Overheating solutions (help please!!!)...

G

grifterkid

Member
On a trip out in my 1974 auto' today it did the usual classic car trick of overheating...!!!

I was stop-start (the result of Fulham playing and Putney High Street being clogged with busses) for about 20-30 minutes which didn't do it any favours but I do believe that the car should not overheat after that short period of time...? I let the car cool for about twenty minutes, topped up with water (it didn't lose too much) and carried on so it wasn't a great trauma...

Anyhow, what do you folks recommend in terms of better radiator/fan combinations...? I think a good start is to get my radiator overhauled (after 35 years of water passing through it it may need a thorough de-clog/clean!) but after that I really do not know what to do, can I get a bigger, more efficient, fan?

I'm pretty sure something like this has been mentioned on here before but I thought I'd ask regardless...!

Any help, whatsoever, would be hugely appreciated... Thank you all in advance...
 
I have the same car from '73. The owner before me have mounted an extra expansion reservoir? i don't know if i used the correct English words but it is a bottle from the top of the radiator with cooling fluid,maybe i have a picture.
 
Hans said:
I have the same car from '73. The owner before me have mounted an extra expansion reservoir? i don't know if i used the correct English words but it is a bottle from the top of the radiator with cooling fluid,maybe i have a picture.
Click to expand...
A picture would be superb... :wink:
 
Hello Ash,

Having your radiator removed and overhauled is an excellent idea. The standard 2 core can certainly prove to be inadequate here in Australia, so I expect that the larger 3 core would be advantageous in the U.K too, especially with traffic flows all but stopping.

Retarded ignition timing can also add to overheating problems,...so do you know how much advance your engine is running at idle? The vacuum advance whether it is working or not plays no part here as being ported it offers no idle speed advance with the twin SU configuration.

A thorough flush of all coolant from the engine, new 82 degree thermostat if you are in any doubts about the current one. You might like to consider a thermo fan to act as a backup, or install a transmission oil cooler and bypass the inbuilt radiator unit all together.

Just food for thought,..:)

Ron.
 
grifterkid said:
Hans said:
I have the same car from '73. The owner before me have mounted an extra expansion reservoir? i don't know if i used the correct English words but it is a bottle from the top of the radiator with cooling fluid,maybe i have a picture.
Click to expand...
A picture would be superb... :wink:
Click to expand...

I fitted one from an SD1
Gettingthere070709.jpg

I also have a whacking great 14" electric fan in front of the rad which helps a lot too.

Best to backflush the rad, and the engine too

Richard
 
The V8 is generally recognised to be under-cooled! Getting a three row core put in your radiator will solve this at a stroke. You should be able to find a local company doing radiator overhauls in your Yellow Pages - they are surprisingly common thanks to the needs of construction plant and the like. While they are at it get them to fit a thermostatic switch from a modern car into the hot side header tank - then you'll have all the electrics you need if you decide to go on to get an electric fan.

While the rad is out, make sure you back flush the engine and also the heater matrix. Have a good poke around and check the passages you can get to in the inlet manifold are not blocked. And fit a new thermostat. Standard setting is fine once the new rad is in.

Finally fit an expansion tank as per Quattro's photo. It is astonishing that Rover didn't fit these as standard and they make a big difference.

This will give you a robust cooling system. If you want to go on to win some extra power and improve your fuel economy then fitting an electric fan instead of an engine driven one is a good plan. Absolutely no point in having both! You should be able to cope with an efficient 10" one, but they are so easy to source and fit either twin fans or the bigget one you can fit in seem a good idea! Look out your local scrapyard, most modern cars will have something suitable.

Chris
 
Certainly some good advice here folks, thanks a million... Quattro, could you possibly show me some more pictures of your expansion tank set-up...?! I would like to know where the excess water goes in (at the top I presume?) and where it leaves to go back into the rad'... I had a 3-litre Capri that always used to overheat and on one under-bonnet excursion I realised that the expansion tank was not connected, after I hooked it up all was well...!!! I cannot believe Rover didn't think to fit one back in the day... :shock: Anyhow with a three core radiator and an expansion tank I think I may well get a little more traffic confidence back... :LOL: Thanks all...
 
Just remember whilst any improvements may help, that these cars once drudged the streets daily (mine still does) and never littered the roads waiting for the AA :)
As long as everything is in good order they should be up to the job in my experience unless you start upping the performance.
Check everything is clear, rad, heater and block also check the water return from the inlet manifold to the top of the rad, a common loss of circulation which sometimes requires a small drill bit to clear :shock:
An electric fan is a good upgrade generally as you ditch the noisy fuel sapping standard one but make sure you get one man enough enough to do the job of the removed item :wink:
They're a simple sytem which only needs one badly maintained link to cause an issue.
 
grifterkid said:
Quattro, could you possibly show me some more pictures of your expansion tank set-up...?! I would like to know where the excess water goes in (at the top I presume?) and where it leaves to go back into the rad'...
Click to expand...

Not taken very many pics of this I'm afraid - this is the best one.

Just remove the overflow pipe from the rad, and connect a suitable size hose to the fitting. Connect the other end of the hose to the bottom of the header tank. Connect the overflow pipe to the top fitting of the header tank. Put the pressure cap on the header tank and get a flat cap (No spring - not a pressure release type) for the rad.

The tank is now part of the pressurised system. When the water gets hot it excpands and fills into the tank (compressing the air as it does). When it cools again, the water goes back into the rad always ensuring a full radiator.

100_8134.jpg
 
I had alot of overheating problems with my v8,i fitted a new waterpump,thermostat,flushed the system twice and it was still doin the same,after alot of headaches i got my radiator recored 2 a 3 core,it now runs like a dream and u can let it tickover all day and it wont overheat,good luck Bri
 
bri p6rover said:
I had alot of overheating problems with my v8,i fitted a new waterpump,thermostat,flushed the system twice and it was still doin the same,after alot of headaches i got my radiator recored 2 a 3 core,it now runs like a dream and u can let it tickover all day and it wont overheat,good luck Bri
Click to expand...
3 core it is then...!!!
 
Hope you sort it out, last summer was annoying to say the least with my v8 overheating.
On that subject, how much have people paid for getting the 3 row?
I've been quoted 185 + vat.
Does that sound expensive?
 
A tad on the high side perhaps, but well in the ball park. Don't forget you're getting a fully overhauled rad for that, not just the bigger core.

Chris
 
DaveHerns said:
Putney High St in a P6 - I think that's asking for trouble
Do you know Hammersmith Bridge has reopened ?
Click to expand...
All I know is that I should've checked the football fixtures before setting off on my favourite Kings Road cruise...!!! It was a bloody nightmare to day the least but you have to be able to trust your motor to sit for at least half an hour before it starts to boil up... I was so close to the A3 (and air-flow!) that it just added insult to injury...
 
corazon said:
Hope you sort it out, last summer was annoying to say the least with my v8 overheating.
On that subject, how much have people paid for getting the 3 row?
I've been quoted 185 + vat.
Does that sound expensive?
Click to expand...
I've asked a couple of radiator company's for some 3-row overhaul quotes so I will put them on here to give you a comparison... :wink:
 
I've just been quoted 130+vat for a high flow 2 core and 150+vat for a 3 core through a friend.
Assuming my rad is probably at half the original cooling capacity now, how much noticeable difference does anyone reckon between the two options?
 
For the sake of £20 it's got to be the 3-row core. Even if it was more it's still to option to go for, I had one fitted years ago & apart from in traffic you don't need the fan switched on at all.
 
corazon said:
I've just been quoted 130+vat for a high flow 2 core and 150+vat for a 3 core through a friend.
Assuming my rad is probably at half the original cooling capacity now, how much noticeable difference does anyone reckon between the two options?
Click to expand...
From the quotes I've had recently that sounds about right money wise... Go three row, there is no point in not doing it seeing as (1) the radiator will be out anyway and (2) it'll help keep that beast nice and cool...!!!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top