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Engine Specific Info and Questions => IDI Engine => Topic started by: mk2vr6 on January 01, 2007, 07:20:32 am
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Hey guys.
My other diesel that I owned (stock 92 N/A 1.6) would usually hold a temperature (according to the coolant temp gauge on the cluster) slightly higher than the middle temp mark, and would go higher if I was going up steep hills, fully loaded car, etc.
This newer TD reads a temp around half-way between the middle temp mark and the 3/4 temp mark. I realise this is hotter than its supposed to be but I don't know if its the cluster or temp sensor reading poorly. To top it off, the fans don't come on until it hits a temp of around 3/4's, and then when it does, its for about 15-20 seconds andthen stops for about 2 minutes before it comes on for another 15-20 seconds, which doesnt seem to do much.
Is this normal for the turbo diesels or should I look into replacing a coolant temp sensor or even a thermostat?
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look into replacing the coolant temp sensor, if the fan comes on at 3/4's and ur gauge hangs around there normally it sounds like thats about normal it should actually read in the middle, both of my cars don't have the fan come on until the temp sensor is a bit past the middle.
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i'm going to be getting a gauge that will give me a good accurate reading of the actual temperature of the coolant. i dont like how the gauge doesn't really have any numbers to judge by...
but my thermostat opens in between the middle and 3/4 mark. on the highway and on really cold days it will reach the 3/4 mark and hold it there. in the summer i was seeing it slowly climb further with a/c on... i may have a faulty thermoswitch :(
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i think i have the same problem, im going to be replacing my thermostat soon too. I dont like seeing it stay at 3/4 all the time.
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i'm going to be getting a gauge that will give me a good accurate reading of the actual temperature of the coolant. i dont like how the gauge doesn't really have any numbers to judge by...
but my thermostat opens in between the middle and 3/4 mark. on the highway and on really cold days it will reach the 3/4 mark and hold it there. in the summer i was seeing it slowly climb further with a/c on... i may have a faulty thermoswitch :(
What do you mean by faulty thermoswitch? Is it a big pain in the butt to replace?
I've done thermostats and such before, but I just don't want to be taking crap apart and fixing a problem that isnt there. I replaced a thermostat in a VR6 which turned out to be a faulty sensor. That wasn't too fun. Definitely the hardest thermostat to have to get to.
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thermoswitches are easy, but if comes on you're fine. but all you do is unscrew it make sure you have something to catch the antifreeze, then screw the new one in
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i have powersteering in the way, probably why i havent done it yet
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? it's on the drivers side?
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well i was told there is a bracket for the power steering that is in the way of getting to the thermostat. but no it would be on the passenger side. by the water pump right
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So you're referring to the switch that turns the fan on, at the bottom of the rad on the drivers side?
Ya, my fan comes on, but it seems kind of intermittant which is why I was leaning towards it being a coolant temp sensor problem. Does that make any sense?
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My fan motor (91 ECO-D) has 3 circuits. There are 2 balast resistors built into the end of the motor. At least one was burnt and I've trashed the other trying to fix it.
This COULD be why the fan kicks on at a high temp. It may be tring a dead leg at the middle temps.
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OK, so how could I fix this or test this?? Or more importantly where could I get a replacement resistor? I have that as well on the back of the fan motor and obviously soldering the wires on to a new resistor is easy (although mine has spade connectors anyways so that wouldn't be necesary).
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my spade connectors had fried off. If yours are intact it should be an easy fix. The resistors are integral to the motor under a riveted plate. I'm going to try to use some off the shelf bablst resitor.
Has anybody here ever measured the resistance or seen a writen spec?
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i would assume it would say on the resistor, that is if it hasnt been rubbed out.
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they are thin Stainless foils without markings. They were sandwiched between mica sheets, between 2 Al plates stood off the back of the motor a few mm.
The labels on the motor were long gone and the harness connector was half melted and half embrittled. There are lug numbers but no boiler plate.
The actual numbers aren't that important. The motor will run at some reduced speed(s) and the R's will either last or they won't. I'll try to expose them to some airflow without letting them get wet (NOTE: "Try")
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i've tested the connector that goes to the thermoswitch (different than the thermostat, which is YES definitely a big PITA since the power steering pump is in direct interference.. i may switch my car to mechanical steering in the future... less aggravation and one less thing to break :))
ok back on topic... the leads from the thermoswitch do work as i have jumped them, and the fan works on both speeds. but i do not think that the thermoswitch is opening the circuit at the correct temps. probably due to guy i bought it from putting in a cheap napa one that blows... i will always buy thermostats and thermoswitches from my owasco dealer from now on. i love my thermostat and will never EVER try a different one. i nearly get heat coming out of my vents after 3 minutes of being on. my last thermostat would barely give any heat after 8 minutes of driving... you get what you pay for i guess...
one thing you can check for too is corrosion on the contacts... it's fairly common as there is a lot of current running through that connection. your best bet is to get penetrating lube and either spray the connector & thermoswitch and just insert it repeatedly, or get a wire brush and try that. i'm not 100% sure if mine have contact, but i did clean them really well.
btw.. what resistor are you guys talking about? there is one built into the fan for high/lo and there is also an ultra low speed for A/C with the resister attached to the fan itself. if that resistor blows the fan should still kick on lo/hi, but a/c won't work (but if your resistor is blown, there is probably no gas left in your system from the overheat...)
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I've got the resistor on the back of the fan motor for the A/C, and the A/C works so it must work. And the fan DOES come on for me but only once the temp gauge has reached 3/4. And, it seems, that it comes on and off for a few mins and then once it hits a certain temp it appears to no longer come on at all.
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My particular 91 eco has 2 resistors integral with the rear of the fan motor (it's the one motor / 2 fans unit).
One was fried along with the big 5 or 6 wire connector and the other one suffered fatigue from me f*king with it.
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It's perfectly normal to see these cars run just above halfway,or even a little closer to the 3/4 mark.It will go higher when pushed hard,running hills,or with the A/C on in hot weather.
To change the start on the cars with PS,you need to get it out of the way.Without A/C,it's a 3 min job.The hardest part is getting the thermostat up in there,with the o ring in place,and getting it to stay in place while you get the housing back on.
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My rabbit has weird problems, like very little heat inside the car with 180F or 195F t stats. With the 195 the temp needle is on the bottom red line, with the 180 the needle is in the middle. I put the temp sender in boiling water(207F at my altitude) and the needle was just under the 3/4 mark. Does that mean I've been running at 220F all the time? I've driven about 1000mi with the needle in the red and it still works fine. About the heater, both heater hoses are so hot I can't hold either one of 'em but the air coming out is not very warm, it's also a new heater core. I've had the heater box out a couple times checking for air leaks and there are none. I put a thermometer in the stream of coolant the shoots back into the reservior and with the 180 t stat the temp was 165F, with the 195 t stat the temp was 187F. Thats over 20* more with a t stat thats only 15* hotter. :?
Any help will be very nice as I have racked my brain for a month or two trying to solve the problem :roll: By the way, this is a sweet site w/ tons of good info :D
P.S I live Alaska so a good heater is a must! It's -30F right now and getting colder. Driving at -25F is normal :cry: poor car :roll:
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Either the heater core is plugged,or your temperature blend door is out of adjustment or broken.
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Yeah... I'd definitely check that heater control valve there in the engine compartment. I've had a few fail on me, but it's a pretty cheap part ($15) and pretty easy to change (when it's not -30 out, that is).
Seems like your engine is getting plenty warm...
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hmmm here to dig up this thread again... my car still heats up quite a bit on a hard run.
funny thing, is that at idle the car's temp is PERFECT. same with another jetta I have. except the other jetta has another problem. drive it down the road, and the temp gauge falls dramatically... weird... the faster I drive with my current jetta though, the hotter it gets. (especially confusing when there's a -10C headwind.....)
so my guess is that the rad cap is faulty and not bleeding out some of the air pressure in the system, creating an air lock in the rad.
oh and I KNOW for a fact that the rad fan is not coming on either... the temp climbs steady too. rad fan does come on at idle though... I've considered water pump, but I haven't noticed any sudden drops in RPM to indicate belt slip.