water temp high at speed

[RT]

Mike from Broncoworks and his friend Donny helped me out with the pump today . Can't say enough about the hospitality I received. Couldn't have asked for more. Great guys

Also helped replaced a leaky axle seal today. This has been a tough trip this year.

hope this pump makes the difference, going slow bites !

 

[RT]

well ,the water pump was not the issue,, Doh!

went out to Logandale today with John and Milan. the temps had to be in the 90's and I crawled the trails only touching on 200 deg . we had a great time there , thanks guys !

on the highway there it seemed to like 220-225 or so. I was bucking a head wind coming back and the 47 fat squirrels were giving it all they had , the water never did go over 230.
tried advancing the timing as mentioned , but no change

I cleaned the AEM filter before we left, but may try to find a paper replacement just to rule that out. maybe buy a cheap gauge ,,, or maybe put tape over the existing one %) Hah !

broncnaz , I'm running a fixed blade fan on a clutch , I like your comment about not worrying till it hits 240. this whole setup worked well on last years trip ,, I'll just carry on as if I were normal

the saga continues,,, off to Death Valley Monday. What could go wrong ??

 

[broncnaz]

You might want to double check or even replace the fan clutch. Just a idea since it seems to be one of the last things to do. You may want to retard the timing ssome as well less timing is usually better at or below sea level.
Death valley that place put the last nail in the coffin of my C4 in the late 70's.

 

[RT]

yup , I usually have no issue going through death valley with my usual timing as I live at sea level.

probably won't replace the clutch as it spins freely by hand yet pulls enough to keep the air moving at crawl speeds

I was going to mention how well the tranny's been doing , but I don't want to jinx it ,,,

 

[Bulletman]

Any chance that at highway RPM you are moving the water thru the radiator faster than it can cool? I know circle track racers have to fear the water pump down due to the higj Rpm being run

 

[RT]

Any chance that at highway RPM you are moving the water thru the radiator faster than it can cool? I know circle track racers have to fear the water pump down due to the higj Rpm being run

could be , but this same setup worked well last year

may take the rad to get hot tanked or something just to ensure it's clean when we get home.

 

[broncnaz]

Id still suspect your fan clutch. Im pretty sure they shouldnt spin freely by hand they usually will have some resistance. You may be pulling enough air at low speed but it may not be locking up like it should at higher speeds/temps. Funny you swapped all these other parts but dont want to do one of the easier ones?

Being a tripple pass radiator I doubt the water is going thur it to fast. At only 2 years old I doubt it needs to be cleaned. Unless you put tap water in your cooling system that has lots of minerals in it.
If all else fails. Id go back over the basics. Verify gauge readings. dial the timing back to stock, swap to a 195 t stat,

 

[DirtDonk]

...off to Death Valley Monday. What could go wrong ??

My feelings exactly. What could possibly go wrong... %)

Of course, if your Bronco didn't already have disc brakes (it does, right?) I'd say I know exactly what could go wrong. And did for me in the early eighties.
Which is why the following weekend I had disc brakes on the front!
Man, was I sure glad it was the middle of the week and there was literally almost no traffic on the main highway in from the west. :-[

Felt like a real Boy Scout (the "be prepared" part) later on that trip though, when a fan belt let got on the way up the highest mountain road in the park.
No worries on that score, as I had recently installed dual groove pullies for just such an instance. So everything kept working till I got the spare installed later.

Sounds like this is a regular trip for you. Have a blast always.
Do you go wheeling? Or just stay on the main roads and stops?

Paul

 

[RT]

Id still suspect your fan clutch. Im pretty sure they shouldnt spin freely by hand they usually will have some resistance. You may be pulling enough air at low speed but it may not be locking up like it should at higher speeds/temps. Funny you swapped all these other parts but dont want to do one of the easier ones?

Being a tripple pass radiator I doubt the water is going thur it to fast. At only 2 years old I doubt it needs to be cleaned. Unless you put tap water in your cooling system that has lots of minerals in it.
If all else fails. Id go back over the basics. Verify gauge readings. dial the timing back to stock, swap to a 195 t stat,

I should have said there is some resistance , feels like it always did.

I did have a heavy duty clutch in once , sounded like a turbo prop at speed. I put that one back on the shelf

timing is back to stock , and may get another gauge today

 

[RT]

My feelings exactly. What could possibly go wrong... %)

Of course, if your Bronco didn't already have disc brakes (it does, right?) I'd say I know exactly what could go wrong. And did for me in the early eighties.
Which is why the following weekend I had disc brakes on the front!
Man, was I sure glad it was the middle of the week and there was literally almost no traffic on the main highway in from the west. :-[

Felt like a real Boy Scout (the "be prepared" part) later on that trip though, when a fan belt let got on the way up the highest mountain road in the park.
No worries on that score, as I had recently installed dual groove pullies for just such an instance. So everything kept working till I got the spare installed later.

Sounds like this is a regular trip for you. Have a blast always.
Do you go wheeling? Or just stay on the main roads and stops?

Paul

hell ya we go wheelin' ! I wouldn't drive this far just to sit on the porch !
We don't hit the extreme stuff, but we do some pretty fun stuff.

In Moab I'll do some of the optionals ,(escalator, hells gate,some stuff on spider , rim , etc )
and we just went through Logandale in Vegas here and bounced off a few rocks , and one called Bronco falls .

I've had to get you guys to ship me parts to a few different places, with your help we just carried on as if we were normal

I love going down the highway , and having Dori point out to something and being able to just turn off and climb or crawl to get there on a moments notice.

gotta stop typing and start driving now, we're off !

 

[RajinCajun]

Run the RPM up to what is at highway speed and look at your radiator hoses, I'd be willing to bet that you have one collapsing.

That was exactly my thought when I read the OP. If you have a high flow radiator it will even suck the top hose when hot.. ask me how I know.

 

[RT]

That was exactly my thought when I read the OP. If you have a high flow radiator it will even suck the top hose when hot.. ask me how I know.

one of the first things I did, but it wasn't going to be that easy.

We just landed in stovepipe wells, I'm starting to think my fat 47 squirrels just don't like putting up with my crap anymore.

Going down into death valley we had no problem. climbing grades it warmed up to 230

did some slower offshutes through a couple canyons it was fine.,

oh well, it's time to find a margarita by the pool !

 

[broncnaz]

Can you hear when your fan clutch engauges/disengauges? Also when it is hot you shouldnt be able to turn the fan as the clutch should be locked up.

 

[DirtDonk]

Have you done any aero work? I know you said it's been fine before this, so all the usual suspects don't necessarily mean a guaranteed fix. But what about some of the other things we do with Broncos air flow to at least increase the efficiency of the cooling system anyway?
Things like our air dam (http://www.wildhorses4x4.com/product/SS_Radiator_Air_Dam) to focus more air flow through the radiator than around, and sealing up the sides and top of the radiator where there is a gap between it and the core support?
Things like that can just push a solution over the edge. Or not, but at least you're reducing the number of possible culprits. Reducing your wallet size too, but hey, that's what vacations are for. Right? ;D

Best of luck. Enjoy the road. I know exactly what you mean about driving the Bronco. Thanks for keeping us as part of the group and giving updates as you can.

Paul

 

[RT]

We're off again .

Stovepipe wells, man. this is a good place to come if you don't like food , or want to diet. Staff and rooms were good though

new day , new solutions , maybe . all looks good so far.

 

[RT]

took the long way around to get to the racetrack in Death Valley, found ourselves on the Lippicott trail . Crawled all the way up and the water temp only got close to 200.

so long as I can crawl or go downhill the squirrels seem happy.

now , how the heck do those rocks slide around on that dirt ??

 

[Rustytruck]

Lippencott trail is a good climb. As for the race track rain muddies the surface and wind blows the rocks. This is a cool place to be. Hows the ride out? Got any teeth left? That washboard road out was a bear 3 years ago when I was there. Get under your rig and make sure all your bolts especially the exhaust system are still there. We stayed at Panamint springs resort. their resturant had good beer and pizza.
http://www.panamintsprings.com/

 

[RT]

that road out is just as bad as you remember it . couldn't find a happy speed or line to save my life .

nothing shook loose , as far as I can tell. no wait ,,, I lost my fancy adjustable convex mirror . Damm

I'll keep Panamint in mind for next time.

toured Bodie , then spent the last couple days in Truckee with some friends. Crawled around some dirt roads and trails and again , no problem with the water temp.

some beautiful areas you guys have here

leaving today , back on blacktop. we'll see what altitude does with the higher speed water temps. It's getting cooler here , I'm gonna miss running topless

 

[Rustytruck]

Looks like you had a great trip have a safe drive home.

 

[DirtDonk]

...then spent the last couple days in Truckee with some friends.
leaving today , back on blacktop.

Which way you headed? I hope you put a stop at Wild Horses on your list!
We're "just down the road a piece" and you're so close!

Ok, so it's a "fair piece" as they say, but it would have been fun.
Next time...

Paul