Running a little warm.
Discussion
Guys,
Need to pick your brains on something.
Last couple of times that I've used the car (also just got in from a trip over south London) i've began to notice that the car is starting to run a little on the hot side - north of the 100 mark on the gauge. It's never really done this in the past apart from recently. Now i know that the fan is an easy check to make but what else could this be? Thermostat maybe?
Thanks in advance.
M3J.
My car did this a couple of weeks ago......I let it cool down, checked the water level in the expansion tank and it was visible but well down. Started to top her up and it took quite a drink!!! Have done a few hundred miles since & it aint used a drop and is sitting at 80 deg as it did before....where the water went in the first place is a mystery....just another one of those Cerbera things!!!!!
mikethebike1127 said:
My car did this a couple of weeks ago......I let it cool down, checked the water level in the expansion tank and it was visible but well down. Started to top her up and it took quite a drink!!! Have done a few hundred miles since & it aint used a drop and is sitting at 80 deg as it did before....where the water went in the first place is a mystery....just another one of those Cerbera things!!!!!
Cheers. Will have a gander tomorrow.
Mine runs a little warm, in normal usage it sits up in the mid 90's when in traffic it goes over 100 then the fans bring it down. It did worry me a little when I got it but it has been fine.
Saying that it has a 12k service and mot next week (yikes) so I intend to get them to check it out amongst other bits and bobs !
D
Saying that it has a 12k service and mot next week (yikes) so I intend to get them to check it out amongst other bits and bobs !
D
Dont read too much into the gauge temp reading - they are not very accurate!
I think...the fans are switched via the ECU that uses a separate sensor. From memory the fans siwtch in at 90 odd Deg C...? When the fans cut in on my car the reading on the gauge is about 10 Deg C higher...
Dont think this is unusual?
During normal driving mine sits at about 80 Deg C.
Not sure about the comments regarding water disappearing....worth keeping an eye on this...
I think...the fans are switched via the ECU that uses a separate sensor. From memory the fans siwtch in at 90 odd Deg C...? When the fans cut in on my car the reading on the gauge is about 10 Deg C higher...
Dont think this is unusual?
During normal driving mine sits at about 80 Deg C.
Not sure about the comments regarding water disappearing....worth keeping an eye on this...
Steve_T said:
I would check that the system can hold pressure. I noticed the temp went up before it was diagnosied that the rad had a pinhole leak and needed replacement.
+1. mine would only leak under pressure, there was never any water under the car. The rads are renowned for developing small leaks. I recommend a pressure test.M3John said:
Cheers for the replies guys i'll do some checks later when my friendly car mechanic dad is home from work 
. Just to add though, last night the temp gauge was way up past the 100 - nearer the endstop on the gauge if i'm honest but the car was still running fine.
scary, did the fans kick in and if so did they bring the temp down? . Just to add though, last night the temp gauge was way up past the 100 - nearer the endstop on the gauge if i'm honest but the car was still running fine.D
M3John said:
Cheers for the replies guys i'll do some checks later when my friendly car mechanic dad is home from work . Just to add though, last night the temp gauge was way up past the 100 - nearer the endstop on the gauge if i'm honest but the car was still running fine.
Can you use one of those laser temp things to check the actual temp? This should give you some peace of mind that its the guage reading incorrectly...just a thought? . Just to add though, last night the temp gauge was way up past the 100 - nearer the endstop on the gauge if i'm honest but the car was still running fine.davidd said:
M3John said:
Cheers for the replies guys i'll do some checks later when my friendly car mechanic dad is home from work . Just to add though, last night the temp gauge was way up past the 100 - nearer the endstop on the gauge if i'm honest but the car was still running fine.
scary, did the fans kick in and if so did they bring the temp down? . Just to add though, last night the temp gauge was way up past the 100 - nearer the endstop on the gauge if i'm honest but the car was still running fine.D
) and i didn't really notice it drop off rapidly as if the fan cut in. Now under the bonnet we have two fans, one for cooling & another for AC (i assume). Well, i don't have any AC stuff on mine so was wondering if i could link the other fan in series with the cooling fan or do they both work together anyway?
peteA said:
M3John said:
Cheers for the replies guys i'll do some checks later when my friendly car mechanic dad is home from work . Just to add though, last night the temp gauge was way up past the 100 - nearer the endstop on the gauge if i'm honest but the car was still running fine.
Can you use one of those laser temp things to check the actual temp? This should give you some peace of mind that its the guage reading incorrectly...just a thought? . Just to add though, last night the temp gauge was way up past the 100 - nearer the endstop on the gauge if i'm honest but the car was still running fine.Just plug the laptop in. The ECU uses the temp sensor that comes out of the metal coolant pipe
on the pas side under the plastic panel. The gauge reads from the capillary tube.
You need to see if the fans are kicking in, probably are as it would overheat in traffic if not.
I reckon you have air being drawn in somewhere. Bleed the system, make sure the pressure
cap is tight and see what happens when you let it warm up. Don't drive off do it parked up incase it
overheats.
on the pas side under the plastic panel. The gauge reads from the capillary tube.
You need to see if the fans are kicking in, probably are as it would overheat in traffic if not.
I reckon you have air being drawn in somewhere. Bleed the system, make sure the pressure
cap is tight and see what happens when you let it warm up. Don't drive off do it parked up incase it
overheats.
M3John said:
Now under the bonnet we have two fans, one for cooling & another for AC (i assume). Well, i don't have any AC stuff on mine so was wondering if i could link the other fan in series with the cooling fan or do they both work together anyway?
One fan does one side of the rad, the other one does the other side of the rad plus the air con rad, it has a different pitch on the blades to drag the extra air through. When the fans kick in to cool the rad because the water temp is too high, both of them run, when the aircon rad is cooled only one fan runs. Well chaps, i've been out there today and had the F1 panel & intakes off. Put a bit of water in it (not much though if i'm honest) and then run it up to temp. The gauge got to around 95 and a small puff came from the expansion cap (as it should when it needs to) but i didn't notice the fans cut in. I turned the car off at this point.
I pulled the plug on the fans and they fired up ok so i think it might be the small `sender` unit in one of those metal cooling tubes at the front. I'll run it like this for a while until i get another sender unit.
On a side note though, now i've not got this plugged in, the MIL light (whatever this is) is on and i only noticed this after i'd put all the pieces of trim back on under the bonnet. Would this not being plugged in cause that or is that something else?
I pulled the plug on the fans and they fired up ok so i think it might be the small `sender` unit in one of those metal cooling tubes at the front. I'll run it like this for a while until i get another sender unit.
On a side note though, now i've not got this plugged in, the MIL light (whatever this is) is on and i only noticed this after i'd put all the pieces of trim back on under the bonnet. Would this not being plugged in cause that or is that something else?
Steve_T said:
If the water temp sender dies or is unplugged, then the MIL light will come on and the fans will run all the time as a safety precaution. The engine however will be fuelled assuming it's cold (again for safety to avoid running lean) - this is bad news for the cats.
Wow thanks for a speedy reply. You have just confirmed though what i thought to be true with regard to the Sender/MIL light. Funny you mention about the engine as the car is running a bit on the lumpy side now though that i've disconnected this plug. At least i know it won't cook itself for the time being.
As for the cats, i don't think there's a problem there....
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