Range Rover L322- Coolant Loss & Poor Heater
Discussion
I have over the last few years spent hundreds with various specialists in the Essex area trying to get my L322 4.4 Vogue coolant & heating system sorted.
As far as i can recall I have had
1. a new water cooled alternator ( pricey)
2. New Expansion Box.
3. supposed leaking pipes replaced
The last of these works, expansion box was about this time last year.
As winter is drawing in again soon I happened to be in the car as a passenger ( missus uses it 90% of time ) & noticed again no real heat blowing. Temperature gauge as usual was dead bang in the middle ( as it always seems to settle)
I popped the bonnet & could hear a lot of noise & banging from the one year old expansion box.
I carefully popped the cap off & water / coolant started spewing out, with the fluid at boiling point.
I must add it always seems to loose coolant!
3 days ago as the check coolant symbol came up again I added about 1.5 litres of water as a temp measure.
Does anyone have any idea as to what it is as I am reluctant to hand it over again for another quick & expensive short term fix.
In laymans terms it seems to me the water is not circulating properly, but would appreciate any advice or refferals.
Finally this car does have LPG, which I do not think is relevant to this problem?
As far as i can recall I have had
1. a new water cooled alternator ( pricey)
2. New Expansion Box.
3. supposed leaking pipes replaced
The last of these works, expansion box was about this time last year.
As winter is drawing in again soon I happened to be in the car as a passenger ( missus uses it 90% of time ) & noticed again no real heat blowing. Temperature gauge as usual was dead bang in the middle ( as it always seems to settle)
I popped the bonnet & could hear a lot of noise & banging from the one year old expansion box.
I carefully popped the cap off & water / coolant started spewing out, with the fluid at boiling point.
I must add it always seems to loose coolant!
3 days ago as the check coolant symbol came up again I added about 1.5 litres of water as a temp measure.
Does anyone have any idea as to what it is as I am reluctant to hand it over again for another quick & expensive short term fix.
In laymans terms it seems to me the water is not circulating properly, but would appreciate any advice or refferals.
Finally this car does have LPG, which I do not think is relevant to this problem?
Sorry, I'm not an expert - I have a Disco II for hacking about (I have a small agricultural contracting business) - and a Defender 130 kitted out as a mobile workshop. We do work on them ourselves, but they're both TD5's and I don't know the petrol engines
I am a regular reader of off-road magazines and the subject seems to come up quite regularly. From what I've read, it's a new engine job. If you google 'Range Rover cooling problem' or something like it, you should find more info.
I am a regular reader of off-road magazines and the subject seems to come up quite regularly. From what I've read, it's a new engine job. If you google 'Range Rover cooling problem' or something like it, you should find more info.
sunbeam_alpine said:
Sorry, I'm not an expert - I have a Disco II for hacking about (I have a small agricultural contracting business) - and a Defender 130 kitted out as a mobile workshop. We do work on them ourselves, but they're both TD5's and I don't know the petrol engines
I am a regular reader of off-road magazines and the subject seems to come up quite regularly. From what I've read, it's a new engine job. If you google 'Range Rover cooling problem' or something like it, you should find more info.
I think that's the P38 rangies and Disco 1/2 which all have the Rover 3.9 or 4.6 V8. The L322 has the BMW 4.4 V8.I am a regular reader of off-road magazines and the subject seems to come up quite regularly. From what I've read, it's a new engine job. If you google 'Range Rover cooling problem' or something like it, you should find more info.
RedLeicester said:
sunbeam_alpine said:
Sorry, I'm not an expert - I have a Disco II for hacking about (I have a small agricultural contracting business) - and a Defender 130 kitted out as a mobile workshop. We do work on them ourselves, but they're both TD5's and I don't know the petrol engines
I am a regular reader of off-road magazines and the subject seems to come up quite regularly. From what I've read, it's a new engine job. If you google 'Range Rover cooling problem' or something like it, you should find more info.
I think that's the P38 rangies and Disco 1/2 which all have the Rover 3.9 or 4.6 V8. The L322 has the BMW 4.4 V8.I am a regular reader of off-road magazines and the subject seems to come up quite regularly. From what I've read, it's a new engine job. If you google 'Range Rover cooling problem' or something like it, you should find more info.
The 4.4 has an electrically controlled thermostat which controls the coolant temp to something like 113degC if I remember right, so if you open the cap when the engine is up to temp you'd expect it to spew coolant everywhere. Sounds extreme, but the benefit is great heater performance - or should be - so clearly something else is wrong with yours. Slipping liners isn't a fault on this engine that I'm aware of. Not sure what to suggest - sounds like something wrong with coolant flow through the heater circuit if the engine itself is running at the right temp. Worth flushing it out perhaps to see if it could be blocked? Good luck with sorting it.
Ruari
Edited to add - the most common source of L322 coolant leaks is the radiator, usually where the 5th tube down meets the end tanks (runs hotter than adjacent tubes as the top of the condenser fan cowl reduces airflow over it, giving stress issue). You should be able to see traces of blue coolant down the sides of the rad if this is the case though.
Ruari
Edited to add - the most common source of L322 coolant leaks is the radiator, usually where the 5th tube down meets the end tanks (runs hotter than adjacent tubes as the top of the condenser fan cowl reduces airflow over it, giving stress issue). You should be able to see traces of blue coolant down the sides of the rad if this is the case though.
Edited by ruaricoles on Friday 30th October 22:46
Speaking from general BMW 540 experience (same engine) - the temp gauge always goes to the middle, unless the engine is overheated - known as a stabilised gauge - We only tell you something when its really bad!
The thermostat is indeed electrical - it will open at around 113'c by default (in the same way as a normal one) - but there is a small electrical coil around the wax inside it, where they can apply a current to force it to open at a lower temperature should it need to.(trying to find the reference to that info to 100% confirm)
The thermostat is on the return hose, not the top hose. If its not opening, the lower return hose will be cold (relative to the top hose)
BMW540 radiators are famously crap - the plastic tanks crack. So check for signs of coolant dribbling down the sides.
The thermostat is indeed electrical - it will open at around 113'c by default (in the same way as a normal one) - but there is a small electrical coil around the wax inside it, where they can apply a current to force it to open at a lower temperature should it need to.(trying to find the reference to that info to 100% confirm)
The thermostat is on the return hose, not the top hose. If its not opening, the lower return hose will be cold (relative to the top hose)
BMW540 radiators are famously crap - the plastic tanks crack. So check for signs of coolant dribbling down the sides.
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