Quote:
Originally Posted by Gregtenerife
Thanks Jittsl, this is where I'm struggling to get my head round the problem. The car has only done 25000 miles and the radiators are getting hot so the circulation is ok, the fans come on and go off as they should. Ultimately I think my question is; if the bleed valve is open when the engine is at running temp. how does the system pressurise? As I am so far above see level if the system is open to atmospheric pressure the water will boil at a lower temp. So if the system is working fine when the engine is running the final heat transfer from the block with no circulating coolant may push it to its boiling point which is 10º F lower at 6000ft
I have owned a few performance cars and most of them heat up slightly above the norm because of the height above sea level and the steepness of the roads but this one has me confused.
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Hmmm. I'm not sure either but a couple of things.
Firstly, the valve on the top is not full open as soon as you have it running. It is supposed to have a required pressure and only when this pressure is exceeded does it open (like any radiator cap). This can be bypassed by flicking the little trigger as I did when I last drained the system but in normal operation it should maintain a preset pressure.
Secondly, just because the radiators get hot does not mean everything is good. A faulty pump may move some (but not enough) water.
Thirdly, if you have set your water level to the recommended level, have then left the trigger open and made sure all the air is out by taking for a good hard drive and getting it to operating temperature, then closed the valve and you are still observing the water level going down on a daily basis then something is wrong. Choices are:
1) Water is leaking out either, all the time or when under pressure. Likely culprits include pump, reservoir, hoses, radiators or head gasket. Possible also that the cap or the overflow are not functioning properly and are not holding pressure and therefore allowing water to escape.
2) Engine is getting too hot and forcing water out the overflow. Likely culprits are bad pump, blocked radiators or not enough water in the first place.
3) Engine has blown head gasket which is causing 1 or 2. Only culprit is obvious.
For the one example I can offer you. My specBox runs in Texas temperatures (100+) in racing conditions and often shows 220+ on the gauge at the end of a race and I have not topped up the water since the motor was installed 2 yeArs ago.
Sorry I can't get at exactly why it puked but hopefully the above information will help.
Good luck, Laurie