overheating. no thermo,snot,smoke. help :(

[danger_ranger_club]

1992 ranger 4wd non ac 2.9l

doesnt overheat unless im idling or moving slow. removed the thermostat still does it. no snot on fill cap neck or dipstick. also no anti freeze in oil. doesnt use coolant unless it pukes it out when i idle.


does it worse when mudding.

vlave cover does leak on the passenger side. i need some views before i break down and do both gaskets. thanks guys!

 

[robertc1024]

You need a thermostat. If you don't have anything in there, the coolant moves too fast to lose any heat in the radiator. Also, make sure your radiator is clean. Mine overheated like a BitGH until I power-washed the rad.

 

[low_five]

sounds like one or more of the radiator tubes are plugged. at higher speeds, more water flows and compensates, also because wind is flowing through, it cools better.

 

[danger_ranger_club]

they gave me a 192 degree and told me it was alot lower than that. so im running without one for now. it helps alot.

so you just stuck the presher washer nozzle right in the rad fill? doesnt damage anything?

 

[danger_ranger_club]

sounds like one or more of the radiator tubes are plugged. at higher speeds, more water flows and compensates, also because wind is flowing through, it cools better.

lol i overheated this truck so many times between this year and last year. idk how i havent cracked a head or something.. thought these motors were real bad if overheated even once?

 

[r1hatman]

Check your temp with a thermometer in the radiator and then flush it by sticking the hose in the radiator, and then in your intake tube to your heater core. then check the temp again with the thermometer in the radiator and see how hot your fluid is getting. If it's still getting hot, could might have a bad radiator or water pump going bad. This sounds dumb, but you might have to check the upper intake line, some dumb ass who had my truck before put a thermostat in the upper housing too, so I had two thermostats and neither one was working.

 

[Hotrodlincoln]

Could be a lot of things. Improper bleeding leaving air in the system, lack of coolant flow, bad head gasket, clogged radiator.

You drive it in mud? Make sure the fins of the radiator and AC condenser (if it has it) aren't full of mud blocking air flow across the radiator.
Check that the fan clutch isn't covered in mud as well.

When you fill the cooling system, you should let the truck idle with the radiator cap off until the thermostat opens. A bunch of bubbles should work their way out through the radiator. When the bubbles quit, top it off and cap it, then drive around the block. Turn the truck off and let it cool completely (overnight) then bleed the system again. If no bubbles come out the it should be ready to go. If the bubbles never stop eve after multiple attempts to bleed the system, you have a compression leak, bad head gasket or cracked head/block. Doing a block test will confirm combustion gas in the cooling system.

 

[BRUTUS_T_HOG]

could be a bad fan clutch, or a bad water pump

 

[danger_ranger_club]

water pumps only got about 3 months on her. fresh coolant mixed 75ish 25ish. bled very well. new 180 thermostat. new radiator replaced with the water pump.

now gotta see if she still boils over while idling.

damn this things like my race bike. cant let it idle with no air going through the rads or you get a steam show

 

[low_five]

well, ok you say boil over, but it may just be a weak spring in your radiator cap not holding any pressure. is your temp gauge spiking?

 

[danger_ranger_club]

well, ok you say boil over, but it may just be a weak spring in your radiator cap not holding any pressure. is your temp gauge spiking?

yeah when it idles or your moving slow you can see it move up to red

 

[Big Jim M]

Should be easy to diagnose. New radiator, new pump, new thermostat.. Doesn't leave much to think about does it. BTW That 180* isn't hot enough! Put the 192* back in there.
So if the thermostat is NOT installed upside down... We get to the fan or fan clutch and the radiator cap.
Of course there is always the possibility that the heater wasn't turned on while filling and the system still, after all this time, has air in it.
I have seen guys fill their radiator while parked with the front of the vehicle DOWNHILL and they couldn't get it full even though it LOOKED full.
Big JIm

 

[danger_ranger_club]

Should be easy to diagnose. New radiator, new pump, new thermostat.. Doesn't leave much to think about does it. BTW That 180* isn't hot enough! Put the 192* back in there.
So if the thermostat is NOT installed upside down... We get to the fan or fan clutch and the radiator cap.
Of course there is always the possibility that the heater wasn't turned on while filling and the system still, after all this time, has air in it.
I have seen guys fill their radiator while parked with the front of the vehicle DOWNHILL and they couldn't get it full even though it LOOKED full.
Big JIm

i always bleed my system with heat on full and as hot as shell go for like ten minutes.

i had a 192* in there but that made er worse. just overheated faster. so im not running one. the mpg loss is better than having my truck heat up to 192 right away and have it only go up from there.


im going to look into a fan clutch. any ways to tell if mines bad?

 

[r1hatman]

I slapped a 160 in mine and

[/IMG] Good luck!

Damn, I just realized how dusty my truck was, time for a detail!

 

[BRUTUS_T_HOG]

heres a question, WHEN did this start? before you replaced the water pump right?

even if the pump is new it can still have failed.

what are the possibilities you got the wrong pump? just recently at the shop we had a vehicle come in that was overheating after a new pump... the pump was turning backwards because it was meant for a v-belt and a smooth serpentine pulley was installed. just saying....