Engine overheating

[Paul DomoneyParticipant]

So today we are putting it back together. We checked all the areas that you chaps recommended including the tube through the head. All clear.

Now I have another problem. The speedo was not working so I disconnected the drive and pulled out the drive pinion. The cable is not broken. Now the drive pinion refuses to go back. Have you any idea why?

[BernieParticipant]

Paul,

Replacing the speedo drive pinion can be tricky.  the lower end has to be perfectly aligned with its destination hole in the casing and the teeth must engage with the drive on the output shaft …… and then it has to be turned for the teeth to remain engaged as it drops in.  It is trial and error – usually followed by even more errors before it goes in.  You need to be patient and persistant.

B…….

 

 

[BernieParticipant]

…. or, better still, persistent.

B…..

[David FaulknerParticipant]

The speedo was not working so I disconnected the drive and pulled out the drive pinion. The cable is not broken. Now the drive pinion refuses to go back.

Have you checked it’s fully engaged at the speedo head end Paul?

If the retaining nut wasn’t tightened fully it can come loose.

[Tim WalkerParticipant]

About twenty years ago, I had an onze normale which had crud in the drain plug. I poked it out using a wire coat hanger and a little bad language. When it was out, I ran it with a hose in the radiator and the drain plug out, for about ten minutes. Then I put some radiator flush in it, and went about 15km- the flush was dark brown and there was a lot of bits of everything in it. Afterwards, I refilled the thing with water and antifreeze, set up the timing properly, and there was no problem.

[Paul DomoneyParticipant]

Hi folks.

Sorry have not been on the forum but I believe there was a problem anyway.

Firstly the good news. We solved the speedo problem and it now works.  Thanks for the advice.

Bad news is that the engine is still overheating with “mud” ending up in the radiator. So I am going to put radiator flush in to see if that solves the problem.  I am also going to pressure test the head just in case it has a crack only manifesting itself under heat.

Otherwise we are getting close to dismantling the engine and of course removing the liners.  A big job that I am trying to avoid.

Watch this space!

 

 

 

 

[BernieParticipant]

Paul,

Before you use any any proprietory flushing agent, I suggest you remove the drain plug on the left of the block,  open the rad drain tap and run water through the system, via a hose into the rad filler cap, until it runs clear from both the block drain plug and the rad drain cock.

That should shift as much as possible of any loose “mud” so, when you then add it, the flushing agent will have the best chance of being effective.

B……

[Paul DomoneyParticipant]

Hi folks. It’s been a long time since I last visited the forum.  No excuse, but I have to admit that it has taken months to get to the bottom of the overheating problem and at times I have had difficulty in motivating myself to work on the car. I’ve tried everything that you good people advised. Head off and cleaned the water jacket, flushed out the radiator,  sent back the radiator for cleaning and also removing layers of paint that the radiator people insist on spraying on, checking the correct fitting of the fan and checking the timing. So we narrowed the problem down to the radiator.

I was always puzzled as to why, when I held the radiator up to the light that I could not see through it in places.  This despite extensive cleaning. So I found another radiator which though more battered than mine had clearly been refurbished and yes I could see through the entire unit clearly. Long story short, car ran for half an hour static in the garage and temperature never went above 80 degrees celsius.

I think I finally solved the problem although I still do not know exactly what is wrong with the old radiator. Maybe collapsed cores.

Many thanks for all the help. Tatenda!

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