[Tama]

Hey guys,
I've owned my 2000 4.6 HSE for just over 3 years now (and I love It dearly!) and have never had a severe engine problem until recently, only basic maintenance. So here's my problem: I was driving to a friends house who is no more that 3-4 city blocks away, and my temp gauge spiked briefly, then returned to normal. I guess i didn't think much of it, then the real problem occured. I was driving home from the airport later that night when the temp gauge was acting very strangely, it would spike briefly then return to normal, 3-4 times this happened within a minute or two so I pulled over and as I pulled to the side of the road, my rover lost power! Now it barely turns over, if at all, due ton VERY low compression
Is this just something like a head gasket or am I in way over my head?
Thanks a lot for any help!

 

[munichp38a]

Hi and welcome to the forum!

Did you actually measure compression?

My guess is a loose ground somewhere, as the gauge only spiked up for very short moments.

Sigi

 

[Tama]

I haven't done a compression test yet but everything has been running perfect for 3 years now and all of a sudden this happens? It's got me really confused! I'll do some checking for a loose ground though, and thanks for the tip and welcoming me into the "club"!

 

[big-t]

Hi Tama, welcome to the club, you won,t find a better RR site for help than here. My first advice would be to start with the basic's. Check your coolant level in the overflow tank and the rad itself, then check your oil level and filter to make sure it's not clogged. Second , you may have a sticking thermostat which is only working intermitantly, easy to repair. Third, you didn't put where you are in your profile, is it winter in your part of the world? I ask this because you may be having a freezing coolant problem if your antifreeze isn't doing it's job, might be time to renew it. Did you let the engine cool down completely before you tried turning it over because with higher temperature come's higher resistance to electrical flow so that may be why you are having a problem cranking your engine over. But it sounds like one of two things, either low or poor coolant ( depending on how cold it is where you are ) or, it's your thermostat sticking. Good luck, hope this helps, keep us posted . Chow.

 

[TheoR]

This all might be a case of a weak battery. Have you changed your battery in the last 3 yrs? If not, I would look at your battery first before anything else.