Safe Operating Temp For R33 Gts-t?

[sl33py]

My 96 GTS-T gets VERY hot very easily. I noticed the other day coming back from work, so I took it for a drive to investigate today. I wanna know if this all sounds ok or if I need get it looked at:

1) Let engine warm up a bit, temp > 1/3 (2 minutes) A/C is OFF at this point.

2) Driving granny style around 60 zone, 1/2 (so now we're definitely warm) (10 minutes)

3) 80 zone, keeping off boost, temp at a bit over half (5 minutes)

4) 100 zone, hitting boost a bit now since on uphills and need to regain speed wiped off on corners, temp > 2/3 ( I start to worry about here)

5) come back to 60 zone, temp > just over half again

6) turn A/C on. Set to 18 (it's fairly hot out, about 26 degrees), temp > back up to 2/3 after a coupla minutes

7) A/C off cos I was worried bout the engine, temp > bit over 1/2

8) 100 zone and travel at highway speed for about 10 minutes with A/C set to 21, temp > 2/3

9) Boosted a bit on the highway to catch up to a car took the temp to about 3mm below the first temp "warning" line (at this point I go "oh shit!", wind the window down, turn the A/C off, back off completely and granny it back into town.

This aint right surely? I would expect a bit over half temp at highway speed with A/C on full and that's the highest it should go, even if hitting boost a bit on uphills.

I'm just wondering what other ppls temp gauge reads in these kinda situations. I'm worried cos I plan on going to the coast which will be lots of hill climbing and it'll be on boost now and then (unavoidable...) and it'll be hot so need the A/C on, but I don't think it'll make it if a bit of around town and highway driving took the temp as high as it does! Is something majorly wrong?

[**JaR**]

i cant say i've ever had my temp gauge go that far up, the most ive had it go up, on a boiling as shit day ( woulda been like 30+ ) was jst over the halfway mark, drivin down the freeway at 110-120.

have you checked your radiator to make sure it doesnt have any leaks or anything? or to see if your using the right coolant?

[sl33py]

We just flushed out and replaced the coolant, used Nulon "top up" premixed.. the red stuff. was 21 bucks for 5 litres. While flushing, we only saw it coming out of the hole in the bottom of the radiator (or whatever it is that bottom plug is stopping). It ran really dirty for a while, we took out the overflow reservoir and cleaned it out too and it eventually ran clear.

The next day after the flush, the overflow reservoir was basically empty, so I topped it up again and went for a drive, but the when I pulled over, the o/f reservoir level was much higher than the max level, so that makes me think that it's ok for the o/f to be empty after standing overnight, and I shouldn't have put in the extra. But still, I don't think that would cause this (and it was happening the night before I topped it up again anyway).

[sl33py]

Oh so in answer to checked for leaks, we only saw it running out of the plug hole in the bottom. I dunno how u test it any further than that, other than getting the mechanic to do a pressure test.

.. I *knew* I was overheating badly oh well, back to the mechanic.

[sl33py]

Oh, and recently the plugs were changed from NGK PFR5G-11 to NGK BK5ES-11.. this wouldn't be related at all right? They were changed cos the old plugs were crappy and misfiring @ 5-7k rpm. The swap fixed the misfire.

[burnsey]

yeah that definately isn't right...

any modern car should be able to handle regular driving, on a poo hot day with aircon on no probs...

my r33 will never go over the half way mark even with some decent driving and aircon, that's with bigger tubro and 1.2 bar...

Burnsey

[dezz]

and on the highway it should really be lower on the temp than stop start driving anyway.....

[**JaR**]

depends, if your just sitting on a constant speed then eys, it should sit roughly halfway between quarter and halfway ( mine does anyways ), but if you boost it when over taking etc, it'll sit just under halfway.

this is on my car anyways, like mentioned. i dunno about the rest of you.

[sl33py]

Yeah.. well for me normal temp is a bit over half, and just below that warning line when I pushed it a bit. Sux.

[Triskillion]

i had a leaking radiator and a stuff thermostat... my temp gauge never read over half even thought it proberly was over heating... never had a problem.. but i took it to the radiator place and he replaced the top tank, $130 something like that. but i do alot of town driving and it never goes over half way but the heat from the engine bay feels so intense that i really really belive it does over heat...

and the over flow tank, yeah ive noticed sometimes theres nothing in there and sometimes its full...

[sl33py]

Well I think the temp gauge works since it read as bloody hot and the coolant was boiling Think I'm just overheating badly for some reason. What could cause this? I know so far: leak in radiator (don't think so.. no leaks when we flushed it), lack of coolant (have topped it up a few times now.. so it's losing it, but I think that's a by-product of the bad overheating, not a cause)...

[ferni]

try a new radiator cap - cheap.

Also are you sure you bleed it properly when you were flushing it? if there is air in it thats bad.

[nuffsaid]

Definately an issue.

As said, any modern car should have its temp gauge at the halfway mark no matter how hot it is or how hard you drive (not track style driving though for long periods of time).

Try replacing the thermostat, maybe its not opening up at the right temperature. You can also try using Redline WaterWetter, works better than any of your average coolant.

[Links]

yeah - sounds like something isn't right.. mine wams up to under 1/2 way.. don't think i've seen it ever go over it, even when giving it a pretty good go on the way to avoca which was quite a hot day..

[sl33py]

My mate who helped me flush the cooling system said the radiator cap looked ok, but I'm sure the mechanic will check that.

How do you bleed the cooling system?? We just removed the plug at the bottom, pulled out the overflow reservoir, cleaned the junk of out it, and ran a hose on full pelt into the top of the radiator until the brown liquid turned clear. Then we Put back the bottom plug, filled the readiator with coolant, put the cap on, filled the overflow tank to just below the max line, and that's it.

Nuffsaid: I don't understand this:

"Try replacing the thermostat, maybe its not opening up at the right temperature"

The thermostat is the same thing as the engine temperature gauge isn't it? And if that's the case, what's it opening up?? I thought it just measured the temp.. didn't think it did anything.

And yeah.. I'm worried/annoyed about this, cos A) I don't think it'll make it to the coast the way it currently is and B) it DEFINITELY won't see track time in this condition, let alone the dyno day I want to go to this weekend I hope the mechanic finds an obvious and easy to fix cause, otherwise I get the impression it could be expensive..

for example, is a possible cause the engine head leaking? my dad was going on about the gasket and someone else said blown gaskets and this has got me kinda worried, but I dunno if they are just talking out their a$$e$.

[nuffsaid]

Thermostat is not a thermometer, totally different things.

A thermostat is this little thing that opens at a certain temperature. ie. I think the way it works is if the water in your engine gets above 90 odd degrees, it opens up so that the water can go into the radiator and cool down. Thats my basic understanding of it, but trust me its job is very important.

If you mechanically minded, take out your thermostat, put it in a pot and boil it over a stove. If the water boils, but the thermostat doesnt open, then thats probably your problem.

I dont think they're expensive to replace either, maybe $100 or so?

[sl33py]

Ah I see @ thermostat! Thanks for explaining that. It did it again just driving home for 15 minutes, humid ACT day, buggerall boost, 60kms and 80kms, A/C on full > 2/3's temp. LAME. I'll suggest the thermostat to my mechanic, as I dunno where the thermostat is to check myself and he needs to fix something else anyway. Hopefully the thermostat can be a generic model and I don't have to wait for ordering away :| Car goes in Wednesday!

[NickR33]

stop driving it!... the temp guage is pretty useless... if you see it going over halfway then you are in trouble and there is something definately wrong

my thermostat was broken but the other way... it was always open and would take the car like 10-15 minutes to warm up and get out of closed loop in the mornings... very annoying

[sl33py]

Yeah, of course I realise it's bad for it to be running at all with this 5hit goin on. But I gotta drive it 25kms to get it to the mechanic anyway.. I'm just babying it. It'll only be driven from work to home once more (12 minute trip each way), then straight to the mechanic Wednesday morning. I can keep it at just over half if I keep the A/C off and don't boost at all. Plus, it didn't happen at all this morning (since cooler ambient temp I guess), and I only noticed it starting to creep up just before I got home this arvo. Hopefully it'll be fine for just one more day.. just trying to find where the thermostat is in the engine now....

[paulr33]

it sounds like your water pump could be up the spout

ive seen an rb30 cook itself from the water pump, the blades basically corroding away (somehow) so it would work, it just wouldn't pump cool water around anymore. best to get it chcked otherwise youll cook it

its an inline 6 watercooler, it sounds like a cruicial part of the water cooling is not working

water pump -> radiator -> water pump