BertRemington
New member
Instructions for purging air from engine cooling system
TJ -- that's a hopeful indication the solution could be easy and cheap because insufficient coolant will aerate reducing its ability to transfer heat and even lead to cavitation in the water pump leading to reduced coolant flow. This situation needs to be corrected immediately. I suggest a variant on Mike's recommendation that reduces engine damage risk:
1. Allow the engine to cool, preferably overnight.
2. Choose a location where spilled coolant can be absorbed or diluted -- coolant tastes sweet to animals and is painfully deadly.
3. Fill the coolant reservoir to the top with the correct coolant.
4. Leaving the reservoir cap off, start your engine and allow it to idle until, using your finger as a gauge, the coolant temperature in the reservoir is about 120-140 degrees. Add coolant as necessary.
5. Stop your engine and allow it to cool for an hour or so. Check the reservoir level every 5 minutes and add coolant as necessary. Do NOT allow the coolant level to drop below the top of the reservoir or air will re-enter the system and you will have to start over.
6. Repeat steps 3-5 twice more.
7. Replace the reservoir cap and conduct your freeway overheating test.
8. If temperature exceeds 5 bars, drive home and immediately inspect the reservoir and associated hoses for leakage as BR suggested above.
If there are no leaks, air may still remain in the system requiring vacuum to remove. Another member identified a coolant relief port near to top of the engine. Remove the reservoir cap, add coolant as necessary, and then using a handheld vacuum pump, pull coolant from the port until there are no more bubbles. Do NOT allow the coolant level to drop below the top of the reservoir or air will re-enter the system and you will have to start over. Conduct your freeway overheating test.
If the temperature exceeds 5 bars, I'm thinking the water pump with its integral thermostat is failing. Unless you have a fairly complete set of tools and have some experience with vehicle fuel or water pumps, I recommend dealer replacement as, from my reading, I rate this a 6-7 level difficulty.
TJ -- that's a hopeful indication the solution could be easy and cheap because insufficient coolant will aerate reducing its ability to transfer heat and even lead to cavitation in the water pump leading to reduced coolant flow. This situation needs to be corrected immediately. I suggest a variant on Mike's recommendation that reduces engine damage risk:
1. Allow the engine to cool, preferably overnight.
2. Choose a location where spilled coolant can be absorbed or diluted -- coolant tastes sweet to animals and is painfully deadly.
3. Fill the coolant reservoir to the top with the correct coolant.
4. Leaving the reservoir cap off, start your engine and allow it to idle until, using your finger as a gauge, the coolant temperature in the reservoir is about 120-140 degrees. Add coolant as necessary.
5. Stop your engine and allow it to cool for an hour or so. Check the reservoir level every 5 minutes and add coolant as necessary. Do NOT allow the coolant level to drop below the top of the reservoir or air will re-enter the system and you will have to start over.
6. Repeat steps 3-5 twice more.
7. Replace the reservoir cap and conduct your freeway overheating test.
8. If temperature exceeds 5 bars, drive home and immediately inspect the reservoir and associated hoses for leakage as BR suggested above.
If there are no leaks, air may still remain in the system requiring vacuum to remove. Another member identified a coolant relief port near to top of the engine. Remove the reservoir cap, add coolant as necessary, and then using a handheld vacuum pump, pull coolant from the port until there are no more bubbles. Do NOT allow the coolant level to drop below the top of the reservoir or air will re-enter the system and you will have to start over. Conduct your freeway overheating test.
If the temperature exceeds 5 bars, I'm thinking the water pump with its integral thermostat is failing. Unless you have a fairly complete set of tools and have some experience with vehicle fuel or water pumps, I recommend dealer replacement as, from my reading, I rate this a 6-7 level difficulty.
