Engine temp and fans Q
Discussion
Hello.. me again with different question.
I used to have the normal situation of running engine temperatures 95/100 degrees and the fans would cut in or I would manually override and switch them on.
Since complete engine rebuild I have found that my temperature gauge barely lifts off the bottom and at best reaches 55/60 degrees.
I've had the gauge and engine temperature tested and they were found to be accurate. Also, after a short distance on the road - about 2 miles - the fans will come on and will then stay on for the rest of the journey.
Finally, other points I noticed - I'm now freezin inside the car and the gear knob never gets hot like it used to. I've so far checked the cooling system is full of water, no leaks and I've replaced the coolant temp sensor but it's made no difference.
What should I try next please?
Thanks very much.
I used to have the normal situation of running engine temperatures 95/100 degrees and the fans would cut in or I would manually override and switch them on.
Since complete engine rebuild I have found that my temperature gauge barely lifts off the bottom and at best reaches 55/60 degrees.
I've had the gauge and engine temperature tested and they were found to be accurate. Also, after a short distance on the road - about 2 miles - the fans will come on and will then stay on for the rest of the journey.
Finally, other points I noticed - I'm now freezin inside the car and the gear knob never gets hot like it used to. I've so far checked the cooling system is full of water, no leaks and I've replaced the coolant temp sensor but it's made no difference.
What should I try next please?
Thanks very much.
Thanks for advice.
I've got a new thermostat and will fit it at the weekend - be interesting to see what the old stat looks like, whether it is stuck open or missing. I'll see if I can get an otter switch aswell.
But you can see the problem I've got - the coolant is 55 degrees but the fans cut in far too soon before the engine has even warmed up... any ideas on that one?
Cheers David.
I've got a new thermostat and will fit it at the weekend - be interesting to see what the old stat looks like, whether it is stuck open or missing. I'll see if I can get an otter switch aswell.
But you can see the problem I've got - the coolant is 55 degrees but the fans cut in far too soon before the engine has even warmed up... any ideas on that one?
Cheers David.
It is possible to trigger the fan otter switch with a short sharp blast of hot water. The engine occasionally throws these out.. The otter switch ranges vary but they close at the higher temp and dont open again until the lower temp..
It does sound very fishy though, normally a combination of the 2 would suggest your temp gauge is the culprit..
If I leave my summer 74C stat in when its cold I can get the engine temp to 60C on the M1 - but the fans are off in shangrila whooping it up for the holiday
Dave
It does sound very fishy though, normally a combination of the 2 would suggest your temp gauge is the culprit..
If I leave my summer 74C stat in when its cold I can get the engine temp to 60C on the M1 - but the fans are off in shangrila whooping it up for the holiday
Dave
Thanks Dave,
I think the temp gauge is reading correctly (it has been checked for working) because before when it was reading 95 degrees it was hot inside the car and the gear knob got almost too hot to hold. Now even if I put the heater/blower on it's only luke warm air that blows into the car and I'm bloody freezin in the car. (and that's with the lid on and the windows shut!)
It seems that the problem lies with the fact that the fans come on far too soon and stay on even when its 4 degrees outside and driving at steady A road speeds. If I take the lid off the expansion bottle the water inside is warm but certainly not hot.
My worry is that I'm getting excessive engine wear because it's running far too cold.
What can be done do you think to prevent the fans cutting in at such a low temperature and then staying on ALL the time? Until recently the fans hardly ever cut in until the gauge passed 95 degrees.
Thank for sticking with me on this one.
Regards David
I think the temp gauge is reading correctly (it has been checked for working) because before when it was reading 95 degrees it was hot inside the car and the gear knob got almost too hot to hold. Now even if I put the heater/blower on it's only luke warm air that blows into the car and I'm bloody freezin in the car. (and that's with the lid on and the windows shut!)
It seems that the problem lies with the fact that the fans come on far too soon and stay on even when its 4 degrees outside and driving at steady A road speeds. If I take the lid off the expansion bottle the water inside is warm but certainly not hot.
My worry is that I'm getting excessive engine wear because it's running far too cold.
What can be done do you think to prevent the fans cutting in at such a low temperature and then staying on ALL the time? Until recently the fans hardly ever cut in until the gauge passed 95 degrees.
Thank for sticking with me on this one.
Regards David
Replacing the stat & otter switch is not too difficult or expensive, and its always worth having some spares any way.
Considering you are also having some oddities with your oil pressure readings... it all seems quite strange.. if your engine was misbehaving I would have suspected an ignition circuit or earth problem. It might be worth temp rigging of a multimeter to see if any fluctuations in voltage coincide with your odd readings.
Dave
Considering you are also having some oddities with your oil pressure readings... it all seems quite strange.. if your engine was misbehaving I would have suspected an ignition circuit or earth problem. It might be worth temp rigging of a multimeter to see if any fluctuations in voltage coincide with your odd readings.
Dave
Hi Dave,
your reply was timed at 00.30 Can't you sleep?! Seriously thanks for your thoughts on this. As well as the thermostat which I've now got, I've also ordered the otter switch and will put them both on together and see what happens. I'm also going to order an oil pressure sensor and release valve/spring and put those on and see what happens.
I had wanted to avoid a scatter gun approach but as you say it doesn't harm to keep the old ones as spare. I do know all of these parts are probably original apart from the coolant temp sensor which was the first part that I replaced last month as I thought it might be the culprit.
The car otherwise runs like a swiss watch.
If these inexpensive replacements don't fix my problem I'll have to start looking at earthing but electrics has always been a black art to me.
Thanks again, David.
your reply was timed at 00.30 Can't you sleep?! Seriously thanks for your thoughts on this. As well as the thermostat which I've now got, I've also ordered the otter switch and will put them both on together and see what happens. I'm also going to order an oil pressure sensor and release valve/spring and put those on and see what happens.
I had wanted to avoid a scatter gun approach but as you say it doesn't harm to keep the old ones as spare. I do know all of these parts are probably original apart from the coolant temp sensor which was the first part that I replaced last month as I thought it might be the culprit.
The car otherwise runs like a swiss watch.
If these inexpensive replacements don't fix my problem I'll have to start looking at earthing but electrics has always been a black art to me.
Thanks again, David.
Dave,
Goodmorning - or is it night for you?!
Yes I do have a fan override switch and have repositioned it to ensure it cannot be flicked on accidentally... I've also got an LED indicator light which illuminates when the fans are switched on and running, soooo I know when either the switch is on and/or the fans are on.
I'll do my replacements as soon as I get the parts and update you afterwards.
Regards David.
Goodmorning - or is it night for you?!
Yes I do have a fan override switch and have repositioned it to ensure it cannot be flicked on accidentally... I've also got an LED indicator light which illuminates when the fans are switched on and running, soooo I know when either the switch is on and/or the fans are on.
I'll do my replacements as soon as I get the parts and update you afterwards.
Regards David.
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