Up and running, am I paranoid

+1 as above.

ashleywood.ash said:

Ok stupid again but I have just bought an infra red therm. I'll get engine running again then is the stat casing the best place to take the reading?

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Nowhere shiny - they dont take accurate readings on shiny metallic finishes (id include aluminium in 'shiny')

julianf said:

Nowhere shiny - they dont take accurate readings on shiny metallic finishes (id include aluminium in 'shiny')

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.

Very true , they can give wildly different results depending on the surface finish they are measuring, A surface probe is a much better way to take a measurement, Not sure if or how much of a delta from the internal fluid temp due to heat sink / radiant heat loss though. Never used my temp probes to verify the surface temp against the readout ( may have to do this at some point ).

If you are going to use an infra red gun, then also be aware of the area it covers, the measurement cone spreads very quickly and you may be measuring an area that is not what you wanted.

Cheers

Thanks guys,
Nothing on my Landy is shiny

So the latest is as follows:
-airtex water pump fitted
-genuine LR stat
-new radiator
-TIM electric temp gauge
-full system drain including block. Back washed with hose until clear
-just water in the system no coolant.

17 mile run which was 10 miles country roads, 3 miles urban roads, 4 miles bypass at 70mph

at idle for 45 mins sat at 70 degrees
On a run pretty quick to 90 degrees then for rest of journey it sat at 95-98 degrees. Tim gauge goes from 80-100 and it never reach 100 it was just under it.
Popped bonnet and rocker is very hot, top hoses are hot but a can hold just. Top of rad is hot, bottom is cool, bottom hose is like warm / cool.

Slowly opened expansion tank and water erupted so closed quickly. Hoses are hard, really hard actually.

So what do we think??

Is it all good

Winters coming so you'll permanently have the hot "heating" on so that should help slightly also lol

How hard should the hoses be?
I am wondering if there is a problem with the second hand head I got?
There was no cracking and it was perfectly straight.
Do they ever crack internally where I could not see? If so what would the symptoms of this be, just wondering if the problem now lies with the head rather than the cooling system

lynall said:

Well worth getting one of these remove all doubt as its cappiliary its right all the time

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Tim-Elect...591940?hash=item41b1e72d84:g:4tgAAOxyYYlRoTJ7

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I second this. I got a digital one and I find it more useful than my speedo.

Latest update:
20 mile run from cold
2.5 mile - 70 degrees
3.5 mile - 80
4.5 mile - 90

Rest of journey 90-98 but mainly around 95 degrees I would say.

Pressure in bottom and top hoses where if I squeeze as hard as I can I can half squish it if that makes sense.
Heater runs hot and would say when I put it on engine temp went up a degree or 2.

After returning 20 mins to cool turned off, still pressure in pipes. Opened expansion tank and pressure and out but water did not erupt and pipes are soft. No oil in water that I can see and no water in oil.

Funny, to my mind the temps you are getting seem a bit hot, but the rest of your description sounds spot on - hand temp of hoses rad and head. What we really need is a kind gentleman with the same temp gauge as you to tell us what it reads when he is out on a run. Anyone?

I know that's what's getting me. I think it's 5-10 degrees to high.
Don't know if it makes a difference that it's only water and no coolant.

Hand temps:
Top hose I can just hold, rocker and rad tanks and rad top all hot
Bottom rad and hose Luke warm

Sounds like your stat is not opening fast enough/sticking.
I have a temp sender on my top hose and I can actually see when the stat opens - the temp immediately drops.
On the runs you're describing, my top hose would be around 80 degrees. With hard driving, the stat on mine is fully open and temp around 88/89.
To get it over 90, I would have to be driving slowly and working the engine very hard.

I think plain water will make a difference, not sure how much though. I can only speak from experience of my 2.5 N/A, which runs around 75-85. Your stat is opening, as the hot rad will testify, and it's cooling the water, as the bottom hose is a lot cooler, but the engine seems a little hot, as though it is working very hard. Totally a mad guess, but the brakes aren't binding? It runs cool when idling.

The main purpose of coolant is anti corrosion properties, anti freeze properties and it can be heated beyond the boiling point of water without turning into a gas provided that the system is sealed properly. In fact, plain water cools more efficiently than coolant upto boiling point.

Stat should be fine it's a brand new genuine one that cost £15

Brakes don't seem to be, it has just done an mot.
If I start and leave idle it stays around 70, it just heats up when driving.
Wondering if the head gasket/ head is still not right, but then I should imagine a 20 mile run would put it well over 100 degrees

Seems high but your fast running out of options. I'd your old head fubarred? If not get it pressure tested and skimmed. I brought a second hand head which was cracked so ended up going back to my original with a skim and test

There are cracks around injector holes which is common, but there are cracks between valves 3&4 and valves 5&6.
Don't know if they go all way through without pressure test.

Anyone know how much test and skin is and if there anywhere near Chesterfield or sheffield

It's a shame you can't still get new 200 TDI heads. Demand must still be quite high.

ashleywood.ash said:

There are cracks around injector holes which is common, but there are cracks between valves 3&4 and valves 5&6.
Don't know if they go all way through without pressure test.

Anyone know how much test and skin is and if there anywhere near Chesterfield or sheffield

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Christ your close to me. I take mine to Mansfield can't quite remember the name. Might be Mansfield engine center or something lol I think about 30 quid if I remember right

Have you had the rad flow tested ?