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Cooling issues.L series


izzo

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Having cooling issues. 

 

Drive the car, water gets hot and boils/comes out over flow tube and fills it up then spills out. 

 

I've checked inside the floors for leaks, as well as outside. Can't find a single leak.

 

I've checked the lower rad hose to make sure its not colapsing, and it has a spring in it to keep it from doing such

 

I've heard the rad cap hold pressure before, but idk if its holding enough pressure....

 

Thermostat is new

 

When the car is parked, I filled the rad back up and let it idle for 10-15 minutes. It didn't boil over, but also when I pulled the  cap there was no presure

 

I don't know whats going on here......   Need help & things to look for

 

 

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Guest 510kamikazifreak
I haven't tested it, but when the car was idling and warmed up it looked like the water was moving.

 

Moving or coming close to boil point?

 

 

 

This will be one of these bizzare things I think, Just like the tranny to motor bolts

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Where does temp gauge read when coolant spilling out?

 

For $10 get a new thermostat and save yourself the stress of wondering and dicking around.. New is no guarantee it's good. If this was working and just recently changed, and now there's a problem, just think back to the last thing you did to it. If this does not solve the problem you have a spare to replace it when it does screw up or if you need a good one to test it again. At the least you've eliminated a possible cause.

 

 

Compression leaking into the coolant will over pressurize and force coolant out.

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Yeah. Going to do compression test later . Mike. Temp gauge was non op. Just fixed that and letting her idle for a bit. Then taking for a test drive. Put new rad cap on also. Will replace thermostat. Is the symptoms I provided the sounds of a Shitty thermostat? Replaced it a year ago and sold car so Idk.

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I think Autozone rents coolant pressure testers with adapters last I checked ? (years ago maybe not now).

A bad cap will cause some issues as well :)

 

Thermostat's go bad all the time ,,, being bad out of the box is common now ( I won't touch certain brands , but trust none 100% until tested around town ).

 

Compression test is good path if you think it's related , and make sure to stick some anti-seize on plug threads.

 

If you want to spend some $$$ on a chemical coolant test ... to test for gases in your coolant system that's a good path to , but by the time you spent $$ on that you coulda replaced gaskets/thermostats lol. ( as we all know )

 

Make sure to check for a clogged/blocked radiator/block/passages.

 

When I acquire a new L-series engine/car... I usually take all coolant hoses off , then take the thermostat out , un-screw the block drain and go at it with a pressure washer for 15-20 minutes. Made a HUGE difference on temp stability and warm up/cool-off in the last couple l-series engines I did it to ( cheap I know lol ).

 

hmmmm good luck izzo.

 

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Guest 510kamikazifreak

Mike. The one off the thermostat housing is plugged with a bolt. I saw the water passage hooked up from the intake to the lower rad hose tho

 

 

That was datsuns, built in fail safe sorta

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Dtp thanks man!

 

Mike. The one off the thermostat housing is plugged with a bolt. I saw the water passage hooked up from the intake to the lower rad hose tho

This needs to be connected or drill a 1/8" hole in the thermostat. The thermostat is outside the head. The block can get hot!!!! but the water around the thermostat is still cold. Engine boils over while temp gauge reads cold and thermostat is closed still. If there is a small hole or the bypass is hooked up hot water from the block will circulate past it and it will open in time instead of too late.

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Bah idk..  Where does the one off the thermostat go mike? i don't see a spot for it.... 

 

Slit my hand open tonight pretty good.  done dicking with it for now, will get back to it tomorrow maybe & replace the thermo and do a compression test.  If the compression test comes back good Then I'll see about removing the rad and taking it to the shop to get it tested.  Wish I had a garden hose to flush the system out. 

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Also, is the heater line looped? This is a SEVERE No-No on the L6's, and should not be done on the L4's either.

 

Drill a 1/8" hole in your thermostat and you don't need the external bypass line, besides the water pump can easily unseat and push open the thermostat anyway. It won't happen at idle, but cold rev an L and it'll unseat. We had a huge discussion on overheating over on HybridZ and put in about 12 hours of engine dyno time just studying the coolant paths and quirks. There is also an internal bypass line drilled into the engine block, to protect the water pump. It doesn't do much for warming the thermostat, though.

 

Have you checked the radiator for blockages? The old Datsun copper core radiators can work really well even at 50% clogged up, then all the sudden you're over the tipping point and it overheats. Put your hand on the radiator while it's warming up and feel for cold spots in the core, that's a clog.

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