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i have a sierra with a vitara 1600 16v engine.It has a new thermostat and 40s landcruiser radiator. I have a 13" thermo fan on the front of the radiator. There is nothing restricting the air flow in the front and i have a bonnet scoop to help with the cooling.
Im driving 45-60min to work at the moment and im not having any probs stays under half way on the gauge.
First problem is sometimes when i switch the engine off coolant will poor out of the overflow bottle and dump about 1-1.5lts of coolant.
Second problem is when i put it in low range and do lets say a 5min hill climb the temp will skyrocket to a level where i have to turn it off and wait for it too cool down
Last edited by ZOOK60 on Mon Oct 31, 2005 6:43 pm, edited 1 time in total.
murcod wrote:Is the thermo fan pushing air through the radiator (some need the fan reversed to operate in front of the radiator.)
Is the radiator cap the correct one and does it hold pressure OK too? You can get pumps to check them, radiator joints should have a tester.
Another option could be a blown head gasket....
i think it could be a blown head gasket it seems to use water but there are no leaks just didnt want to change it if i didnt have too. And also there is a little bit of white on the dipstick too
ZOOK60 wrote:[i think it could be a blown head gasket it seems to use water but there are no leaks just didnt want to change it if i didnt have too. And also there is a little bit of white on the dipstick too
bit of white on the dipstick Sounds like a leak into the block... bad ju ju
Any bubbles in the radiator or a bit of an oil slick?
Off timeing can also cause over-heating. Like wise if the flow through the radiator is too slow or too fast (ie broken, wrong or no thermostat).
FJ62 Crusier GM V8 Diesel Lockers 33 MTs/35 117 extremes
Macarthur District 4WD Club http://www.macarthur4wdclub.com.au
ZOOK60 wrote:[i think it could be a blown head gasket it seems to use water but there are no leaks just didnt want to change it if i didnt have too. And also there is a little bit of white on the dipstick too
bit of white on the dipstick Sounds like a leak into the block... bad ju ju
Any bubbles in the radiator or a bit of an oil slick?
Off timeing can also cause over-heating. Like wise if the flow through the radiator is too slow or too fast (ie broken, wrong or no thermostat).
Yes i think there is bubles in the radiator and have seen a little oil.
so im gessing its the head gasket?
ZOOK60 wrote:[i think it could be a blown head gasket it seems to use water but there are no leaks just didnt want to change it if i didnt have too. And also there is a little bit of white on the dipstick too
bit of white on the dipstick Sounds like a leak into the block... bad ju ju
Any bubbles in the radiator or a bit of an oil slick?
Off timeing can also cause over-heating. Like wise if the flow through the radiator is too slow or too fast (ie broken, wrong or no thermostat).
Yes i think there is bubles in the radiator and have seen a little oil.
so im gessing its the head gasket?
Time to do the head gasket dude.
FJ62 Crusier GM V8 Diesel Lockers 33 MTs/35 117 extremes
Macarthur District 4WD Club http://www.macarthur4wdclub.com.au
mate stop driving it n do a head gasket and a head service asap otherwise a minor prob is gunna get expensive real quick .
how long has this been going on for ?
Tidy42 wrote:mate stop driving it n do a head gasket and a head service asap otherwise a minor prob is gunna get expensive real quick .
how long has this been going on for ?
Tidy42 wrote:mate stop driving it n do a head gasket and a head service asap otherwise a minor prob is gunna get expensive real quick .
how long has this been going on for ?
i have only driven it about three times like this
if you can rip the head off tonight and start looking for a cylinder head repair man most can get u a full head gasket kit too
the price will vary on how bad the head n things like the condition of the valves are
Tidy42 wrote:mate stop driving it n do a head gasket and a head service asap otherwise a minor prob is gunna get expensive real quick .
how long has this been going on for ?
i have only driven it about three times like this
if you can rip the head off tonight and start looking for a cylinder head repair man most can get u a full head gasket kit too
the price will vary on how bad the head n things like the condition of the valves are
Like Tidy42 said. Even if everything looks good, still get the head decked at least. gaskets are cheap and decking is not that much compaired to replacing the whole head for the sake of a few $$. Once an engine heats up it is not uncommon to warp the head.
FJ62 Crusier GM V8 Diesel Lockers 33 MTs/35 117 extremes
Macarthur District 4WD Club http://www.macarthur4wdclub.com.au
while u have the head off the car, get the valve stem seals done, about 80-100 bucks fitted at any head joint. i got mine done when i did the head last week, turns out they were the problem why the cruiser was blowing smoke, as oil was being pumped into the cylinders due to the seals being stuffed, the car had done 170 tho if u was interested!
it cost me around 400 bucks to do the head, that was a head gasket kit, head getting decked, valve stem seals done, flush coolant system and new coolant.
took me and a mate around 2 hours to pull everything apart and about 4-5 hours on my own to put it all back together
ok thanks guys for the advice will get the head decked and put a new gasket on. How much do you normally get it decked? Hope this will be the last of these problems
It should only be machined if it is warped and not perfectly flat. If you get too much taken off the compression ratio will increase too much (detonation problems etc.). If you've lucky the gasket will just have let go and a light machine and new gasket will be all you need.
It could also be due to corrosion or a crack which means welding may be necessary- or the head could be stuffed.
ok i pulled the head off and i think i found the problem. Only took an hour and a half. The head bolts were loose as the bloke who rebuilt the engine must not have re-tensioned the head or didn't do it up tight enough in the first place. The gasket was totally in tact was like new. The sump had a bit off coffee coloured oil in it and when i pulled the head the cylinders were full of water.
Anyhow i got the spare head that i have machined and cleaned and i got a new head gasket so i will fit tomorrow and see how it goes.
Sounds like a leak into the block... bad ju ju 
Assuming your coolant is green of course!
