40 years ago when I bought mine, the kit came with a new radiator cap suitable for the series 1 - but they were the days when you could actually buy accessories for series landies.Quote:
Originally Posted by B.S.F.
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40 years ago when I bought mine, the kit came with a new radiator cap suitable for the series 1 - but they were the days when you could actually buy accessories for series landies.Quote:
Originally Posted by B.S.F.
They are available but if you are having trouble finding a LR one Massey Ferguson's also use the same caps. You will find the pressure stamped on your old cap & the MF are available in AU on eBay. Infect there are a lot of bits like volt meters Ect that MF & LR use that are the same.Quote:
Originally Posted by B.S.F.
The original system worked perfectly OK when the Series I's were new, mine works perfectly OK now. Why change something that works ?Quote:
Originally Posted by 101RRS
Interesting comment about why header tanks seem 'standard' now....I wonder what the real reason is ?
If it's a non-pressurised header tank it allows the non-technical to check the fluid level while hot without getting scalded. Maybe this is the reason ?
It also allows the radiator to be kept absolutely full at all times so it would increase efficiency. If you check underbonnet regularly you would spot a drop in water level before it compromised cooling.
I used to run Austin Somersets in the UK, these had a non-pressurised system. The radiator was so oversized that you didn't need to raise the boiling point of the coolant by having a pressurised system. As mentioned earlier, smaller radiators probably have to run at 100% efficiency to stop overheating.
Colin
But they did not work perfectly - that is why I put one on my series 1 which was an everyday driver covering big distances each week - and yes the radiator (had a few) was fine - would get hot going up Mt Ousley on an hot day and the expansion tank would catch the excess coolant that would have been expended onto the road and lost. I didn't have one on my Series 3 and suffered the consequences.Quote:
Originally Posted by gromit
If they did work so well why has the system changed over the years.
As mentioned earlier.....cooling systems sized such that they need to be 100% efficient, coping with the fact that most drivers don't check fluid levels etc. etc.Quote:
Originally Posted by 101RRS
If the old system works why try to 'improve' it ?
Colin
Probably a major factor is the demand with modern cars for more cooling with less weight and space - the way to achieve this is with a higher coolant temperature and hence radiator pressure, allowing everything to be cooler. This makes it imperative not to lose coolant, as there is not as much to lose.
Another factor is that back in the bad ol' days coolant was plain water. Then came corrosion inhibitors, then anti-freeze/anti boil, and anti-pollution regs: we don't want the environmental impact of ethylene glycol spilling all over the roads, stormwater drains and waterways. Or the cost to the motorist of frequent topping up. So manufacturers in their wisdom incorporated save-and-return systems and also made a gain in the overall weight and size of the cooling system.Quote:
Originally Posted by JDNSW
Cheers, Rob S
Considered logically, the radiator already has an expansion tank; it is the top tank, which is big enough to cater for the change in volume of coolant. On the other hand a separate clear tank would allow a visual check of coolant without removing the radiator cap, and if fitted with a low coolant sensor, would give advance warning of problems.