Thread: Need advice Re: a once off overheating issue

Seems like you have possibly gone thinking of the worst and not looked at the simple.

I dont know a lot about V8's although we did own once..but what I would say is.

Check your radiator and make sure it is not blocked
Check your thermostat is working correctly
check your fan is working correctly I cant remember whether the V8s are viscus or electric
Check your pressure cap is working too


The radiator is a biggy you may never know you have a partially blocked radiator until your car is made to work hard causing it not to be able to proficiently cool the fluid

working hard or being used in hotter than normal temperatures...when your mate drove it did he drive the same as you? did you both do slow city driving or fast highway driving or do you city and he highways (you possibly wouldnt pick up if you drive differently) and did he drive it in the same temperatures at what you were driving it.?

Gurgling and coolant exiting the expansion can be a head gasket.....was on mine the gasket blew at the water gallery pressurising the system however like I said always eliminate the simple and cheap things first

with no other information and no hands on diagnostics.

1. thermostat, just occasionally when they start to go they will jam closed then come good.
2. viscus fan, some knock off hubs will occasionally develop a "bubble" or "clot" that prevents the oil from flowing correctly in them
3. expansion cap failure

if you can not get the thing to stop gurgling the heater matrix then the head may be on the way out or you have a blocked bleeder line.

Originally Posted by dullbird

Seems like you have possibly gone thinking of the worst and not looked at the simple.

I dont know a lot about V8's although we did own once..but what I would say is.

Check your radiator and make sure it is not blocked
Check your thermostat is working correctly
check your fan is working correctly I cant remember whether the V8s are viscus or electric
Check your pressure cap is working too


The radiator is a biggy you may never know you have a partially blocked radiator until your car is made to work hard causing it not to be able to proficiently cool the fluid

working hard or being used in hotter than normal temperatures...when your mate drove it did he drive the same as you? did you both do slow city driving or fast highway driving or do you city and he highways (you possibly wouldnt pick up if you drive differently) and did he drive it in the same temperatures at what you were driving it.?

Gurgling and coolant exiting the expansion can be a head gasket.....was on mine the gasket blew at the water gallery pressurising the system however like I said always eliminate the simple and cheap things first

Hi dullbird,

Thank you so much for the reply.
Forgot to mention that the thermostat is brand new and replaced a few weeks ago.
Will definitely be looking at the radiator, fan and pressure cap now.
In relation to my mate, he droved it exactly the same way l did... The only difference was the weather. On the particular day of issue, it was the warmest day in Melb (21c), whereas my mate has been driving it in 16-18c.
When I purchased the beast though I was informed that the head gasket was recently done as well.

Will keep you updated!

Originally Posted by Blknight.aus

with no other information and no hands on diagnostics.

1. thermostat, just occasionally when they start to go they will jam closed then come good.
2. viscus fan, some knock off hubs will occasionally develop a "bubble" or "clot" that prevents the oil from flowing correctly in them
3. expansion cap failure

if you can not get the thing to stop gurgling the heater matrix then the head may be on the way out or you have a blocked bleeder line.

Hi Dave,

Thank you so much for your input as well.

Will double check the thermostat. I just put in a new one a few weeks ago, but have heard that even the new ones can play up.
Will double check the fan to make sure it's fully operational.
Will also replace the expansion cap & tank as well, only just for the peace of mind.
In relation to the bleeder line, will also check that.

all good advise below,
Unless your radiator is fairly new, get it rodded, the thin tubes block easy.
whoever done the head gaskets should have got the rad rodded.
The temp gauges in the d1's, mmm
pays to fit a second temp gauge,

Originally Posted by roverv8

all good advise below,
Unless your radiator is fairly new, get it rodded, the thin tubes block easy.
whoever done the head gaskets should have got the rad rodded.
The temp gauges in the d1's, mmm
pays to fit a second temp gauge,

Hi roverv8

Thanks for your reply.
When they did the head gaskets it doesnt look like they touched the radiator. So lt looks like l will have to get the radiator rodded just to be on the safe side.
While searching the forum everyone has recommended a second ie accurate temp guage. Again just to be on the safe side l will start searching for one.

I truly do thank everyone for the replies. I will keep you all updated..

Don't over look the thermostat just because it's new either.. Because if you have boiled the car to the point of gurgling the thermo could be damaged its recommended you change a thermo of you have over heated the car.

And just because it's new does not mean it isn't faulty either just bare that in mind when checking other things. Did you get the right temperature thermo stat as well.

And in regards to the head and it just being done, doesn't mean a thing unless you knew the garage that did it you don't know it was done right Firefox in here bought a car with recondition engine had all the receipts for work done his head gasket blew recently with only a few thou on clock since rebuild. Just another thing to bare in mind.

I'm not trying to scare you just trying to say check easy things and don't be dismissive of others just because someone said that bit was ok

Also with the thermostat,
Drill a tiny hole in the outer ring of the thermostat, between the opening center part and the outer seat.
because the thermostat is at the very front of the valley cover, without the hole & a closed thermostat, it can cause a pocket of cold water/coolant, so the thermostat isn't getting the heating coolant to it to open at temp.
That tiny hole allows coolant to move enough so there is no trapped pocket of cold coolant.
Dont drill the hole to big or it will effect how the thermostat operates,