Td4 Thermostat Replacement - The Way To Do It!

Did my thermostat today on my TD4 sort of using this method. I would add this:

Essential kit: E8 ratchet spanner, E8 1/4" socket and various extension bars, plasters, swear box.

My Top Tips:

- Allow plenty of time, look at everything first and plan your approach, it's difficult to visualise it form the text.

- Remove completely the top engine mount, not essential but gives better access.

- Raise the engine as high as you dare, until the bottom pulley comes into contact with the inner wing in my case.

- Use a long, thick, strong cable tie to hold the metal coolant pipe back from the thermostat housing by looping it around the brake master cylinder and the pipe and using pliers to tighten it up and pull the pipe out of the housing. You need to remove the bolt from the first mounting on the pipe to the block - you can get at this from the hole in the inner wing that the track rod goes through - you need a hex drive socket and a long extension bar. Also use a cable tie to tie back the a/c hose at the top of the engine else it gets in the way.

- Remove the spring clip from the large rubber coolant hose that attaches to the bottom of the housing, replace it with a worm drive/jubilee clip - much easier to refit as you don't have to get pump pliers into a confined space at a weird angle! You can tighten in through the hole in the inner wing.

Strangely I found all the bolts difficult but not horrendous to get to, and refitting was easier than removal (probably because I'd worked out to tie back the coolant pipe).

If you get annoyed
with it - walk away for ten minutes.

Richard

I thought I would bump this thread up. I ordered my TD4 thermostat from Island 4x4 yesterday at 3.30pm for £35.99 including p&p. 9.30am this morning it arrived , and is a genuine MG/Rover boxed one PEL100570LG. Just wanted to let people know how impressed I am with Island 4x4 . For comparison my local dealership wanted something over £50, and I would have to pick it up...

oddbob said:

There's some good photos on here of how to replace the thermostat with a Renault one....it explains all about half way down the page.

Click to expand...

I prepared one of these today for either to fit into my FL1 or for the up coming R75 meet we have in March, not really done one since 2011 but the one I had in my R75 tourer is still going after 4 years the original thermostats always seem to fail open

I don't think this procedure will work on the facelift TD4. You seem to have to remove the front bumper, before you can remove the engine under tray, as the plastic is riveted to an aluminium frame. On the plus side, one the coolant is drained out, I believe you can get to the thermostat without removing anything from the top of the engine, just by moving the AC hoses out the way... ? The RAVE disk I have doesn't cover the TD4 facelift, so I'm a bit lost really..

landyhaze said:

I don't think this procedure will work on the facelift TD4. You seem to have to remove the front bumper, before you can remove the engine under tray, as the plastic is riveted to an aluminium frame. On the plus side, one the coolant is drained out, I believe you can get to the thermostat without removing anything from the top of the engine, just by moving the AC hoses out the way... ? The RAVE disk I have doesn't cover the TD4 facelift, so I'm a bit lost really..

Click to expand...

I don't think you need to remove the bumper to remove the tray..

landyhaze said:

I don't think this procedure will work on the facelift TD4. You seem to have to remove the front bumper, before you can remove the engine under tray, as the plastic is riveted to an aluminium frame. On the plus side, one the coolant is drained out, I believe you can get to the thermostat without removing anything from the top of the engine, just by moving the AC hoses out the way... ? The RAVE disk I have doesn't cover the TD4 facelift, so I'm a bit lost really..

Click to expand...

The under tray bolts on in exactly the same way as far as I am aware. Ignore the rivets. You're looking at 6 bolts at the back of the tray, 2 at the front and some screws also at the front.

If anything is different it'll be those screws as the plastic bumper is different to a non-facelift.

Yes, I see the front two bolts were hidden under the bumper, which was already split from a previous access. So, remove under tray, wheel, jack up engine, etc takes about 1 hour. and each of the water pump screws takes about 1 hour! I had to modify my E8 socket a bit so I could get it in. That awful metal pipe is ridiculous, took ages to find the tork bolt holding one end in... really tired now, 4 hours in, just got the Thermostat off...

Just finished putting the thermostat in, but not refitted the under tray. So far 9 hours. I had to idle the truck for nearly an hour to get the temperature gauge in the middle, and the lower radiator hose was still cold, and no leaks were visible - yay. Tomorrow I will road test and see how quickly the gauge gets to the proper place, if it gets there at all. The old thermostat looked just fine. That was an awful job.

landyhaze said:

Yes, I see the front two bolts were hidden under the bumper, which was already split from a previous access. So, remove under tray, wheel, jack up engine, etc takes about 1 hour. and each of the water pump screws takes about 1 hour! I had to modify my E8 socket a bit so I could get it in. That awful metal pipe is ridiculous, took ages to find the tork bolt holding one end in... really tired now, 4 hours in, just got the Thermostat off...

Click to expand...

Water pump? You mean thermostat housing presumably. You don't need to take the pump off.

Anyway, job done. It'll be fine when you test drive it, I'm sure. Well done

Creeeg said:

Water pump? You mean thermostat housing presumably. You don't need to take the pump off.

Anyway, job done. It'll be fine when you test drive it, I'm sure. Well done

Click to expand...

Yes, brain fade! thermostat I mean. I hope it all holds together, I don,t trust that plastic thermostat housing one bit. I thought having smaller hands would help me with the e8 screws - wrong.

-Hazel

landyhaze said:

Yes, brain fade! thermostat I mean. I hope it all holds together, I don,t trust that plastic thermostat housing one bit. I thought having smaller hands would help me with the e8 screws - wrong.

-Hazel

Click to expand...

It'll be fine. 3 odd years on and I've had no leaks and the thermostat opens and closes when it should still.

landyhaze said:

I don't think this procedure will work on the facelift TD4. You seem to have to remove the front bumper, before you can remove the engine under tray, as the plastic is riveted to an aluminium frame. On the plus side, one the coolant is drained out, I believe you can get to the thermostat without removing anything from the top of the engine, just by moving the AC hoses out the way... ? The RAVE disk I have doesn't cover the TD4 facelift, so I'm a bit lost really..

Click to expand...

The under tray is easy to remove 5 minute job, FL onto the ramps or axle stands which ever you use.
1

Four screws or bolts from the front of the tray
2

Two bolts either side at the rear of the under tray 13mm ratchet spanner or good socket if they are stiff
3

4

5

Two 13mm bolts either side at the front of the under tray accessed through the holes in the tray.
6

7

Then finally two at the rear centre 13mm bolts
8

9

10

Drop the under tray copper grease the fixing points after.
11

Come the summer I intend to remove drill out the plastic part of the under tray and refit with self tapping screws for even easier removal

just to add for people to work around prices i had water leek . took it to the garage cost £918 new rad new water pump and belt new thermostat and housing. gives you a idea of what you can save by doing it yourself td4 auto facelift hope this helps

Thanks arctic2,
I don't have the handy access holes in my bumper, and was thinking of drilling some for next time, and then I saw your photos, and I see other have done the same. I was going to get some blanking plugs for the holes. Also, On mine there are remnants of some plastic bits that connect the frame to the wheel arch/liner interface. I could have saved myself a lot of hassle as the PO had broken the plastic panel out of the frame and was only held in by a bunch of cable ties anyway. Another job to fix I guess. I'm off to the airfield, and some green-laning on the peri-track, I will be taking it easy as I have not refitted the undertray yet, but I need to check the thermostat isn't going to crack and fall off on the way there...

It works! Journey outbound took 9 minutes for the temperature gauge to go from cold to mid way. The journey back, 2 hours later took 7 minutes to go from cold to mid way. Heater works a treat now. shame I have all these cuts and scrapes on my hands though.

Well done for sorting it out. I had a garage fit mine 18 months ago. Book time for them is like 6 hours for the auto and involves taking stuff off the top of the engine, rather than the way you did it.

Many thanks to Creeg for his excellent guide. I took 3.5-4 hours to do the job, but it would have taken a lot longer if I'd followed the Rave manual method.

A couple of points - I didn't find it necessary to remove the turbo-MAF pipe as described, and I would have given my right arm to have been able to remove the !@£$%^& inboard bracket for the engine mount. Is this possible with the engine in place?

Cheers again, Creeg.

oddbob said:

There's some good photos on here of how to replace the thermostat with a Renault one....it explains all about half way down the page.

Click to expand...

You found me in my other life Arctic2

From my days in the BMC Service School (talking 70s here) the number on the 'stat was the 'crack open' temperature, ie. the point at which the 'stat just starts to open. The approved testing method was to push the valve open against its spring enough to insert the end of a length of thread then, holding the thread, immerse the 'stat in a pan of water and heat up. With a suitable thermometer in the water the 'stat should drop off the thread when the water temperature reaches the marked temperature.

As I've left my full set of spanners in France, can I just double check exactly what tools are needed for this job as I will be tackling it next week!

On my list I have:

1.) 13mm socket/spanner
2.) 18mm socket/spanner
3.) E8 Torx SOCKET (not bit)
4.) E8 Torx ratchet spanner
5.) Assorted screw drivers

Anything else?

Cheers, Paul.