2008 3l Common Rail does not run well on hot days.

[glenno08]

Anyone have any troubles with 2008 3l Common Rail not running well on hot days? Seems to lacking power big time.

[the evil twin]

They do love the cooler air thats for sure.

Is the intercooler in good nick? No bent fins, obstructions, no leaks etc?
Air filter Ok?
MAF sensor clean?

If it is getting as much air as you can give it then not much more you can do

[MEGOMONSTER]

Check the radiator for blockages.
You may still have flowing water in the radiator but it still may be blocked.
The GOAT syndrome.

[glenno08]

The intercooler does look ok. Not sure if it has any leaks (how can you tell?). I have recently cleaned the MAF sensor and put new air filter, oil filter & oil change. To me it doesn't seem the engine overheats (I am only going off original temp gauge). Since I have had it, it hates the hot weather. Could it just be it doesn't like the hot air? Or could the turbo start to expand and not be as efficient? Would an extra bonnet scoop work to let more air in over the engine? I am getting a quote for a engine cooling flush tomorrow. I will let you know how much they ask. As I am going on a trip next week hopefully I can get it done, and it helps. Will let you know. What is the GOAT syndrome?

[threedogs]

Its a long long story but search for overheating 2010 model..
You may find dust and mud has settled along the bottom of your radiator causing a partial block.
Whip down the car wash and gently soak the bottom between the fins. Is your fan working correctly??.
lots of if and buts with over heating, do one thing at a time that way you'll know what it is.
How About a new OE thermostat.

[Drew]

Mine noticeably lost power on hot days, I changed the scoop and noticed a big difference straight away.

Still had less power than cool days but that's expected.

[threedogs]

You can tell if your IC is no good by an oily dirty appearance.
May need to remove engine cover to check, check hoses at the same time

[Winnie]

Its a long long story but search for overheating 2010 model..
You may find dust and mud has settled along the bottom of your radiator causing a partial block.
Whip down the car wash and gently soak the bottom between the fins. Is your fan working correctly??.
lots of if and buts with over heating, do one thing at a time that way you'll know what it is.
How About a new OE thermostat.

He is not overheating. He is not making as much power on hot days.
Cool weather is better for turbos, but the difference should not be that big.

[glenno08]

I will give the radiator a wash. Not sure about fan. Will check that out 2. Should it be on all the time? I am sure the Intercooler is ok. What sort of scoop did you put on your Patrol?

[nissannewby]

The difference will be noticeable if it's hot enough. I can notice the difference in mine between driving in the middle of the day and the middle of the night. It will less noticeable on less boost as I am running 25psi. I would get your intercooler pressure tested just to rule it out but it is very common for them to leak.

[Hodge]

For what it's worth mine is the same. Anything over 30C and I have to re-adjust my driving habits for take off etc... If it's warmer and/or air-con is on. Forget about it. It's an absolute slug. I actually HATE driving it on warm days because of it. It's not overheating, and EGT"s are the same as on cool days, but its just absolutely gutless. I've just learnt to live with it.

[Hodge]

Actually I should add that mine is at it's worst on humid days. So it'll run better on a 30C dry day, rather than a 27C day while very humid. If that made sense.

[the evil twin]

Yep, agree with Hodge and as mentioned initially, high pressure diesel common rails of any make with inefficient intercooling hate high air temps.
They literally run out of oxygen which is the whole point behind Intercooling. It is simply so you can get more oxygen into the suckers

Drove from Perth to North coast of NSW in November and the difference between night (high teens low 20's) and day (high 30's low 40's) performance across the Nullarbor, S.A. and the NSW outback, which I reckon everyone agrees is pretty flat terrain, was approx 1.5 LPH and 10% engine load.

On the way back I went through a cold front and temp dropped in 1 hour from hours of 42+ from Broken Hill to Port Augusta to mid 20's prior to Ceduna.
You could literally feel the cars performance change and definitely see it on the Scangauge.

Thats also why the guys who improve the delta T by playing with scoops or more efficient intercooling get better performance.
How much better is usually proportional to the $ spent but that is also why you need to make sure you have no leaks or issues in the "standard" induction plumbing or a wacking great driving light mounted on top of the bullbar in front of the scoop.

[glenno08]

I am the same Hodge. Cant stand driving it on hot days. I agree with both Hodge & the evil twin, its not overheating but seems to hate having the hot air sucked into it. By the sounds of it an extra bonnet scoop or a bigger intercooler sounds like it may help. I would have thought having a snorkel would help force cooler air into the engine, thus helping this problem.

[the evil twin]

I am the same Hodge. Cant stand driving it on hot days. I agree with both Hodge & the evil twin, its not overheating but seems to hate having the hot air sucked into it. By the sounds of it an extra bonnet scoop or a bigger intercooler sounds like it may help. I would have thought having a snorkel would help force cooler air into the engine, thus helping this problem.

Snork does pretty much SFA to change charge air temp.
The heat comes from compressing the charge air thru the Turbo.
Ergo the more you can decrease the air temp (delta T) whilst maintaining pressure then the more Oxygen gets into the cylinder
Bottom line... loosing inlet air pressure or having a poor delta T means less power and higher EGT's

[glenno08]

Would putting a fan under the intercooler to draw air down help at all?

[TPC]

I have an 08 CRD and have towed my camper when its 45deg and have not noticed a large difference in power so it does not sound right to me.
Cannot offer any suggestions on what to look for though as I am a bit mechanically inept.

[ova50]

I have a mate that has a 2009 model that has been having similar problems on hot days, it just happened out of the blue.
Do you have any other symptoms apart from the power loss??

[the evil twin]

Would putting a fan under the intercooler to draw air down help at all?

Thats what I had on mine. A 9 inch puller under the factory I/C. Fits perfect on a CRD

They are only of any benefit at low vehicle speeds under high loads IE flogging thru soft sand etc.
At decent road speed they are ineffective and at freeway speed probably begin to inhibit airflow

When I fitted the new I/C I didn't bother putting it back on as I only do sandy crap a couple of times a year now.

[grimace]

g'day newby, just wondering where you would get IC pressure tested as mine has a bit of black in the top right corner which must be a leak of some sort. now much is it? cheers...G
The difference will be noticeable if it's hot enough. I can notice the difference in mine between driving in the middle of the day and the middle of the night. It will less noticeable on less boost as I am running 25psi. I would get your intercooler pressure tested just to rule it out but it is very common for them to leak.

[Hodge]

g'day newby, just wondering where you would get IC pressure tested as mine has a bit of black in the top right corner which must be a leak of some sort. now much is it? cheers...G

If it has black smudge build up, it's guaranteed to be leaking around that area.

[Drew]

Yeah what evil said re snorkel, looks good, works well in water but does little when it's hot

[glenno08]

Thanks guys for the info. Seems to be a common problem. Just gunna have to work on one thing at a time.

[Hodge]

Was talking to a mate about this today. He reckons after fitting a catch can, taking his IC off and completely cleaning it, helped heaps on hot days. Something to do with the misty hot oily vapors in the IC, bottle-necking the good air that's meant to be going through.

[Rumcajs]

Mine is Di, and in standard form it was the same slow slug/pig when ambient temps went over 30C. Its better now but it still runs better in the morning than in the afternoon.
It chits me to tears but there is not much I can do about laws of physics and under performing engine.

Cheers

[Hodge]

If it makes people feel any better ... This isn't isolated to 3L CRD Patrols. For example the 79 series cruisers with their V8 TD suffer the same syndrome. I drove one of the reasonably new ones we have at work, when it hit 34-35 a few weeks back, and the power it had in the morning just wasn't there, later when it warmed up. The car felt completely exhausted. Mind you this was a stock one, with the driver being the only load. Putting it in perspective it kind of makes my 3L CRD look no so bad in a grand scheme of things.

[glenno08]

Some good info there Hodge. Maybe I might start with putting an Oil Catch can in. I was getting a quote for a full cooling system flush but the slacko's haven't got back to me.

[Hodge]

I posted the same rant in the "Angry" thread.
Nearly doused it in petrol and set the f'in thing on fire out of frustration. Melbourne 33C today, driving home around 4pm was so frustrating. Felt like a slug, with 5 tonnes of anchors being dragged behind it. Air con off and I even took it easy. Taking off at some lights, I even contemplated putting in 4-low to get it moving.
EGT's are as per usual, temp gauge sitting on exactly half like always, yet it absolutely hates being driven when warm, and in turn I hate driving it when warm. Don't know whats going on.
Rant over. Time for a beer.