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series 5 Overheating

P

petersimpson

I have a late V alpine which I have just put back ont he road after a few years on very low mileage. I noticed on my first long trip that she go hot, so I have replaced the water pump, radiator, thermostat and done a rad flush. But she still gets hot, nearly into the red zone on the gauge. If I turn on the heater she cools down. The temperature gauge moves quite a lot depending on speed, air temperature and the hearter being on?

Any suggestions?

Thanks

Peter
 
alpine_64

alpine_64

Donation Time
You need to see if the gauge is actually acurate, if it is and the motor is getting hot:

-check the radiator cap has a correct psi and also that the spring and seal are ok.

-is there any rubbish in the water? as in stuff from the block now freeing up, these motors have a habbit of having rubbish in the water passages and in the heads, which will make the motor run hot.

-are the core plugs ok?

-is there water dissapearing? if so, leaking? if not.. is the engine compression ok?

just some intial checks
 
P

petersimpson

Update

I have not done a lot of miles that rad, water pump and thermostat was replaced, but there does not seem to be any coolant loss or problems witht he core plugs, I had a short engine about 8 years ago. But the head is at least 15 years old (that is how long I have had the car)

Before the lat up, she never ran hot.

It could be the gauge/sensor as the car seems to run fine I just get woried as the needel rises or the head could be clogged, is there any way to test?

Peter
 
B

Bill Blue

Platinum Level Sponsor
Peter, it is very common for the gauge to read 20 or so degrees hotter than actual temperature. So as Michael suggests, before getting any deeper into the project, verify the temperature with another thermometer. There are three good ways to do this:

Use one of the infrared types to shoot the temp at the top of the radiator when the engine is up to temp. Very techy solution.

Let the engine cool, remove radiator cap and insert a candy thermometer into the radiator. Start'er up and compare readings as the engine warms up. Old fashioned and kind of fun!

Take it to a radiator shop and have them measure the radiator temp. Perfect for those that don't trust themselves or don't have thermometers.

Bill
 
P

petersimpson

engine temp

The thermostat I fitted said 82degress, is that the temperature that the engine should run at?

Peter
 
Alpine Bob

Alpine Bob

Donation Time
Peter,
We had the same problem with the series II, the temp gage ran at 195F, and was loosing coolent, 1st was the cap was not long enough to go all the way to the bottom of the neck, 2nd wat the gage was not correct (like Bill Blue said). We used one of those laser temp gages at the thermostat housing, it read 165F, that's what thermostat was. So, different cap, and then we will find a new gage that's accurate, and maybe the problem is solved. By the way, this is a block that was boiled out and clean.
 
Eleven

Eleven

Platinum Level Sponsor
Bill Blue said:
Peter, it is very common for the gauge to read 20 or so degrees hotter than actual temperature. So as Michael suggests, before getting any deeper into the project, verify the temperature with another thermometer. There are three good ways to do this:

Use one of the infrared types to shoot the temp at the top of the radiator when the engine is up to temp. Very techy solution.

Let the engine cool, remove radiator cap and insert a candy thermometer into the radiator. Start'er up and compare readings as the engine warms up. Old fashioned and kind of fun!

Take it to a radiator shop and have them measure the radiator temp. Perfect for those that don't trust themselves or don't have thermometers.

Bill
Click to expand...

Quick tip on the candy thermometer thing, don't let your wife catch you. I did that once...
 
B

Bill Blue

Platinum Level Sponsor
Eleven said:
Quick tip on the candy thermometer thing, don't let your wife catch you. I did that once...
Click to expand...

There must be a difference in wifes. Mine called out the temperature reading on her candy thermometer while I watched the dash gauge.

Bill
 
B

Bill Blue

Platinum Level Sponsor
petersimpson said:
The thermostat I fitted said 82degress, is that the temperature that the engine should run at?

Peter
Click to expand...

Yes, more or less. The coolant should start circulating through the radiator at about 82 and the temp should stay close to that most of the time. Temperature could top out at about 100 (maybe a little more) when driven hard, shutting down after a brisk drive, very hot day, etc.

Bill
 
O

odl21

my tiger usually goes up to about 105 in stop/go traffic on a hot day.

somehow, last sunday, while sitting in a toll booth queue in hot weather, i saw it go all the way up to the furthest limit of the guage :eek: no steam, creaking or boiling over and i don't think i have an extreme radiator pressure cap, so i'm assuming the guage is a bit dodgy and i'll never worry about 105/110 C readings again.
 
Nickodell

Nickodell

Donation Time
Peter: 82 deg C (180 F) is not overheating. If you want more cooling, especially in low speed and stop & go driving (where the regular fan can become overwhelmed in hot weather), fit an electric one. I did, 20 years ago, and have never regretted it. (The groan you hear is long-time forum readers recognizing one of my pet subjects :D )
 
RootesRooter

RootesRooter

Donation Time
You mentioned in your other Tech Tip subject that you recently installed new carbs. Any chance they're set too lean?

Also, how's your lower radiator hose? When they get old, they can collapse while running and restrict flow.
 
P

petersimpson

Over heating

I have just put a digital thermometer on the car.

The thermostat is 82deg.
The middle of the cars temp gauge is 77degs
The start of the red band on the temp gauge is 90deg

I put the probe next the cars temp senor closed the bonet and ran her up. Standing still in OK weather (21deg) she reached 92degs. Which was at the start of the red band on the temp gauge, but did not seem to go higher.

Any ideas what this means?
Thanks
Peter
 
B

Bill Blue

Platinum Level Sponsor
petersimpson said:
I have just put a digital thermometer on the car.

The thermostat is 82deg.
The middle of the cars temp gauge is 77degs
The start of the red band on the temp gauge is 90deg

I put the probe next the cars temp senor closed the bonet and ran her up. Standing still in OK weather (21deg) she reached 92degs. Which was at the start of the red band on the temp gauge, but did not seem to go higher.

Any ideas what this means?
Thanks
Peter
Click to expand...

DRIVE IT! The green/red markings on your temperature gauge have no meaning on a car with an 82 degree thermostat.

With a good radiator cap, it should go to 105 degrees with no problem.

Bill
 
RootesRooter

RootesRooter

Donation Time
If you're just bumping the edge of the red zone on your unnumbered late Series V temp gauge, and you say that equates to 92C, then it's drivable. The fact that you're running a 82C thermostat means you probably do have some cooling issues, but not enough to keep you from enjoying your car. I've always read that a hotter engine is more efficient, so I run a 195F thermostat and see about the same temps as you.

The temp guages found on all other Alpines read 85C at 'noon', and 120C at what would be the far right edge of your guage's red zone. When the needle approachs half-way between those marks is when I turn the heater(defroster) on and think about cracking open the hood.

Dick Sanders
Kent, WA
 
RootesRooter

RootesRooter

Donation Time
I didn't notice the first time I read it: you said your temp at the middle of the temp gauge was 77C. Regardless of the face design, if it's the stock, unnumbered gauge, the middle of the green band at TDC should be 85C, like the earlier gauges. That makes either your readings or your gauge suspect.

I'd hook up another, older gauge and compare results.
 
Nickodell

Nickodell

Donation Time
petersimpson said:
I have just put a digital thermometer on the car.

The thermostat is 82deg.
The middle of the cars temp gauge is 77degs
The start of the red band on the temp gauge is 90deg

I put the probe next the cars temp senor closed the bonet and ran her up. Standing still in OK weather (21deg) she reached 92degs. Which was at the start of the red band on the temp gauge, but did not seem to go higher.

Any ideas what this means?
Thanks
Peter
Click to expand...

It means that your cooling system, with the stock fan, can maintain 92 C (198 F) stationary when the ambient temp is 21 C (70 F). It should go down closer to the middle of the range once you're moving and have ram air going through the rad.
 
Pumpkin

Pumpkin

Donation Time
heating

While on the subject. I installed a new temp sencing unit Ser lV engine. Now no or very low reading?? Does it need to be grounded? Any one have a correct wiring diagram for the gage to the sencer?
Thanks
Chuck
 
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