[EvanRangy]

Ok you guys. I've come to my LAST END. I just got in after kicking my Range Rover on the fender... I have a little Rover Overheating Story and it goes like this...

I have a 1995 LWB Range Rover and currently it has been overheating. It all began when I decided to take it up to Red River, New Mexico from Austin, Texas, and she ran beautifully without a hitch in the cooling system on the way up there and all over the ROADS in Red River (we did not go off-roading). However, upon returning home, right outside Lubbock, TX the water pump siezed- Yet my brother decided he needed to use the side of the road just as the water pump siezed, so there was no true time for it to overheat. The temp needle didn't even budge. However, the smoke from the burned belt alerted me. We stayed in Lubbock, TX for the pump to be REBUILT (because no one carried the pump), and then replaced it in the hotel parking lot (never go anywhere without a tool box :dance: ). We then began to drive it and got on the highway, and it heated up like a crazy demon, so we called the pump rebuilders and they came to the rescue with more coolant which we apparently did not replenish completely. So then we drove it home and it stayed at a little higher temp then what it had been when we were on our way up to NM. But then when we got back into town it ran great in the Texas heat for months. And then the thing started falling apart. Here are the things that are wrong with it that I think could interfere with the overheating.

Catalytic Converters are shot.
Rattling Sound in Muffler.

Other than that there is nothing but the cooling system itself that could be the problem.

NOW FOR THE WHOLE OVERHEATING CONDITION

The car would run perfectly in traffic for hours! And then all of a sudden it would begin to creep up and finally just overheat. It would never just fully burst into an overheating frenzy, it would do it most days after a good half hour of driving and then slowly creep up. It would usually begin when I turned on the A/C. So here is what we have done but it has not yet completely fixed the overheating (it has more of contained it to a higher tempature which is still alarming... but it won't let it go above this level).

We replaced the water pump with a FACTORY PUMP

Replaced the top hose, bottom hose, and all the coolant hoses.
Replaced the thermostat (put it at 12 o'clock too)
Replaced the temperature Gauge
Replaced and checked ALL THE FUSES
Made sure the electric fans are turning
The Radiator has been professionally rodded and flushed and cleaned (was 53% blocked)
There are no air bubbles in the water
The car runs great when at idle and when driving (until it overheats)
No loss of fluid at any time.

But it still over heats!!

Here is what it usually looks like on the temp gauge before it overheats to an unacceptable level:

[attachment=0:3mtdlexx]download.jpeg[/attachment:3mtdlexx]

PLEASE HELP OR PM ME!! I'VE BEEN FIGHTING THIS DEMON FOR ABOUT 5 MONTHS NOW

 

[rufant]

Hmmm. I would start with a test of the viscous fan with the rolled up newspaper (details on main site i think) if you haven't already.

Next i would buy/borrow/pay someone else/etc a laser thermometer and carefully check your radiator for hotspots/tubes out of sequence in terms of temperature rising from top to bottom. Too see if there is a problem there (i know it has already been rodded). Could also use it to have a general check of temperatures around the cooling system.

I would also do/pay someone to do the combustion gas check in the cooling system just for elimination purposes.

I think there is a possibility of the block having some coolant flow issues, especially as the rad was blocked. But a check of the other parts is worth doing first.

 

[Rich998a]

Rufant's right with what he said. However, perhaps a couple of other things to think about.

Are you (or have you) using proper coolant in the car? Has it been drained and refilled a few times in it's recent life. Reason I ask is that the pump failure could have been due to lack of a lubricating coolant in the system. Also, the fact that the radiator was half blocked could point towards sedimentation or partial blockage somewhere in the water jacket of the engine itself. Just a thought. Perhaps flush the whole system through and just see what appears.

A second item I would normally think about is the expansion bottle cap. However, you say there is no loss of coolant. I'd still be tempted to replace it with a new genuine one anyway. If the system lacks pressure then operating the A/C may just be enough to push it over the edge. It's cheap as well.

When you've done this, get the car pressure tested. In the UK you can actually buy a testing kit for £60, which may be less than getting it done professionally.

 

[EvanRangy]

I will give a few of those a shot! And I have replaced the cap (we have three 95 LWB Rovers) and it didn't seem to do much. Also we have flushed the entire system about three times, because we did each of the replacements I mentioned at seperate times. And what about this water jacket? Sorry I may know engines but I'm not to savvy when it comes to cooling systems :lol:

 

[Rich998a]

Sorry - the jacket is the water ways around the block/heads.

So does the heater matrix work? Does the heater actually throw out hot air when the engine is warm?

It is starting to sound like the possibility of an electrical issue. The gauge is reading correctly, but it's only as correct as the sender unit and the gounds/earthing points around it. Have you checked this? The Laser Thermometer could help as Rufant said earlier with this one.

 

[lwbblue]

I too have had overheating issues on both my 1990 &1995lwb. I live in Az where it is always tested; i have cured both.

I found in both rigs that after a good cleaning and rodding I still ran hot. After several hundred miles I pulled the rad again and had it re-rodded and cleaned and they found more gunk. I'm told the reason is that when the engine gets hot as sorts of matter is moving around in the block and system. The second cleaning solved the problem.

You are sure that you are overheating and not just a bad gauge. You can cheaply add an auxillary fluid gauge by installing the sensor in the top of the rad in the fill hole. While this doesn't give you accurate temp, it will show you how quickly the water temp rises and lowers based on where and how you are driving. It's a heads up warning. I find it is a great help when pulling long hills at high temps, allow me to turn off the air cond which gives me an instant 15-20 degree drop.

 

[classicjack]

replace radiator, I had same mysterious overheating, symptoms were the same as bad head gasket, had radiator flushed,rodded( whatever that is ) and it still overheated until I replaced radiator. This happened several times on different cars, cure was always clogged rad