Boiling Engine Bay

[Space Monkey]

Right merging a few topics together here after following a few threads lately:-

My 6-Gen JDM GT is putting out a serious amount of heat when its running. Now my last motor was a 2.5ltr V6 Mx6 and it made a shedload of heat but V6's get like that(apparently).

The engine temp never goes above normal or anything but the bay is always roasting, is this normal or should i be slightly concerned. if i stick a new radiator on will it give better cooling or will it run just as hot? im gonna do a coolant change prety soon but any other tips would be appreciated.

Jamesst202 was talking about a stainless steel radiator, do they give any plus factors over normal ones or are you just looking at something that wont rust?

Cheers all :)

[Bibbs]

Ally rads usually hold more coolant.

Therefore you have a larger volume of water to transfer the heat to.

But they weigh more, and when the extra water is included, it can be quite a bit.

For an idea on the size difference. My S2000, stock and Koyo rads.

[Space Monkey]

ah right cool, you think the heat is a cause for concern though?

think i'd probs stay away from the extra weight then

[Bibbs]

Get a proper temp gauge in there and see what temps your coolant is getting to.

When was the last time you swapped the thermostat? It might not be opening 100%.

[Space Monkey]

dunno what you mean lol

im used to marine engines so sometimes cars baffle me.

ive only had it about 6 months now so no idea if the thermo has ever been changed? do they usually get quite hot though?

[GT Driver]

dunno what you mean lol

Hi Monkey,

The thermostate is located in the engine bay and regulates the flow of coolant around the engine. Its located just left of the exhaust mainfold as you look from the front of the car to the back back, if memory serves. If you follow the hoses from the Radiator (on the left hand side of the radiator as your looking from the front of the car to the back) you should find it, although it is not visible unless it is removed from its housing. Some other guys on the forum will be able to help with the specifics of replacing it as i can't think what tools you'll need to get it out off the top of my head. I think it might be a bit fiddly due to its location but nothing major.

Mine got stuck closed once and my engine overheated. I'm not sure what caused this but it is relativley straight forward and cheap to replace if this is a problem. Having said this, i noticed that mine was locked shut because coolant was escaping from the overflow valve. You dont have this problem do you?

Its a given the engine bay will get hot. Is there anything in particular that makes you think the engine is running above normal temperature?

Its perfectly normal for the exhaust manifold, radiator and connecting hoses to be pumping out heat after a good run.

Having said that, i would go with the previous suggestion of getting a thermostat if your really worried. Either that or run it until you do actually get a symptom/problem.

[Space Monkey]

cheers GT Driver, i'll have a look around this weekend if i can.

my mates dad does all the work on my motor but its always handy if i can go with suggestions rather than say "me cars hot" lol. i know engines get hot (stuck between 2 650KW generators in algeria for 2 weeks doin a major overhaul gets a bit sweaty) but lately its taking longer and longer to cool off and ive never known an engine to get this hot.

i'll suggest the thermostat and if its cheap might just replace anyways. my radiator is browning at the top and saw on here its a sure sign of age so replacing that at the same time might help as well.

ive had no coolant lost but the overfill is pretty full so was gonna try to syphon some of it off so i can see the level again

maybe im just paranoid when it comes to !Removed! motors lol

[Rmachines]

cheers GT Driver, i'll have a look around this weekend if i can.

my mates dad does all the work on my motor but its always handy if i can go with suggestions rather than say "me cars hot" lol. i know engines get hot (stuck between 2 650KW generators in algeria for 2 weeks doin a major overhaul gets a bit sweaty) but lately its taking longer and longer to cool off and ive never known an engine to get this hot.

i'll suggest the thermostat and if its cheap might just replace anyways. my radiator is browning at the top and saw on here its a sure sign of age so replacing that at the same time might help as well.

ive had no coolant lost but the overfill is pretty full so was gonna try to syphon some of it off so i can see the level again

maybe im just paranoid when it comes to !Removed! motors lol

I seem to have this problem, It gets very hot! I guessed it was normal looking at the size of the huuuge 4-2-1 manifold on the GT engine, but i have noticed stains from where my coolent has boiled out of the radiator cap which is worrying, but the gauge never goes above normal, infact its always below what my old GT and GT Four was. so i dont know if there is a problem, well obviously there i if coolent is boiling over but i have never seen this happen, and the cooling fan kicks in.

[Fawbs]

When it comes to cooling it is always good to be paranoid. On my gt4 you could quite easily cook sunday lunch once i have parked up. Yeh get a new rad with a bigger core, pace rads are usually good maybe include a swirl pot in the system to help the rad work better. Just remember when you fill the coolant to the top it will expel coolant from the expansion tank until it finds its natural level, mine is usually sat just above the first set of fins.

[Space Monkey]

1st i noticed this was when i was crawling through traffic and got a whiff of "hot" through my open window. My old mx6 used to dump heat just near the driver side arch so im used to the smell.

if i wave my hand above the edge of the bonnet around 3/4's of the way towards the windscreen i get a hot spot where heat emerges. The heat shield could rival the sun for hotness so you know what i mean rmachines!!

never seen any coolant boiling over and the header tank is over full so im pretty sure id notice it straightaway if it was.

cloqwise - whats a swirl pot?

loving this forum got to say lads im learning loads :-D

[Fawbs]

1st i noticed this was when i was crawling through traffic and got a whiff of "hot" through my open window. My old mx6 used to dump heat just near the driver side arch so im used to the smell.

if i wave my hand above the edge of the bonnet around 3/4's of the way towards the windscreen i get a hot spot where heat emerges. The heat shield could rival the sun for hotness so you know what i mean rmachines!!

never seen any coolant boiling over and the header tank is over full so im pretty sure id notice it straightaway if it was.

cloqwise - whats a swirl pot?

loving this forum got to say lads im learning loads :-D

Ok i'm doing research into improving my system so im no expert yet but a swirl pot is basically a cylinder with an inlet and an outlet port for the coolant and a small port to expel the gas. It swirls the coolant and expels the gas from the system. Just put a search in google or somewhere you can always use them on the fuel system.

[Space Monkey]

Ok i'm doing research into improving my system so im no expert yet but a swirl pot is basically a cylinder with an inlet and an outlet port for the coolant and a small port to expel the gas. It swirls the coolant and expels the gas from the system. Just put a search in google or somewhere you can always use them on the fuel system.

so wheres that bolt onto then? you need to wire it or is it self propelling?

[Fawbs]

Ok i'm doing research into improving my system so im no expert yet but a swirl pot is basically a cylinder with an inlet and an outlet port for the coolant and a small port to expel the gas. It swirls the coolant and expels the gas from the system. Just put a search in google or somewhere you can always use them on the fuel system.

so wheres that bolt onto then? you need to wire it or is it self propelling?

Don't need to bolt it onto anything you just put it into the system, put 2 coolant pipes going to it and a pipe to vent gas

[Bibbs]

Erm, guys .. in the UK a "swirl pot" is a device in the fuel tank to stop air bubbles getting into the fuel line. ;)

Coolant swirl pots are usually used for racing cars, or turbo's . In road cars, it's a tad overkill.