modustollens
30th October 2012, 05:43 PM
I have been noticing that no heat will come out of the cab heater unless the 2.8td engine is over 1000 rpm. At idle it spits out cold air. The engine temp gauge would be at 1/4 or below.
Now, this morning on the way to work, the temp gauge went all the way to the top into the red yet I could get no heat out of the heater.
I was thinking - at -1 C my engine is overheating after running all of 10 minutes! I opened the bonnet and the radiator is cold to the touch and there is not excessive heat coming off the engine block. So, I do not think that the engine was in fact overheating.
Perplexed I am; what to do?
Is the thermostat faulty and not opening? Bad radiator cap? Or is this some electric sensor failure?
I have been reading threads here and looking at the manual. Some talk of faulty radiator caps (keeping coolant system pressure too low); some talk of failed thermostats.
Taking the thermostat out of the engine is no small task for me to do at the side of the road, in the cold. Replacing the radiator cap - as some suggest - would that help?
I know there is an engine temp sensor and coolant sensor:
http://www.imagerocket.net/photos/1351580025_engine.jpg
I will see if these are loose.
Any suggestions about the best way to proceed given my limited skills and the almost total absence of easily replaceable parts? What test procedure would diagnose the problem? How about a good tap to the thermostat housing?
Any help would be appreciated!
Of course - the race is on: the winter is coming - temps below -40C! (-8C overnight low is already here). We should start a betting pool: at what temperature will I no longer be able to get, and keep, this thing running?
Obviously, I can't run without cab heat to keep the windows clear and me from freezing to death. So, this cab heat problem is major, not minor.
During the summer the engine was getting really hot - and I believed the temp guage at that time given that outside was around 35; I hosed all the dirt and dust in the radiator fins to great effect. And I went to one garage with my translator asking them to flush the coolant system out and refill - but they refused to do it! Odd - easy money (and foreigners here always pay more than a local would).
Maybe I should flush the system out myself and see if that helps?
Thanks,
MT
Now, this morning on the way to work, the temp gauge went all the way to the top into the red yet I could get no heat out of the heater.
I was thinking - at -1 C my engine is overheating after running all of 10 minutes! I opened the bonnet and the radiator is cold to the touch and there is not excessive heat coming off the engine block. So, I do not think that the engine was in fact overheating.
Perplexed I am; what to do?
Is the thermostat faulty and not opening? Bad radiator cap? Or is this some electric sensor failure?
I have been reading threads here and looking at the manual. Some talk of faulty radiator caps (keeping coolant system pressure too low); some talk of failed thermostats.
Taking the thermostat out of the engine is no small task for me to do at the side of the road, in the cold. Replacing the radiator cap - as some suggest - would that help?
I know there is an engine temp sensor and coolant sensor:
http://www.imagerocket.net/photos/1351580025_engine.jpg
I will see if these are loose.
Any suggestions about the best way to proceed given my limited skills and the almost total absence of easily replaceable parts? What test procedure would diagnose the problem? How about a good tap to the thermostat housing?
Any help would be appreciated!
Of course - the race is on: the winter is coming - temps below -40C! (-8C overnight low is already here). We should start a betting pool: at what temperature will I no longer be able to get, and keep, this thing running?
Obviously, I can't run without cab heat to keep the windows clear and me from freezing to death. So, this cab heat problem is major, not minor.
During the summer the engine was getting really hot - and I believed the temp guage at that time given that outside was around 35; I hosed all the dirt and dust in the radiator fins to great effect. And I went to one garage with my translator asking them to flush the coolant system out and refill - but they refused to do it! Odd - easy money (and foreigners here always pay more than a local would).
Maybe I should flush the system out myself and see if that helps?
Thanks,
MT