[Strange V7 Overheating problem]

Thanks guys - appreciate the advice. I'm committed to taking her from Wellington to Whakatane on Wednesday, so this is going to be interesting...

[Strange V7 Overheating problem]

 pixelplay said:

I have bought the Ts for mine as I have a heater core issue and are going to give it a try. I will let you know how I get on and post some info on how it goes for me. It sounds ok in practice but maybe it also could disrupt the flow in the pipes because of turbulence. I think it might be better to just make a loop of pipe with no kinks and bypass it temporary to see it that works.

The other issue could be the thermostat as spoken about above as some of the aftermarket ones don't open enough for our cars and the only cure for that issue is an OEM Subaru thermostat.

Its never easy to get to the bottom of it when the issue is so intermittent so you really have to try and eliminate each item one at a time from a good known source of parts until you get to the bottom of the issue.

Cool mate; would be very interested to hear how you get on.

Thermostat is a Genuine Subaru part (as were the cam seals, crank seals, tensioner, idlers, water pump etc fitted when the timing belt was replaced).

Next logical step seems like it would be testing the head gasket, but I don't have the space or tools to remove much and get at the spark plugs. I'm also aware that a compression test may not necessarily show up anything for a minor leak that's only present under load.

My experience with HG fault diagnosis is limited, but the general consensus seems to be that a TK test will give me the best indication of whether the HG has failed. Is this the kind of thing I can/should do myself, or is this better handled by a mechanic? If the answer is the latter, (have never done one so this may seem a silly question) should the testing valve be placed into the header tank, or somewhere else?

Are there any other tests that I should perform (e.g., a leak-down, smoke test)?

As a side note; was talking to a friend of mine last night who I haven't seen in ages. He's a mechanic + auto electrician. Own's a Gravel Express, used to have a GC8 and has worked extensively on both. He's always up for cash jobs. He said that symptoms seemed likely that it may be a minor Head Gasket breach.

I can't speak for what his pricing would be for people he doesn't know, but he said $750 would cover it if I went to him. I've seen posts from people who've paid as much as $2500 for this kind of work, so this seems like a massive bargain.

[Strange V7 Overheating problem]

 pixelplay said:

Might be worth getting a head gasket check done even though there is no oil in the coolant or coolant in the oil. Sometimes it can leak into a cylinder a little bit and it might not be very noticeable because it will be slowly consuming the coolant from the overflow bottle. I believe also that the heater core can be partially blocked and these cars seem to need it to flow at 100% to run well under load. You could always create a bypass for a few days and see if that helped resolve the issue.

For sure its not going to be an easy one to solve from the sounds of things so best of luck with it.

Thanks for the suggestion.

I read this article which suggested that buying a couple of plastic tee's could allow you to create a bypass of sorts that still allowed some heater flow. Any thoughts on this??

[Strange V7 Overheating problem]

 tebbyj said:

It sounds to me like you aren't getting enough flow through the radiator. To test this next time you go up the gorge put the heater on full bore, non-recirc and see if that manages to hold them temp down. When you do this the heater core acts like a 2nd mini radiator helping to keep things cool.

Seeing as it started happening just after you got the cambelt done, I would be taking it back to speedtech and getting them to check and replace the thermostat (just because its new doesn't mean its not faulty, have had several faulty units out the box), the waterpump (could be faulty or incorrectly installed) and that the fans are working on both low and high speed when they should. Also if nothing comes apparent there get the radiator checked as well. Make sure its not blocked up.

Thanks for the suggestion - will give this a go.

RE: overheating - sorry; to avoid confusion, this was overheating before cam belt was done. Problem did escalate after it was done, but settled down after radiator cap was replaced and back to only happening on sustained hill climbs. Have edited OP to clear this up.

[Strange V7 Overheating problem]

Hi everyone

I've had a look through the search utility, but haven't found any similar examples - apologies if this has already been answered.

Hoping someone can answer a huge mystery for me.

We have a 2000 V7, and whenever we climb hills for long enough, the temp gauge starts to rise. Doesn't happen any other time, and is OK on idle + any other time.

The only thing that seems to cool it down when the needle does start climbing is putting my foot down, bringing on boost and then the needle drops to slightly below normal operating temp.

This started happening up the Ngauranga Gorge, and eventually started happening on the flat. As soon as it started overheating on the flat, I replaced the radiator cap with a temporary item for a day or two, then a Tridon CB16110L. Since then, it's only up hills again.

Background:

• Had cambelt replaced recently, but the car was overheating before this was done.
  
• When cambelt was done,car had new thermostat, water pump, coolant etc. Was also re-timed, had all of the idlers etc., done.
  
• Cambelt was done properly, by SpeedTech in Wellington, no cowboy DIY job.
  
• Car isn't running like a sack of s***
  
• No oil in water or water in oil
  
• Black connectors under steering column don't report a fault
  
• Can smell coolant when I exit the car (I live up a big hill, so it's getting warm, but not full on overheating most days), but see no leaks and vehicle doesn't appear to be losing coolant
  
• Radiator and hoses are only a few months old
  
• All fuses are fine
  
• Electric Fans are clicking on
  
• Heater is working fine; heat in the cab etc.
  
• Car does seem to be using fuel faster than usual (average 440-460km before fuel light; came on at 370km today)
  

It's got me stumped, and I'm having problems finding anyone who's had a similar issue online - if anyone has any thoughts, I'd be really grateful.

Cheers!

Jimmy