Water temperatures?
Water temperatures?
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T40ORA

Original Poster:

5,177 posts

239 months

Thursday 12th June 2014
quotequote all
Just tried a search as I know this has been on here before, but couldn't find a T car link.

102C in virtually stationary traffic on Tuesday night. Warm evening, bumper to bumper M25 (heat from other cars) and crawling at 20mph.

Didn't rise above3 this, and settled down when on the move properly.

All OK?

Or not.......

Edited by T40ORA on Thursday 12th June 16:15

m4tti

5,482 posts

175 months

Thursday 12th June 2014
quotequote all
Hook a lap top up and verify that temperature. If it wasn't boiling over that reading is likely to be wrong.

RobertoBlanco

265 posts

149 months

Thursday 12th June 2014
quotequote all
Known problem: Dash temperatures can be 10-20°C off ECU temperatures due to different sensors and sensor positions. I'd check the difference to have a better bearing on actual temperatures. BTW I would trust the ECU temps more that dash temps.
Other than this I had > 100 °C (dash) in stationary traffic, too. Especially with A/C on.
I would consider that "normal". The first in-dash warning comes at 115°C IIRC.

BTW at 100°C the coolant will not boil, because its pressurized.

T40ORA

Original Poster:

5,177 posts

239 months

Thursday 12th June 2014
quotequote all
m4tti said:
Hook a lap top up and verify that temperature. If it wasn't boiling over that reading is likely to be wrong.
Not boiling over, still water in the expansion tank (level hasn't moved).

There will be a new post shortly focused on the phrase "Hook up laptop"... smile

T40ORA

Original Poster:

5,177 posts

239 months

Thursday 12th June 2014
quotequote all
RobertoBlanco said:
Known problem: Dash temperatures can be 10-20°C off ECU temperatures due to different sensors and sensor positions. I'd check the difference to have a better bearing on actual temperatures. BTW I would trust the ECU temps more that dash temps.
Other than this I had > 100 °C (dash) in stationary traffic, too. Especially with A/C on.
I would consider that "normal". The first in-dash warning comes at 115°C IIRC.

BTW at 100°C the coolant will not boil, because its pressurized.
Check ECU temperature; is this by hooking up the laptop? Special software? Where is the port?

I do have Graham's Bible, so will the instructions be in there?

alex_gray255

6,330 posts

225 months

Thursday 12th June 2014
quotequote all
109 is the point to start hitting the panic buttons, although the highest I've ever had is 103, but my dash ECU is always +9 the real.

There are things you can do to help cooling, but they are varied and depends on what your prefs are.

grumbledoak

32,292 posts

253 months

Thursday 12th June 2014
quotequote all
As said, the temp on the display is not that accurate and the coolant isn't boiling at 100C. If you get one fan, two fans, then temp drops until both fans switch off it's basically working. The A/C compromises cooling (rad in front of rad) so you can turn that off to 'help', but I wouldn't panic.

No fans, only one fan, temperature continuing to rise, or visible steam would be a different story...

T40ORA

Original Poster:

5,177 posts

239 months

Thursday 12th June 2014
quotequote all
Well, no steam, no loss of fluid in expansion tank, no creeping up of temperature - just static at 102.

I'll keep an eye on it until I can get a quick check on ECU temperatures.

AOK

2,299 posts

186 months

Thursday 12th June 2014
quotequote all
T40ORA said:
Just tried a search as I know this has been on here before, but couldn't find a T car link.

102C in virtually stationary traffic on Tuesday night. Warm evening, bumper to bumper M25 (heat from other cars) and crawling at 20mph.

Didn't rise about this, and settled down when on the move properly.

All OK?

Or not.......
May I ask - settled down (when you got going) to what?

I only ask as I am getting a dash reading between 95 and 100 when plodding along circa 30-40mph. A/C pushes it to nearer 98-102.
It is a Red Rose (still 3.6) but I can't imagine this should make much difference.

T40ORA

Original Poster:

5,177 posts

239 months

Thursday 12th June 2014
quotequote all
AOK said:
May I ask - settled down (when you got going) to what?

I only ask as I am getting a dash reading between 95 and 100 when plodding along circa 30-40mph. A/C pushes it to nearer 98-102.
It is a Red Rose (still 3.6) but I can't imagine this should make much difference.
Runs high 80s to low 90s usually, when on the move.

Zippee

13,892 posts

254 months

Thursday 12th June 2014
quotequote all
Your car is a lot like mine (though I run a 4.3) and it does run 88-92 when peddling and 96-102 in traffic withour air-con, it's 5deg or so higher with. My dash temps are also accurate and verified with the ECU.
I spoke with Dom and he's comfortable and told me not to worry so unless I see warnings or steam I'm just going to enjoy it.

My oil temps as well are mid 90s this weather - yours the same?

T40ORA

Original Poster:

5,177 posts

239 months

Thursday 12th June 2014
quotequote all
Zippee said:
Your car is a lot like mine (though I run a 4.3) and it does run 88-92 when peddling and 96-102 in traffic withour air-con, it's 5deg or so higher with. My dash temps are also accurate and verified with the ECU.
I spoke with Dom and he's comfortable and told me not to worry so unless I see warnings or steam I'm just going to enjoy it.

My oil temps as well are mid 90s this weather - yours the same?
Yeah, very similar. I've checked all fluids and looked for leaks/weeping from the cam cover and all seems absolutely fine. Had a brief chat with a mechanic who thinks it is probably all OK, but I can take it in for a once over - which is on the cards but inconvenient due to the need for squeezing in a 150 mile round trip in work hours!

Possibly a feature of the non-standard designs?

RobertoBlanco

265 posts

149 months

Thursday 12th June 2014
quotequote all
T40ORA said:
Check ECU temperature; is this by hooking up the laptop? Special software? Where is the port?

I do have Graham's Bible, so will the instructions be in there?
Yeah, there should be a connector to the ECU in place in the footwell. Don't know where to get the cable from, but maybe someone else knows. You can use two different programs available, but would strongly suggest to use the new version from EvoOlli (There's a thread in the speedsix forums).
http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...

You can read out various parameters on your laptop e.g. ECU temperatures which are used to control the fans.

T40ORA

Original Poster:

5,177 posts

239 months

Thursday 12th June 2014
quotequote all
RobertoBlanco said:
Yeah, there should be a connector to the ECU in place in the footwell. Don't know where to get the cable from, but maybe someone else knows. You can use two different programs available, but would strongly suggest to use the new version from EvoOlli (There's a thread in the speedsix forums).
http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...

You can read out various parameters on your laptop e.g. ECU temperatures which are used to control the fans.
Thanks.

m4tti

5,482 posts

175 months

Thursday 12th June 2014
quotequote all
RobertoBlanco said:
Known problem: Dash temperatures can be 10-20°C off ECU temperatures due to different sensors and sensor positions. I'd check the difference to have a better bearing on actual temperatures. BTW I would trust the ECU temps more that dash temps.
Other than this I had > 100 °C (dash) in stationary traffic, too. Especially with A/C on.
I would consider that "normal". The first in-dash warning comes at 115°C IIRC.

BTW at 100°C the coolant will not boil, because its pressurized.
BTW a modern car cooling system runs at 15 psi approximately. At 14.69 psi water boils at 100 degrees. At 15psi the boiling point is 101c. I'd be nervous and look for a more accurate sensor. It'll stop you blowing head gaskets melting rings.

That's science for you. Hope that helps.

http://www.engineeringtoolbox.com/boiling-point-wa...

alandigby

86 posts

292 months

Thursday 12th June 2014
quotequote all
m4tti said:
BTW a modern car cooling system runs at 15 psi approximately. At 14.69 psi water boils at 100 degrees. At 15psi the boiling point is 101c. I'd be nervous and look for a more accurate sensor. It'll stop you blowing head gaskets melting rings.

That's science for you. Hope that helps.

http://www.engineeringtoolbox.com/boiling-point-wa...
Are you not overlooking atmospheric pressure? 1bar/~15psi, plus a further ~1bar/~15psi in a hot system would give a boiling point of about 120c, according to the table on that website.

T40ORA

Original Poster:

5,177 posts

239 months

Thursday 12th June 2014
quotequote all
alandigby said:
Are you not overlooking atmospheric pressure? 1bar/~15psi, plus a further ~1bar/~15psi in a hot system would give a boiling point of about 120c, according to the table on that website.
I like them apples better!

darkmark07

702 posts

218 months

Thursday 12th June 2014
quotequote all
I too had water temps in the low 100s... All fine apparently as the ECU temps were correct - until the car overheated for the second time in slow traffic.

Belt and braces was: new pressure cap, new fan relays and new ECU temp sensor. Now the water temp never goes above 98 degrees and typically is around the low 90s.

My thoughts are that the ECU sensor was gradually failing, although still giving an acceptable temp reading to the ECU it was actually reading lower than the actual temperature..

Now the fans click in and out at around 92 and 97 degrees according to the POD display as opposed to 96 and 102 with the old sensor.

RobertoBlanco

265 posts

149 months

Friday 13th June 2014
quotequote all
darkmark07 said:
Now the fans click in and out at around 92 and 97 degrees according to the POD display as opposed to 96 and 102 with the old sensor.
Good point. That is what I checked as well. Farside fan comes on at 90/91°C, nearside fan at 97/98°C. So I think I'm okay on that one. Maybe I'll bleed the system once more, just to be sure.

@all: How do you bleed btw? I've heard different strategies....

mycroft

1,545 posts

267 months

Friday 13th June 2014
quotequote all
T40ORA said:
Well, no steam, no loss of fluid in expansion tank, no creeping up of temperature - just static at 102.

I'll keep an eye on it until I can get a quick check on ECU temperatures.
Out of interest given no coolant loss , not boiling , if you find temp was indeed over 100 what would you do ?
When I had similar problem I turned AC off , we had roof on and AC was great but turning it off on a hot day rather defeats the point of it .
Dale