Still Overheating! :(

[axnutty 10]

Im still having some overheating issues. If you travel at a sustained 70 the temp guage climbs up to 3/4... and will increase further if you increase speed. As of yet i havent had the warning lamp come on - dont want to do any damage so stopped.

 

The following parts have been replaced last week.

 

# Thermostat (82Deg)

# Coolant

# Any dubious water pipe (soft pipes/delaminating internally/worn jubilee clips)

 

The following parts have been replaced in the last 12months (3/4000 miles of use)

 

# Radiator

# Water pump (to my knowledge anyway)

 

 

When I replaced the coolant I reversed flushed the system and it wasnt bad at all. (shouldnt have been as engine was refurbed 12months back) Ive also bled the system since ive had it to bits and its all working fine (hot air and all that) No leaks either. No signs of head gasket failure.

 

Anybody got any ideas on what else it could be!? The fan works as it should but I know the switch is faulty (its getting replaced this week anyway) but as far as I know in normal driving the fan shouldnt be coming on - and is only required if the vehicle is stationary (Correct me please as this would be a nice simple cause and solution!)

 

Brakes arent binding, tyres at correct pressure, etc... (yes ive checked all for those "clutching at straws" answers)

 

Any other ideas people?!

[Richie-Van-GTi 71 2 Cars]

# Water pump (to my knowledge anyway)

 

If in doubt replace it.

[maturin23 10]

Just FYI - the fan on mine sometimes comes in with normal driving as a result of buying a low temp switch - next time I'll get one with a higher kick-in temp, it's noisy and annoying but nothing more.

 

The fact that increasing air and water flow through the rad doesn't result in the temperature dropping and actually causes temps to rise could indicate a slight head-gasket fault.I'd say it's worth getting a garage to do a sniff test or similar to make 100% sure you haven't got a head gasket-related issue.

Edited June 14, 2007 by maturin23

[axnutty 10]

The engine was rebuilt by Wurzel off here. I cant believe he wouldnt have changed the water pump when the engine was out. He did most other things under the bonnet. I may drop him a PM and see what he says. But I suppose I cant rule it out for the minute.

 

I'll get the coolant system on the pressure tester then and see if the HG looks dodgy, but its not showing any of the signs of a failing HG.

 

One thought - is the water temp warning light fed from a separate sender to the water temp guage? Because if I were to keep going when it started to get hot on the guage, but the light never comes on then it would show a faulty guage sender unit would it not?

[Guest jola]

Just a thought: could your temp gauge or sensor be broken?

[VisaGTi16v 1]

Could be the gauge as suggested. I have tons of spare ones for my Visa which are identical to the 205 gti ones and they all read different when I manually trigger them by putting voltage across them so I used ones that gave figures which are correct in theory and certaintly the car shows no signs of overheating etc.

 

Maybe try and get another one off ebay of from a scrap yard for a few quid and try that

[Rob_the_Sparky 9]

I wouldn't risk trying the warning light - they usually are boiling by the time it comes one! Might be worth a sender replacement although I've not heard of them failing and the problem is consistent with a poor rad or thermostat.

 

As a test you could try running without a stat (although not sure whether the housing will seal or not without one in). If your car is then OK without the stat then you put in a duff stat, otherwise I'd look at the rad.

 

IMHO the water pump is not a likely culpret but probably worth checking.

 

Rob

 

P.S. I know you have replaced both rad and stat but they are the obvious causes of this and my bet is on the stat.

[lagonda 42]

I've got exactly the same problem with my CTi. As soon as I start getting near 80mph for any length of time, the temp needle starts moving beyond centre. Similarly, my head has been skimmed, new water pump, new hoses throughout (BBM), all water passages clear, radiator new 5 years ago but not seen many miles in that time. I've put Fernox descaler in the radiator but it ran pretty clear, & water seems to flow happily through the radiator anyway.

So I'd like a definitive answer to this one as well!

[ashlee205gti 1]

If it overheats whilst driving i would suspect the radiator regardless of how old it is.

[sorr 0]

If it overheats whilst driving i would suspect the radiator regardless of how old it is.

 

I agree. Have you checked that all of the radiator is hot rather than just a small portion?

[Revla 2]

I agree. Have you checked that all of the radiator is hot rather than just a small portion?

 

I 3rd that. Just replaced the one in the Miami for the same reason. I'd flushed it out previously - but it still must have been partially blocked.

 

Trev

Edited June 15, 2007 by Revla

[Rob_the_Sparky 9]

Duff thermostat can, and has, produced the same results. Hence my suggested test to rule this out (for no cost) before buying another rad...

[Revla 2]

Duff thermostat can, and has, produced the same results. Hence my suggested test to rule this out (for no cost) before buying another rad...

 

Doh, should have mentioned I ran the Miami for ages without a stat for this reason - which it wasn't!

 

But yes, deffo first point of call.......

[steve@cornwall 100]

History of a similar problem

http://forum.205gtidrivers.com/index.php?s...c=57784&hl=

http://forum.205gtidrivers.com/index.php?s...63016&st=10

http://forum.205gtidrivers.com/index.php?s...63016&st=10

 

I decided to drive this engine to destruction before stripping to inspect--- It's still going!!! For the last couple of hundred miles the oil pressure completely drops out and all the warning lights flash when at idle and up to temperature .Rev it to 2K and pressure climbs and lights go out! It can be driven all day long like this, so long as it's not ragged and comfortably passed the mot emissions too.Although significantly down on power and bottom end rattle which is increasing...

 

Looking over the history of this engine, I wonder if it's a problem with the liner seals, due to the copious amounts of fuel washed down the bores. Perhaps this would allow gas escape on the decompression stroke to enter both the oilways and waterways? It's getting near to removal and strip down time so should be interesting

[KaspaCti 0]

Im still having some overheating issues. If you travel at a sustained 70 the temp guage climbs up to 3/4... and will increase further if you increase speed. As of yet i havent had the warning lamp come on - dont want to do any damage so stopped.

 

The following parts have been replaced last week.

 

# Thermostat (82Deg)

# Coolant

# Any dubious water pipe (soft pipes/delaminating internally/worn jubilee clips)

 

The following parts have been replaced in the last 12months (3/4000 miles of use)

 

# Radiator

# Water pump (to my knowledge anyway)

When I replaced the coolant I reversed flushed the system and it wasnt bad at all. (shouldnt have been as engine was refurbed 12months back) Ive also bled the system since ive had it to bits and its all working fine (hot air and all that) No leaks either. No signs of head gasket failure.

 

Anybody got any ideas on what else it could be!? The fan works as it should but I know the switch is faulty (its getting replaced this week anyway) but as far as I know in normal driving the fan shouldnt be coming on - and is only required if the vehicle is stationary (Correct me please as this would be a nice simple cause and solution!)

 

Brakes arent binding, tyres at correct pressure, etc... (yes ive checked all for those "clutching at straws" answers)

 

Any other ideas people?!

 

 

I had a similar problem last year which was down to the resistor for the low speed fan being knackered. As a result the fan only kicked in at high speed at the upper temperature of the sensor, by which point it would really struggle to bring the temp down (chucked coolant out of the expansion tank on more than one occasion!). Changed the resistor and now it sits at a third to half way up the guage all day long. The low speed fan will kick in during normal driving particularly on a warm day it's just that it's fairly quiet so you won't hear it from the drivers seat. Hope this is some help.

 

Sean

[lagonda 42]

Yes, probably easier to check the thermostat first. I'll also try checking to see if the whole of the radiator gets hot.

The fan switch ... similarly mine wasn't working on slow speed when I first got it back on the road, but it just proved to be slight terminal corrosion, so I cleaned & tightened them up & fan does come on now.

Regarding liner seals, these aren't at the base of the liners but on a machined face about 2/3 down the exterior of the liner, so wouldn't be affected by petrol.

[C_W 3 1 Cars]

What water:anti freeze mix are you running?

[Rob_the_Sparky 9]

Duff fan switches/resistors cause over-heating in stationary traffic, not 70mph...

[lagonda 42]

What water:anti freeze mix are you running?

 

Hi,

 

Good question. It's a French ready mixed type bought quite cheaply in a hypermarket in Calais. When I first filled the car there wasn't quite enough so I added a litre or so of other French antifreeze I found in the garage. I've found I've had to tighten the hose clips absurdly tight, & even so, 2 hoses still weep. When I say tight, one was so tight I stripped the clip! On checking the container I topped up with, I realised that WASN'T ready mixed, so drained the system & added water to correct things. It still weeps coolant & still runs hot. GRRRR! So annoying when all the other work I've done has paid off with complete reliability as opposed to the total unreliability I used to experience!

[Guest myrichdad]

Can anyone post some overall pictures and ones of the main components. Haynes is rubbish for this - you can't even identify where they are taking the picture - let alone what it is. Some clues would be ace. fans not kicking in at all. been sat for 18 months after lightly rear ending someone - smashed passenger headlight (brake upgrade needed!) is there any wiring behind that that could be affected?

 

Thanks for your help. Kev.

[andymi16 0]

I've been having the same problem with my 1600.

I forgot they should have a variable speed...

 

Whats the easiest way to test it works at both speeds? My fan only seems to kick in when the dial is at two thirds, and I have been worried it does not kick in early enough...

 

It overheated during it's recent MOT !

 

So can you buy a thermostate that will allow the fan to kick in at a lower temp?

Ta

[Anthony 1,003]

So can you buy a thermostate that will allow the fan to kick in at a lower temp?

Thermostat and fan switch are two different and unrelated parts.

 

Thermostat regulates the coolant temperature whilst on the move, basically to prevent overcooling and allow the engine to get upto temperature quickly. It's spring loaded valve that opens above a given temperature - usually 82 or 89 degrees - to allow coolant to the radiator. Thermostat is mounted on the side of the cylinder head in the thermostat housing - basically behind the bit that the other end of the top radiator hose connects to.

 

Fan switch is mounted on the side of the radiator and is basically a thermo-switch for the fan. There are different temperature switches available (I'm running a 92/97 on mine, which is one of the coolest), but as said, the first thing to check is that the slow speed fan is working as often they're not and means that the coolant needs to get very hot before the high speed fan will eventually kick in.

[andymi16 0]

Oh yes sorry - using the wrong words! I meant fan switch.

 

Whats the best way of checking the fan switch is working properly ie the slow speed. Where is the resistor located that regulates the speed?

Thanks.

[andymi16 0]

Just spoke to peugeot for a new switch... they want a chasis number. Do you have the part number for the switch you use?

[Guest myrichdad]

Is the fan switch a sort of small tube 4 or 5 inches by less than an inch diameter?

 

Where are the fan resistors? in the same unit.

 

If so mine appears to be clipped to the radiator is that right?