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P38 - 2.5 Diesel 2001 - Overheating issue and stalling

A

avino83

In Third Gear
In the last two years, I have new: Water pump + Fuel Injection Pump + Fuel Pump + battery + alternator + timing chain belt, radiator.
After a mechanic error, I had to re-build the timing chain belt. Yes, I know, I have to find another independent Land Rover service. I brought the car for a minor pulley change for about 550 EUR, engine running smooth (except the pulley that needed to be changed and I ended up having to re-build the whole Timing Chain Belt for I do not want to remember how much.

Since then, just more problems.

Engine stalls, which I think it could be the Crankshaft Position Sensor. When driving on the highway, I get spasms. Regardless if the diesel tank is full or half empty. The only difference is when starting from cold. If less than half empty tank, then, I have to try a couple of times to start. When stopped for several weeks (I have the right to go on holidays too J), it takes time to start it, especially when almost with an empty tank. He is already mentioning that the Fuel Injection Pump that was changed by someone I trust, it might be faulty……….it is not possible. Just not possible. Changed by Bosch mechanics and by a friend of mine J

But what worries me the most is the OVERHEATING since the Timing Chain Belt.
It does not overheat when driving short distances (50 kms) and if I do not push over 3000 rpm / 120 km/h. But when I drive for more than one hour and I push the enigh to 3,500 rpm and go about 130 km/h, at some point, it ends up overheating.
I just did a trip from Brussels to Munich (+/- 800km). the trip was a nightmare. I had to stop about 8 times due to overheating.
Collant starts boiling and it drops a lot of coolant out.
I have tried different techniques bleed the cooling system. But it still overheats. I have been to the mechanic and they had driven for 30 minutes, they have left the car with engine running for a long time and it does NOT overheat.
It just overheat, as I mentioned above, when pushing the engine for more than about 45 minutes, it is then, when it happens.

The mechanic is useless at this point in time. Any suggestions. Any threats I could look at ?
THANKS IN ADVANCE FOR READING ME AND YOUR FEEDBACK.
 
have you changed the thermostat? was the radiator new or a 2nd hand one, these have a habbit of clogging up inside and there is a baffle in them that falls and then the coolant can travel across the top of the rad instead of through the cooling fins. also check the bleed hose from the rad to the header tank as these can block as well,be careful removing the pipe from the rad as the rad is fragile and the plastic pipe can snap off.
 
thanks both for your replies.

radiator was new.
thermostat not yet changed.
I do see water going through the pipe going into the top of the coolant container.
one thing I forgot to mention. while driving, it accumulates a lot of pressure in the cooling system. I just lose coolant when it boils. then, when I open the top of the coolant container..........I can hear the amount of pressure that builts up.

Viscous fan is indeed something we have talked about with my mechanic..........but why right after we did all the Timing Chain Belt? before that, I never had a problem.
the same with the spasms........
again, thanks for the quick response.
now, I do not know if I should go for the viscous fan or the thermostat.
 
The easiest way of getting an idea if your viscous fan is working or not is to wait until the engine is hot and see if you can stop the fan turning with a rolled up newspaper. If you can stop the fan, it isn't working, if the fan shreds the newspaper, it is.
 
the thing with the fans....they are not needed when the vehicle is moving....they should only be needed when the car is not moving or only moving slowly. the thermostat is only 3 bolts,if you do change it get a genuine one the cheap copies have a habit of being crap
 
That is what I thought regarding the need of the fan the first time it overheated after major rebuild of Timing Chain Belt.
I was driving downhill at 140 km/h when it was minus 7 degrees Celsius outside and snow all over the place (road was clean).

Anyways, I tested this morning when engine had warmed up after driving to work with the newspaper…………………fan is strong like a bull. This and the confirmation that no need for fan while driving at 140 km/h and super cold air, that takes me to a bad Themostat ?

Imagine driving at 140 km/h and minus 7 Celsius degrees. I remember putting my hand outside the window and it felt like minus 40.

I will also try to do the compression test.

Also, I notice that my fan is ALWAYS working.

Do you guys think I can change the Thermostat myself?

Again, I cannot thank you enough for answering to my prayers.
 
I keep thinking about the reasons why it overheats.
Viscous fan was ok.
Car overheated even when outside temperature was minus 7 and driving fast on the highway (which had a very cold air intake)

Since i have spent more than 6,000 EUR in the last two years reparing things, and I am somewhat reluctant to continue changing parts. I have read in way too many posts that after changing water pump, thermostat, viscous fan...............engine would keep overheating.

What do you guys think about this?
I read this thread:
'' I decided to replace the water pump after noticing a few drips and when removing the hose between the pump and the oil cooler I felt something...and "what the f@#*".. ..
c:\Temp\msohtmlclip1\01\clip_image001.gif
...and there was a plastic flange jammed sideways in the hose. The hose between the pump and the cooler has a branch, returning to the heater matrix, and the branch has a plastic flange located at the elbow that is "allegedly" vulcanised into the elbow. I guess that the vibration caused the flange to dislodge from the elbow and move into the wider hose, and travel towards the pump's inlet, restrictng coolant flow.''

Because the major rebuilt on the Timing Chain Belt, would you guys incline more for this possibility when they put all together?

My engine worked fine before this rebuilt. Why all of the sudden it overheats.
Also, it does NOT overheat when driving just below the 120 km/h. It just overheats when pushing the engine a bit more (130Km /H).

I could also think about the water pump giving low coolant flow.........but it is a new one (well, 2 years old now).
 
It overheated today again after one hour deiving on the highway at just 100 km/h. I did not push it and flat road (Belgium).
Coolant boiling out of the coolant resrvoir.
i turned on the Heat to Hi and it just blew cold air.
any suggestions?
 
it does sound like the head gasket has failed or cylinder head is cracked. can you take it to a local garage and do a "sniff" test on the coolant system header tank,this will tell you if you have exhaust gas in the cooling system.
you could also check when the engine is hot....does the whole of the radiator get hot or is it just across the top....if its only the top the baffle inside the rad has fallen out and is allowing the coolant to pass across the top of the rad instead of through the cooling fins.(this wont cost anything). good luck
i do know that the bmw m51 engine can suffer from cylinder head cracking on high mileage engines.
 
So you've got a blown head gasket or cracked cylinder head then. The cooling system is pressurising and you have air in the heater matrix. It could pressurising because the top part of the cooling system is full of air which will expand far more than coolant so will cause the pressure and the coolant to be forced out of the header tank. But how did the air get in there? Or, the head gasket is allowing combustion gasses into the cooling system, which are rising to the top so no flow through the heater matrix, and the pressure is forcing the coolant out of the header tank.

With the engine cold, refill the cooling system and make sure you bleed all of the air out of the system. Run the engine with the header tank cap off. If you see bubbles in the header tank or the coolant level rises until it overflows, you've got a blown head gasket.
 
just double check the rad as new ones have been known to be faulty.............. they have a baffle in the top of them that directs the flow through the rad tubes....but if its fallen out the coolant is not forced through the tubes but allowed to by-pass them. worth checking :)
 
Is there a way tocheck the radiator myself.
at this point, i want to avois going to the garage, each time i go, they come upon with some part that should be changed.
the mechanic is currently clueless, and i think that radiator can be the cause (although is new).
or the head gasket.
i will ask to do the sniff test. That yes.
but what i do not understand is that went the engine cools down after overheating and speeling 2 liters of coolant, it works like new.
 
i would run the engine till its hot,check the rad is hot all over and not just across the top of the rad. if its only hot across the top of it i would say the baffle has failed or fallen out
 
One more question. What will it happen if i drive for about 100 kms with collant tank cap off?
will that help to bleed? Or it will be a problem related to pressure the system?
 
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