Coolant - Engine wont warm up - stays cold

[maxhag]

Hey guys.
Got this issue here. I should be able to work this out, but having no luck as yet...

Story: AE71-4AGTE. It's a fresh build in this chassis, but this is a existing engine setup that has been fine for 6 years, in 3 chassis.....

Sorry, but thought it was proberley easier just copying and pasting from the build thread.......


1ST post - After the cars first real drive

- Engine is taking a long time to warm up. Coming home from work tonight (12:30am, minus -4 cold canberra), I let the car warm up for almost 15 minutes before I finished work. When I went to leave, water temp was only 62deg after idleing for 15 minutes (temp on Microtech hand controller). Anyway, after driving, it went up to about 75deg. I turned the heater on. The heater blew COLD air. Not only was it blowing cold air, but the engine water temp dropped dramatically, down to the 50's. I turned the heater off, and it slowly started to creep up again. I only had a few minutes more to drive.
It doesn't sound like the thermostat got a chance to even open. I must have some of the water routing slight wrong, so I will have to have a look at that.....









2nd post: after looking at it

Well , I've just spent 3 hours on this water issue, and now I just have the shits.....
It all looks plumbed ok...... ??????

- Car running at idle, for OVER 20 mins during the day, and temp only just got to 82deg, and wouldn't go any higher than 84deg. (on the Microtech Hand controller) That sensor is on the remote thermostat housing. NO FAN RUNNING
- The aftermarket temp gauge I have, has the sensor on the top radiator pipe, and that is only reading 70deg when the other sensor mentioned above is at 84deg
- Third temp gauge is the stock dash one, which hardly gets off Cold.

I have thoroughly bled the system.
I have checked the thermostat, and it's not stuck open.
Bottom radiator pipe stayed cold until the thermostat housing got to 82deg (as it should), but then would get colder when it started to open and close up again
If I turn the heater on, the water temp drops and stays cold.....
All water lines feel hot by touch, except bottom radiator hose. (bottom hose only got a little warm when the thermostat was trying to open)

I should be able to work this out, as I have done many 4age conversions now, but I have never had this issue.....


This is doing my head in, and it's even given me an actual headache!!! Where the hell is the heat going? I cant see how an engine can just idle infinatly (or for even long periods), without cooling??????????????


I have proberley missed something simple, but it's always to get a fresh set of eyes/ears opinion....

Thanks

[maxhag]

My routing for the heater system is as follows:

1. Bypass pipe from top outlet at front of motor,

goes to

2. a tee piece coming off the remote thermostat (to tickle the thermostat and feed too)

goes to

3. one side of heater core (this hose also has a Tee piece to feed the turbo)

comes out other side of heater core and goes to heater tap,

4. from heater tap, goes to water outlet on the back of the head. (this hose has a Tee piece to return from the turbo)......

Should be right............. ??????????????

[Jimmee1990]

Do you have a big alloy radiator? I have an ASI one and my car also struggles to warm up, needs to be left idling for at least 15 mins to get up to temp and drops down to around 75 degrees driving on a cold night. Same issues with the heater too.

[maxhag]

Yeah, it has a brand new alloy radiator (ebay one). The old one which was the same, was destroyed the the Wagon accident.... This never happend with the old setup....
...

[adds]

I have a fairly large alloy rad..dc2 integra I'm pretty sure. I dont run a heater or any of that stuf, and mine (4agte) takes forever to warm up, admitidly I haven't driven it much since my build, but If I let her idle it will take at least 20mins to get warm. Only going by the feel of the bottom rad hose and stock temp gauge in the cluster. I should Probably get a proper temp gauge and see how things go..

what is normal temp anyway, 87? And how long Should it take to get there??

[maxhag]

The thing is, this motor setup never did this before in other chassis I've had it in....
In the old Gold AE86 and the AE71 wagon, car would be up to temp (88deg) within 10 minutes and then the fan would control the temp.

Something is not right. I just cant pu my finger on it.....

If a few of you have this issue aswell, I wopuld suggest sorting it out, as running your engine below temp will cause premature wear to the engine.

[Gunner]

Everything sounds right jojo, but it is possible to over cool the car, next time block half the radiator with cardboard and see if you can get heat into it.

is there anyway you can temp probe the system before it heads back to the radiator? Id be checking the actual head temp with a temp gun or something, and compare it to what is indicated by your various outputs, before making any drastic changes though.

[Lexsmaz]

As has been said it sounds like the New radiator is just to efficient & certainly over cooling is not a good thing for engine efficiency & oil sludging issues etc etc .. I second the blocking off half the radiator & see what happens, you say it didn't do it before but the radiator has been changed since ?? hasn't it ..

[blinded]

If the thermostat is working correctly then shouldn't the radiator be of no issue as unless the engine is up to temp, the water will not be released from the radiator into the system?

[Gunner]

at operating temps the thermostat is very rarely just an open and shut affair, it doesn't get to 90* and snap open. They usually creep open, put one in a pot of water on a stove and you can see it happen.