Overheating during idling???

[ELnino]

Yesterday i went to melaka, on my way, stop by at Lukut. I went to buy something at the shop and left my wife in the car with engine running...after about 30 minutes, i went back to my car and found out the aircond is not cold as normal...n i see the temperature goes up..i check the engine, fan running, water just top up...i call my mechanic, he advice me to continue drive because too long left the engine idling, fan is not enough to cover the engine temperature + hot weather..follow what he said...the temperature back to normal...Is it normal for this car to have temperature high during idling?

 

[king82]

shouldn't be, i guess...i get stuck in the jam in kl most of the time...30mins, 1 hr...but the temperature sticks to the middle...perhaps there's something wrong with your water ventilation or cooling system?

 

[ELnino]

but in this case bro, the car not even move..same like ur warm up ur car...for more than 40 minutes...if in the traffice jam, at least u move a bit or at least press ur paddle.. i've test it yesterday, let the engine running about 40 minutes..temperature move a bit..then i press paddle to rpm around 2 without moving the car, temperature went down back..

 

[infinityKL]

not normal, pls check ur whole cooling system... too many possibilities to list down..

 

[awyeah]

I had a similar problem during idling once, but in my case the aircon fan was not running, and radiator water was 2/3. In the end aircon wiring was loose, and radiator was leaking.

Temperature above the 50-55% mark is not normal. I constantly monitor mine. During idle it should remain around 50%.

Major things in the cooling system to check will be:
Water pump, aircon fan, radiator, hoses, pipes, any leakages.

The mechanic should know.

 

[Grand]

I had similar problem with my E39 previously. When the car is idling or stationery, the first symptom is you feel the air cond not cold. If you still don't move or still stuck in a jam, the temp will start to rise. Found out later that when car is stationery, the air cond fan (or whatever you call it) is not moving, thus you don't get cold air from air cond vent and causing the engine temperature to rise. Sent the car to naidu and he couldn't figure out what is the problem except to say could be some faulty electrical items which need time to sort out. Found out much later (at least applicable to my car) that when you are stationery, try to press the accelerator a bit (of course with your left leg depressing the brake very hard) and when the rpm goes up, you will know that the air cond fan has begun to run as you will be able to feel the cool air coming in. Temp wouldn't rise as the air cond fan would also have the effect of cooling the engine bay. That's why when your car is moving, you wouldn't have this problem as the constant pressing of the accelerator and high rpm would keep the air cond fan operating. No harm giving it a try. :smokin:

 

[jackyhung]

it might be your thermostat bro..had the same symptom before, after change thermostat temperature normal back..

 

[prime5]

happened to my e34 b4..same symptom as urs n grand..check with my mech, its the fan motor kaput..changed it and everything okay now.

 

[affan66]

first, check if coolant/water is enough
second, check fan (aircond fan first if working then check engine fan, could be fan clutch already not running efficiently)
third, check for blockages - water pump / thermostat. Can't remember which one, but one of the hoses will be freakin' hot while the other much cooler.

 

[ELnino]

emmm...i will sent my car...for u guyz info... i have new waterpump n thermostat installed last month

 

[king82]

i see...then maybe could be hoses or the auxiliary fan?

when the engine is hot, the auxiliary fan is supposed to run a bit faster, then slow down again when engine is cooled down...is yours the same?

 

[ICEMAN 68]

. Sent the car to naidu and he couldn't figure out what is the problem except to say could be some faulty electrical items which need time to sort out. Found out much later (at least applicable to my car) that when you are stationery, try to press the accelerator a bit (of course with your left leg depressing the brake very hard) and when the rpm goes up, you will know that the air cond fan has begun to run as you will be able to feel the cool air coming in. Temp wouldn't rise as the air cond fan would also have the effect of cooling the engine bay. That's why when your car is moving, you wouldn't have this problem as the constant pressing of the accelerator and high rpm would keep the air cond fan operating. No harm giving it a try. :smokin:

wow bro 1st time hearing that you need to press the accelerator a bit during stationery ...i believe you'll soon be facing problem by burning up your autobox as you're putting load on the car when it's stationary and the same time your brake pads are increasing in temp ....

just my 2 cento

 

[king82]

hm...usually when i'm stuck in a jam, i'll put the gear into neutral and just step on the gas a bit...not while it's on drive...

 

[Hammer278]

but in this case bro, the car not even move..same like ur warm up ur car...for more than 40 minutes...if in the traffice jam, at least u move a bit or at least press ur paddle.. i've test it yesterday, let the engine running about 40 minutes..temperature move a bit..then i press paddle to rpm around 2 without moving the car, temperature went down back..

Sounds like the fan isn't running fast enough? If you had to press your accel a bit (fan runs faster) to get the temp back to normal...time to get the ol newspaper and roll it up........:smokin: Kidding. Don't use newspaper trick. But it looks like anything connected to the fan could be at fault here.....

 

[king82]

Sounds like the fan isn't running fast enough? If you had to press your accel a bit (fan runs faster) to get the temp back to normal...time to get the ol newspaper and roll it up........:smokin: Kidding. Don't use newspaper trick. But it looks like anything connected to the fan could be at fault here.....

do you mean using some newspaper to cover the nose? to heat up the engine faster and see if the fan's speed increase? that's what my mechanic did when he was testing whether the engine will overheat and he explained to me that when the engine is hot, the fan is supposed to run faster...

 

[jarance]

Check or change the fan clutch. If you need to rev the engine up a bit to bring down the temperature back to 50%, it mean that the fan clutch is not turning fast enough to cool down the engine.

 

[ICEMAN 68]

Check or change the fan clutch. If you need to rev the engine up a bit to bring down the temperature back to 50%, it mean that the fan clutch is not turning fast enough to cool down the engine.

ha ha ha yep that's the culprit i guess ...fan clutch ....

 

[jarance]

do you mean using some newspaper to cover the nose? to heat up the engine faster and see if the fan's speed increase? that's what my mechanic did when he was testing whether the engine will overheat and he explained to me that when the engine is hot, the fan is supposed to run faster...

No lar, the newpaper trick is to roll up the newpaper and shaft it to the fan blade of the clutch fan to stop it from spinning. If it stop easily, it means that the clutch fan is slipping more than it should. :smokin:

 

[king82]

No lar, the newpaper trick is to roll up the newpaper and shaft it to the fan blade of the clutch fan to stop it from spinning. If it stop easily, it means that the clutch fan is slipping more than it should. :smokin:

oh i see...

 

[Hammer278]

Check or change the fan clutch. If you need to rev the engine up a bit to bring down the temperature back to 50%, it mean that the fan clutch is not turning fast enough to cool down the engine.

+1 to the above.