When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
It is time to move on to the mechanical needs of the car and some serious driving. I put a new ball cup and insert on today. I thought while I was dirty I would drain and flush the radiator. I opened the radiator drain screw and nothing came out...... I mean nothing. I added a gallon of 50/50 mix to the coolant tank and cranked it up with the heat full blast. The tank did not drain out like I expected. I let the temp get up to normal but the tank remained the same. I had a couple of backfires in the exhaust and when I walked by the exhaust it was hot enough to burn my leg. It looks like it is time to do some research.
Thanks Dean and Bob. I appreciate the kind words. I will crank it back up this week with the radiator cap on and see if I get any drips. The small amount I had on the floor could have been my clumsy hands in filling it up. I just need to figure out where the blockage is.
I noticed that I had not posted a finished pic of the rear seat delete. I am sure not everyone will click on the link of the work in progress.
Well I have studied and learned a lot about the pathway of water/coolant flow in the 928. I am hoping that a new thermostat will be my solution to the high temp and dry radiator issue. I have read several very old posts using google/rennlist search function and it looks like I may be missing the inner seal. I have ordered the thermostat and gasket locally and will pick it up today but the old posts and pics show an inner seal that is apparently crucial to the proper operation of the new thermostat.
Does anyone have a national chain source for this seal that I could just pick up today while out and about?? I am trying to resolve this issue tonight so that I can go to a small gathering tomorrow morning.
Brian,
Not sure about a source other than the regular big 4. I do think without the seal it may would run hotter but don't see it being the reason you are missing coolant. Without the seal...the thermostat will not seal closed. Kind of like not running with a thermostat at all.
Thanks Dean. I found an o ring that I could pickup in Atlanta. I was very close on business so it worked out fine. I may have miss-spoke when I said I was missing it. I was missing it in the sense that I did not think I could complete the job without it. I have not removed the old thermostat yet.
I am a little nervous about where all the coolant/water went. Since the car has been parked for so long I have not checked the fluids in a long time. I did change the oil shortly before ripping the interior out. The oil looks clean now, but I am still nervous that I have some fluids mixing. I may drain the block of coolant first and see if I have any evidence of oil mix. It would suck if I have a blown head gasket. I have that other M28/11 engine on a stand but it needs a total refresh and the funds are just not available for a job like that. I may just move it over to the next bay and start work on getting the 82 Euro S running. I hope not though, I had hoped to just drive one for a while. It is just a hobby but this is getting ridiculous.
Ok, so 5 days ago I was going to flush out my cooling system. I opened up the drain plug on the bottom of the radiator and only got a couple of drops. The coolant tank was bone dry. I added coolant mix to the tank and turned on the heater full blast but could not get any circulation. The tank stayed full and I assumed the radiator was empty since nothing came out of the drain plug.
Yesterday I bought a new thermostat and everything needed to do that job. Today the coolant tank was almost full so I started to remove items to change out the thermostat. When I removed the top portion of the lower radiator hose from the bridge(.?.?) it was dry. As I loosened the lower clamp from the lower hose it started to leak coolant. I quickly put a bucket under and continued to remove the hose completely. The radiator seemed full and quickly emptied in to the bucket.
I am very confused and have two questions.
1. How did all of that coolant get into the radiator if nothing came out of the drain plug 5 days ago. The engine has not been run in five days.
2. Do I really have a thermostat issue or do I have a radiator issue.
You had water in the system, maybe it was really low.
The system holds 4 gallons, with some in the tank, radiator, engine block, heater core.
Drain the engine block, two plugs. You should get alot of coolant out of there.
Test old t-stat after removal.
Are you changing to a different coolant? If so, do a really good flush.
Fill first with water, cycle system up to temp. Rinse and repeat if you feel so inclined.
Then fill with coolant and distilled water. Add water wetter, either royal purple or redline.
Ps. Heater valve in normal open w/engine off, so disconnect valve hose and plug when engine on cycle flushing.
I have tested the thermostat's. Old, new and even pulled the one from the block on the stand. They all opened fine. I have reinstalled the new thermostat since it was rated to engage at a cooler temp, 75 deg C. I have hooked all the hoses back up and buttoned her up for the day.
I plan to refill it tomorrow and give her a test drive.
I think that my initial error was that I did not allow the temp to raise sufficiently to engage the thermostat. I just let it idle, while on stands, with the heat on full blast for about five minutes and starting freaking out that my expansion tank was not emptying. I expected a small flush into the system but I did not wait long enough for that to happen.
09-14-2014, 07:00 PM
