Just a suggestion - I have a 90 16V along with my diesel car- I was having trouble with the temp climbing on it. I changed to propylene glycol (ams oil, about 2X price of regular anti-freeze), but that cured any trouble I had with temperature issues. It removes heat better than ethylene glycol.
Just a suggestion - I have a 90 16V along with my diesel car- I was having trouble with the temp climbing on it. I changed to propylene glycol (ams oil, about 2X price of regular anti-freeze), but that cured any trouble I had with temperature issues. It removes heat better than ethylene glycol.
Here, propylene glycol is used for RV - camper water systems. its about 2/3 the price of regular anti-freeze, but does not have the anti-corrosion chemicals normal anti-freeze has. Does yours have these additives?
While complicated, the OEM VW cooling system is one of the better ones out there. If everything is in good working order, there should not be any circumstance where it is inadequate for cooling the engine down. Most VW's tend to run a little hot anyway, it's uncomfortable sometimes but they can handle it.
Some things I have noticed that seem to help a lot though:
The factory oil cooler/warmer is junk, and should be one of the first things you should get rid of. It's a good idea, I can understand why they did it that way- the oil warms up quicker which passes heat on to the coolant to help the whole engine warm up faster. Then the cooler coolant helps wick off heat from the oil. Problem is under high stress- highway driving when it's hot, followed by stop-go traffic, the oil is quite warm, and the coolant gets really hot, so there is nowhere for the heat to go. Besides that, the oil warmers tend to develop pinhole leaks internally, which causes oil/water to mix and you have a big problem on your hands. A thermostatically controlled air/oil cooler is the way to go. The Volvo piece is a near drop-in replacement. This will help cool the oil better under high loads, and keep some of that load away from the coolant.
Always use a cooler thermostat, unless you live somewhere where it never gets above 40 degrees. Generally one step cooler is best, and what I like to do is drill a small 1/8" or so size hole in the flange on the thermostat, this lets coolant weep through before the thermostat opens, and also makes for "burping" the system much easier and has little effect on the warm-up characteristics. Make sure to swap out the fan switch with one that also comes on at a cooler temperature.
Use the specified VW coolant. Lots of people complain about this, "the vw stuff is a ripoff, the green is the same, it's all a government conspiracy, blah blah"... In my experience, VW cooling systems ALWAYS perform better with OEM coolant. VW engineered it, and designed the cooling system to use it, so that is what I'm gonna use. Order the stuff from a known retailer like German Auto Parts, their cost plus shipping is still usually less than what a VW dealer wants for it. It does also help to drop in a bottle of Redline Water wetter or equivalent as well which seems to keep the temps more stable.
The obvious things, like condition of hoses, leaks, coolant flushing, etc... are pretty self-explanatory.
If everything is working correctly, your car WILL NOT overheat, I don't care what you are doing to it.
Brendan
not with my 11mm pump head and big turbo.... my turbo is so big I cruise with 0 psi boost @70mph...lol
do NA vw's have oil coolers??
Just curious, what is your egt when cruising at 0 psi @70mph? Thanks
While complicated, the OEM VW cooling system is one of the better ones out there. If everything is in good working order, there should not be any circumstance where it is inadequate for cooling the engine down. Most VW's tend to run a little hot anyway, it's uncomfortable sometimes but they can handle it.
Some things I have noticed that seem to help a lot though:
The factory oil cooler/warmer is junk, and should be one of the first things you should get rid of. It's a good idea, I can understand why they did it that way- the oil warms up quicker which passes heat on to the coolant to help the whole engine warm up faster. Then the cooler coolant helps wick off heat from the oil. Problem is under high stress- highway driving when it's hot, followed by stop-go traffic, the oil is quite warm, and the coolant gets really hot, so there is nowhere for the heat to go. Besides that, the oil warmers tend to develop pinhole leaks internally, which causes oil/water to mix and you have a big problem on your hands. A thermostatically controlled air/oil cooler is the way to go. The Volvo piece is a near drop-in replacement. This will help cool the oil better under high loads, and keep some of that load away from the coolant.
Always use a cooler thermostat, unless you live somewhere where it never gets above 40 degrees. Generally one step cooler is best, and what I like to do is drill a small 1/8" or so size hole in the flange on the thermostat, this lets coolant weep through before the thermostat opens, and also makes for "burping" the system much easier and has little effect on the warm-up characteristics. Make sure to swap out the fan switch with one that also comes on at a cooler temperature.
Use the specified VW coolant. Lots of people complain about this, "the vw stuff is a ripoff, the green is the same, it's all a government conspiracy, blah blah"... In my experience, VW cooling systems ALWAYS perform better with OEM coolant. VW engineered it, and designed the cooling system to use it, so that is what I'm gonna use. Order the stuff from a known retailer like German Auto Parts, their cost plus shipping is still usually less than what a VW dealer wants for it. It does also help to drop in a bottle of Redline Water wetter or equivalent as well which seems to keep the temps more stable.
The obvious things, like condition of hoses, leaks, coolant flushing, etc... are pretty self-explanatory.
If everything is working correctly, your car WILL NOT overheat, I don't care what you are doing to it.
Brendan
well I really appreciate your post and info..but I'm not sure I agree that if everything is new or in working order ito wont over heat or run warm...
my car's cooling system specs as of right now..
ALL new hoses
new water pump
new (stock) tstat
new Diesel rad with ac
new heater core
passat dual fan
cooler temp fan switch
new res cap
clean and clear res
Shell RED VW spec coolant at 60/40 mix.....
NO oil cooler hooked up right now.
no leaks..
runs at 205* and if I stay on it for a long climb I could probably over heat it...although I'm really to scared to test the theory....3/4 up on the gauge is too warm for my liking..
so you tell me what else can be done???
I know some engines run warmer with headers and maybe that's a possibility with this as well??
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/92-95-vw-corrado-vr6-godspeed-aluminum-radiator+12%22-fan_W0QQitemZ130332998564QQcmdZViewItemQQimsxZ20090924?IMSfp=TL0909241810002r7285
WOW !! That's some serious cash !! I got an all aluminum radiator that is about 25% larger than my stock VW radiator for my Caravan conversion. Paid $95 delivered with lifetime warranty http://www.radiators.com It works well enough that I stayed at 195 degrees (my new thermostat setting) in the heat of the summer pulling a camper at 70 mph !
I kept my VW reservoir as it does a good job of getting the air out of your system. In a VW, the head is usually a little higher than the top of the radiator, so this is an important feature and I suspect why the German's used this design.
I should also probably note that my oil cooler has not been hooked up so maybe thats the whole problem?
Oil performs a significant amount of cooling for your internal engine parts... with your turbo your oil likely sees 400 F !
got any pics of your rad???
I got on their web site did the online chat....what a bunch of dumb ass's...I asked them 6 times what the rads were made from brass..copper or aluminum...just keep side stepping the questions and then finally disconnected me...
they wont be getting my business either way...
oh I was thinking you got a VW specific rad....but that looks like a van rad right?? just slightly bigger/thicker??
my brother in law owns a radiator shop....I was thinking I may just go look through his books and find one with the specs I need.
I was thinking about picking up a new Jeep Cherokee rad...they are short and long and would probably fit the vw front end well.?
maybe my HG is slightly leaking??
I'm gonna put it back together and get the res sniffed for hydrocarbons...that will tell me if I have a small HG leak.
I know from experience the HO rads from the cherokee would be better for the dub. pre 91 has the open system like our VW's. I used to own 3 of them.
You are a smart dude, probably know this, and if your brother in law has a rad shop he will tell you as well. That Al cools better than copper. Even if it is the same size dimmentionally if one rad has more fins, cores, it will cool better if made from the same material to another in comparison. So a newer style jeep rad that is the same size as a factory VW from the late 80 or early 90s will probably cool better.
I also have found to run 50/50 instead of 60/40 on my antifreeze setup. Seems like the more water the cooler they run. Water wetter absolutely rules as well. Every vehicle I have added it to has at LEAST a 20 degree F temp drop on the gauge.
I know from experience the HO rads from the cherokee would be better for the dub. pre 91 has the open system like our VW's. I used to own 3 of them.
yeah I owned xj's aswell...thats what got me thinking of that system...I will have to see what I can find.
thanks