a spare so it's now on,very cheap too,it only cost me $20 from a ford wrecker. Pat