overheating..? thermostat?

17th October 2014, 10:57

so the cars just started overheating..

temp gauge keeps climbing.. the rad fan kicks in ok as it should.. and then the red light comes on..

the radiator is cold..
the top pipe from the stat to the rad gets warm..
the bottom pipe from the rad is cold..

the heater works... and keeping it on full with the cabin fans on full just about keeps the car at a normal temperature..

the coolant and stat where changed last year around april..

ive not had the radiator open yet as the cars still hot but there seems to be water in it from squeezing the pipes..

so im thinking the stat has broken? or it could be a blocked Rad?

the fact the heater still works seems to rule out it being the water pump?

or is there anything else it could be?

17th October 2014, 12:49

so the engines cooled down now..

removing the top bleed valve cover at the rear of the engine with the engine off.. no coolant..

turn the engine on... and lovely clear red coolant flows out.. ruling the water pump out..?

removing the rad cap and squishing the top hose from stat to radiator sees the water in the reservoir moving about.. ruling the blocked rad out?

have a thermostat on order so will swap that when i get home tonight..

17th October 2014, 13:36

You can test your thermostat
The temperature the stat should be fully open is marked on the stat put the stat in an old pan of water with a thermometer in it and heat the water on a cooker to see if the stat opens at the correct temp.

19th October 2014, 16:29

replaced the stat on Friday night...

managed to do it without losing more than a coke can full of coolant too..

problem fixed!

Rad now gets hot... car stays at normal temp

result!