some help with td5 cooling issues

hows it going folks been a while since ive been on here

my stepmother recently got a 53 plate td5 and what seemed a good buy ended about 10 miles along the road she said what happened was she was driving along the road and heard something go as she put it. the temperature gauge when cold and the red light came on and lost power the heaters also started blowing cold air. she pulled in to the side of the road and switched off. she restarted and managed to get home and call me. when i lifted the bonnet the coolant looked very low so as i slackened the cap the coolant started to rise back to normal. ive still got my rave cd from when i had the freelander so am going to try and bleed the system the correct way and see how i get on with that . but am looking for some advice from you kind folks on this problem

mark

mark666freelander said:

. the temperature gauge when cold and the red light came on and lost power the heaters also started blowing cold air.
mark

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do you mean the temp gauge is down just the red light on?

sierrafery said:

do you mean the temp gauge is down just the red light on?

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yes mate the temp gauge went down then the light came on. once restarted gauge was working as it should

it means that there's a problem with the coolant temp sensor or it's wiring, when this happens the engine management goes on default by using the fuel temp readings and reduces power... that's the esplanation for the power loss

the coolant issue is not related... you planned well, bleed the system as in the book, refill and tighten well the tank's cap... a faulty cap can mix things up as well

sierrafery said:

it means that there's a problem with the coolant temp sensor or it's wiring, when this happens the engine management goes on default by using the fuel temp readings and reduces power... that's the esplanation for the power loss

the coolant issue is not related... you planned well, bleed the system as in the book, refill and tighten well the tank's cap... a faulty cap can mix things up as well

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cheers mate am going to check everything out tomorrow so fingers crossed

If the temperature sensor was in air (ie the coolant level had dropped below it) would it not give a false (possibly low) reading? But I suppose the red light is driven by the same sensor so maybe not.

From personal experience, even if there's only 2l of coolant left in the system if the sensor is good the gauge will rise ... it's hot steam under pressure in that elbow which will affect the sensor cos it measures temperature in any environment... happened to me, started to rise and the ECM reduced the fueling that's why i observed, as the tank was empty i started to refill the system and took 6l to top it up again... so it's a false myth that the sensor will not read if it's not in contact with coolant... red led on the gauge with indicator at the bittom is classic sign that the sensor signal is missing from one reason or another