113 in Vegas, '05 CRD running hot for first time: threads?

Gypsy62 · **Posted:** Wed Jul 15, 2015 12:06 pm

Pro Subaru mechanic but needed a 4wd ground-towable, so scooped the CRD.
I LOVE THIS THING!
No GDE-tune yet, but getting 23.5 mpg turning 2750 rpm at 95mph hwy cruising. In fact, cruising 85 I got 22.5mpg; this thing LOVES 95mph!*

So, even driving for hours at 95mph I've never had ANY above-center temp gauge readings. Enter 113 degrees in the Vegas shade, and I've got the heater on high half the time to keep the temp at 'level'.
No A/C = NOT FUN !!!

I tried but failed to find threads that illuminated issues, suggestions and cures for elevated engine temps. Any directions appreciated!

As I prepare for a crash-course in CRD engine-cooling, I thank in advance those that have paid their dues under-hood and generously share their experience and knowledge!
As soon as I have access to an AC'd garage, I intend to proceed with the many other CRD mods advised within this forum.
I ran multiple Ford 6.9 idi's over 50K miles on WVO (extensive pre-heating/filtration mods) and look forward to eventually doing same to the CRD.

Gypsy :rockon:

*Pardon to the law-a-biting puritans, but I reside and travel in the Big West and when driving on divided-highway interstates, my trusty radar and I prefer to get from point A to B in an efficient, sober, cell-free state... remember, in Europe, grandma's drive 200kph/125mph all day. As Johnny doing 20 for a Texas joint says to his tax-paying wholesale pot-grower chums in WA and CO, "The 'Law' is relative"...
Maintain your vehicle, WATCH THE ROAD; drive safe!

pjigar · **Posted:** Wed Jul 15, 2015 12:50 pm

Most likely the clutch for the mechanical fan is not kicking in. Or air in the cooling system?

Replacement clutch: http://www.amazon.com/Hayden-Automotive ... B002WLFAB4

Drewd · **Joined:** Mon Feb 06, 2006 12:24 pm **Posts:** 902

Dittos on the clutch fan.

woodtick · **Posted:** Thu Jul 16, 2015 12:04 pm

Make.sure the radiator is clogged externally. Also check that the HOAT coolant was used or there could be clogging issues in the engine and/or radiator

thefunk · **Posted:** Thu Jul 16, 2015 1:19 pm

some guys in your neck of the woods (aka Outskirts of Hell) have put an 11-blade fan from the "towing package" equipped 3.7 liter rigs in their CRD's to improve cooling. Direct bolt on replacement but you -should- use a heavy duty clutch, which is I think the one mentioned above. It's been discussed at length here and at jeepkj.

Also, make sure your rad/evaporator/intercooler stack is clean. bugs and grime do more harm to airflow through all these radiators than people think...

Gypsy62 · **Posted:** Wed Oct 05, 2016 10:55 am

Year-Plus update:
I just started tearing off the grill etc. to do the HG/Rockers/TBelt etc. Holy Crap! I'm now convinced that a BIG part of my 'heating-up' issue was the oem AC condenser/AT cooler combo unit mounted on front of the radiator; the thing is majorly bugged-up and doesn't look like it's been blown clean since new!

mass-hole · **Posted:** Wed Oct 05, 2016 11:58 am

Gypsy62 wrote:

Year-Plus update:
I just started tearing off the grill etc. to do the HG/Rockers/TBelt etc. Holy Crap! I'm now convinced that a BIG part of my 'heating-up' issue was the oem AC condenser/AT cooler combo unit mounted on front of the radiator; the thing is majorly bugged-up and doesn't look like it's been blown clean since new!

This. The A/C condenser is the densest core of the three and of course sits directly in the front and catches all the bugs. I just had mine apart to do the TB/rockers/ARP studs and the condenser was full of crap but the CAC and Radiator were almost completely clean.

I have been fighting an overheat issue over the summer. The first thing I did was had a shop machine flush the system and replace the coolant since it was getting old, didnt help at all. I then replaced the OEM mechanical fan clutch with a Hayden HD Clutch, helped ever so slightly but still overheated. Replaces the tstat with a fresh one I had, no change. Had a radiator shop test for a head gasket leak, came back negative. I then decided it was either the radiator or waterpump so i did the timing belt/studs/rockers/water pump and pulled the end tanks off the radiator to inspect while it was out. Radiator was clear except for a thin film of crap so I left it overnight in a bath of radiator flush. Put it back together and the first ride out it got hot again. So its wasn't the waterpump.

Last ditch effort, since I had already temporarily refilled it with distilled water until I could buy new coolant, I decided to put in 2 bottles of Prestone Radiator Flush in with the distilled water. I ran it for a few days, and each time I took it out it seemed to get slightly better. I pulled some pretty serious grades right away, like heading into the Uinta national forest climbing from 6500 to 10000 ft, where it did get a bit warm but not over 101C. Before this is was getting to 107-108C no problem. By day 3 my temps were pretty much rock solid at 95C or less(my tstat temp) and in most cases I could not even get it hot enough to trigger the electric fan I put in place of the mechanical fan which was set at 97C. It seems the system just needed a good flushing even thought the 1st thing I did was have the shop flush it. I dont know if they just didnt do it at all, or if their flush just was not effective, but it was the first thing i did and it didnt work.

At this point I would say that anyone who does a timing belt job, or is just draining their coolant, run a round of distilled water and a heavy dose of flush followed by a 2nd round of straight distilled water to clear it out before refilling with G-05. I may just do this yearly in the spring from now on.

I am also trying out Redline's Diesel Water Wetter. Its the same as their regular Water Wetter but does not have the anti-corrosive additives as it is intended to be used in coolant solutions that already have that stuff. Supposedly it will help keep things from getting too hot but we shall see.

Gypsy62 · **Posted:** Thu Oct 06, 2016 3:56 pm

Many thanks for your saga; VERY informative!

When I did the 11-blade/Hayden-clutch/HOAT* update my heating issue improved, but only modestly. After reviewing reports of other LJ running temps, I realized mine is definitely not to the benchmark 'Norm' when subjected to the combination of high ambient temps and 'loading' (climbing and/or weight).
I'd been anticipating that the fresh pump/thermo would likely help my heating issue, but now I'll do a thorough-issimo flush (maybe twice).
Thanks again!

* I used CAT (red) diesel-rated coolant from NAPA. It seemed reasonable to presume that their stuff would possess similar anti-pitting properties to anybody else's(?).

papaindigo · **Posted:** Thu Oct 06, 2016 4:13 pm

I would not "presume" anything about anyone's antifreeze unless it's the recommended HOAT antifreeze as opposed to OAT or "universal" or whatever. Stick with Mopar, Xerex G-05, or Motor Craft Premium Gold.

For what it's worth my son's 06 never ever got hot in Tempe, AZ and that includes temps well over 100F and towing a fully loaded uHaul 5x8 trailer behind his 06 fully loaded on the way home from Tempe to Tallahassee. For what it's worth some 05s came from the factory with an incorrectly calibrated temp gauge (set for gasser not diesel). See http://www.greendieselengineering.com/j ... st/19.page . If your problem does not go away it would be worth investing a few $s in a good IR temp gauge to check actual temp at tstat housing if the gauge goes high in the future. The TSB is TSB 08-043-05. If you want a copy email, not PM me. I had this issue way back when, light towing on the flat in 98F weather with AC on caused the gauge to go to 3/4 mark. Idiot service writer even with TSB in front of him wanted to stick me with let's diagnose overheating problem. I told him no way would I pay for that; demanded they hook up scanner (takes like 10 minutes) and check calibration; if calibration is off fix per TSB; if not I'll pay for the 10 minutes and then we can discuss diagnosis. Needless to say calibration was off.

mass-hole · **Posted:** Fri Oct 07, 2016 11:22 am

papaindigo wrote:

I would not "presume" anything about anyone's antifreeze unless it's the recommended HOAT antifreeze as opposed to OAT or "universal" or whatever. Stick with Mopar, Xerex G-05, or Motor Craft Premium Gold.

For what it's worth my son's 06 never ever got hot in Tempe, AZ and that includes temps well over 100F and towing a fully loaded uHaul 5x8 trailer behind his 06 fully loaded on the way home from Tempe to Tallahassee. For what it's worth some 05s came from the factory with an incorrectly calibrated temp gauge (set for gasser not diesel). See http://www.greendieselengineering.com/j ... st/19.page . If your problem does not go away it would be worth investing a few $s in a good IR temp gauge to check actual temp at tstat housing if the gauge goes high in the future. The TSB is TSB 08-043-05. If you want a copy email, not PM me. I had this issue way back when, light towing on the flat in 98F weather with AC on caused the gauge to go to 3/4 mark. Idiot service writer even with TSB in front of him wanted to stick me with let's diagnose overheating problem. I told him no way would I pay for that; demanded they hook up scanner (takes like 10 minutes) and check calibration; if calibration is off fix per TSB; if not I'll pay for the 10 minutes and then we can discuss diagnosis. Needless to say calibration was off.

So GDE is totally cool with this thing running at 239F. Interesting. I was pooping my pants when it would get to 107-108C(226F) so I guess ill relax a bit.

Gypsy62 · **Posted:** Thu Oct 13, 2016 2:27 am

I pulled the radiator for my HG(etc) job and noticed that one of the radiator hoses has an internal 'form-spring' at one end but nothing inside the other end to prevent 'hose-collapse'. Makes me wonder if that's a normal oem CRD rad-hose. Maybe the combo of scorching desert temps and high internal engine temps creates a pressure differential within the cooling system that can cause the 'un-sprung' stretch of rad hose to (partially) collapse.
Random restricted flow = random spiking gauge...? Seems kinda' counter-intuitive (pressure vs vacuum in the same system), but I'm pretty sure I've seen that elsewhere before.
Is this hose normal?
Thanks

peteyz24 · **Posted:** Thu Oct 13, 2016 5:19 am

My factory lower rad hose had a spring that ran pretty much its whole length. When I replaced it I pulled the spring from the factory and put it in the new one.

Gypsy62 · **Posted:** Fri Oct 14, 2016 4:29 pm

Thanks!
I'll replace the un-sprung rad hose. It will be essentially impossible to pinpoint the exact culprit of the heating issue, given that I'm also replacing the water pump, thermo, performing a system multi-flush, and blowing-out the fins on the (three-stack!) of grill-mounted cooling components.
I suppose I could delay replacing the rad hose to diagnose, but I'm not going through that additional hassle just to accurately establish cause.
The radiator looks recent, but if the heat-up persists that will be the only component left to replace.

113 in Vegas, '05 CRD running hot for first time: threads?

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