Engine/Transmission (1998.5 - 2002) Need a bigger Radiator!

[Turboman]

I was coming out of Red River, NM the other day with a forklift on a triple axle gneck. About 20k lbs all together. I had the comp on 1x3 running about 45-50 in 4th on a pretty good grade at about 9000 ft msl, I look down and the water temp is about 230* and rising not good. It was about 65* OAT. Now I do realize I was trying to cool 300 hp or so with a 200hp radiator. Does anybody know of an aftermarket radiator with more rows in it. It would be nice to use all that hp all the way to the top of a pass. I did pass a Phord with a small 5er about half way up, never saw him again. If you are curious if you Comp or EZ is working, try pulling a long pass with a load like that and then reach over and turn it off whoa big diff. It would not pull the load at 45 mph with only the DD 2s and no Comp! TIA

 

[Evan A. Beck]

Try swapping a 180°F thermostat in... I think it may fix your problem.

 

[C Schomer]

Make sure your radiator is CLEAN inside and out. I changed my coolant a few years ago and used the Complete EG with the DCA. The parts people gave me nothing but ***** for using it in a 6BT but I think I've done more industrial water treatment than they have. It's no secret that glycol reduces thermal efficiency and I don't need -34F 50/50 mix because I don't go where it's yhat cold. Fleetguard even admits that their low silicate regular stuff mixed at 50/50 barely has enough molybate and nitrite to do the job - that's why you have to use 50/50. I used the DCA formula mixed to -15F and still have enough Mo and nitrite - tested with the strips. I can run mine for all it's worth up the passes and the temp goes about two needle widths past center and stays there. Craig

 

[TowPro]

I had a thermostat that would only open 1/4 of the way, had the same affects your talking about now. Try replacing it, but with the 180

Originally posted by Evan A. Beck

Try swapping a 180°F thermostat in... I think it may fix your problem.

 

[kluther]

for every 1000 ft elevation you loose 7% of you cooling capacity per a rep from cummins

 

[JBlock]

Purple ICe Colant

Has any one tried adding Royal Purple ice to the colant



Purple Ice Super Coolant:



Purple Ice

Brochure

Lowering engine operating temperatures can translate into more power and reliability. Purple Ice is formulated to reduce the surface tempature of coolant, which allows it to penetrate the porous metal surfaces at vital heat-transfer areas of the radiator. Relied upon Racers. Works great on the street. Ideal for towing!



http://www.crestindustriesinc.com/products/royalpurple/royalproduct.htm#ICE



It looks like from the brouchure it buys about 6 degrees with 50%/50%antifreeze, but over straight water 20 degrees. the racers edge.



Joe

 

[RustyJC]

Have you absolutely ruled out all cooling system problems? Fan clutch, thermostat, fouled radiator, A/C condenser, intercooler, etc. ? We tow a 13,500 lb 5ver that's 13' high in Texas summer conditions in the Texas hill country and have never seen coolant temps over about 195 degF. Do other high altitude towers have this overheating problem?



Rusty

 

[Turboman]

1st: Already have 180* thermo.



2nd only have 17000 miles on it, all of which with a screen in front of radiator.



3rd I added some cooling system additive that was supposed to help with cooling efficiency. I can't remember what it was called, was about $28 or so a qt.



4th I also have towed a 15000# 5er with a 13ft front wall against a 20 mph Texas wind with 100* OAT 65-70mph and it would only rise a little till I was on cruise then it would settle down to about 190*. What I'm saying is heavy load, steep grade, peddle to the metal, pyro at 1250*, boost at 35# hard as it can go for 3-4 minutes kind of running.



5th The fan clutch is good, maybe thermo is not opening all the way?



C Shomer: are you saying the pink or orange stuff is better at cooling than the green?



This was the only time it has gotten that high, as I'm usually out here on the flats of the TX panhandle. I think it was 1) altitude, 2) lots of HP & 3) the hard pull come on so fast that maybe the radiator didn't have time to cool it all??



Thanks for all the replies!

 

[jlccc]

Originally posted by Evan A. Beck

Try swapping a 180°F thermostat in... I think it may fix your problem.

If he's getting to 230F a simple thermostat change from 190 to 180 isn't going to make a lick of difference. At 1905F EITHER THERMOSTAT is going to be fully open and passing as much coolant as possible.

 

[PRout]

Originally posted by jlccc





If he's getting to 230F a simple thermostat change from 190 to 180 isn't going to make a lick of difference. At 1905F EITHER THERMOSTAT is going to be fully open and passing as much coolant as possible.

Agreed. . I had the same problem pulling heavy coming back from Vegas up the long killer Halloran grade. Granted it was very hot outside (110*+) and we were pulling 18k gross. I can say that we werent getting passed by many "heavies", but still had to watch the coolant temps. Keeping the EGT's at 1200, gave plenty of pulling power, but the coolant temps quickly got to over 200, and would run away if I didnt slow down & keep the r's up, in about 3rd gear (6sp).



I could see right away the weak link seems to be the radiator on hot summer desert pulls (with exception to auto trannny temps).



Already have the 180* therm installed, and it didnt make a difference on the high end temps. Once it overloads the cooling capacity, it starts running away fast.



The only thing I wonder about is if I used too heavy coolant mix. Running about 80/20 on the mix, and alot of waterpump lube.



I believe you lose cooling capacity running too high of a mix. Id like to try it again at 50/50 to see how much difference that would make, but either way, it could use a bigger radiator for the extreme situations.



Also, going to add an external oil cooler, as that made a major difference on my last truck.

 

[GeneralMachine]

Bigger Rad.?

Turboman I was wondering what kind of exast and air filter you are running. With the comp on five x it sure need's to breath. Ill bet you looked like a slead puller coming up that hill. Harv

 

[C Schomer]

I don't remember what color but I use the one with the DCA . I hear they've changed the name of it recently. It's normally not use in the B - it's used with cylinder liner engines. The DCA stuff will give enough corrosion and oxygen scavenging additive at a lower mixture (glycol concentration). I use the test strips to be sure. I'm due for a change this fall. I'm thinking of mixing for even lower freeze protection (-10) and getting the small bottle of DCA to get the additives up where they need to be. I've thought about the RP stuff. That kind of thing isn't new. 30 yrs ago, Prestone made Supercool. I sold lots of it for Fords with A/C. It definitely helped but it didn't catch on and they quit making it. It sounds like you've done everything already and your problem is only at extreme conditions. You should be hearing your engine fan roaring at that temp if your clutch is good. 230 isn't too bad. I had a OTR truck with a small radiator. It ran that hot EVERY time a pulled a mtn pass - never seemed to hurt it. Craig

 

[WTBurke]

I use a product from a local speed shop called "wetter water" it's pink in color and comes in a bottle about 8 oz. in size. Cost is about $6 bux. It was developed for fire fighting and CDF pumper trucks have this stuff on board. It allows waters molecular structure to lay down on hot surfaces more evenly. I did my cooling system in my 1990 Chev Z-71 last year and noted a 15 to 20 degree drop on 105' days running the air conditioner while pulling long hills. All the circle track guys run this product in their systems. The northern Sacramento valley gets pretty hot during the summer months and the custom speed shops sell this stuff quite often. I used two bottles in a system for a 350 chevy small block.



William

 

[Turbo Horseman]

Hey Turboman, suggest you have your ecm checked to see if the high temp tripped a code. Believe it likely did from my experience. My truck did not overheat just ran hot and blew the code.



The code cuts power by 40% until it is cleared. The only way to clear it is by computer. Would have made too much sense for the ecm to clear itself when the temperature dropped back down etc. But that DC for you.

 

[DBoyd]

A quick question while on this cooling subject. I was reading in a Hot Rod magazine that they recommend using a premix antifreeze - water solution because the premixes use deionized water instead of distilled. They commented that the distilled water in the antifreeze mix would cause electrolysis. I have been changing my coolant every 2 years and I flush with distilled then fill with the 5 year prestone and distilled water in a 50/50 mix. Can this cause a problem down the road???

 

[athompson]

Having lived in the desert all of my life (triple digits temps at least 5 month a year, over 90 more than half the year) I have just about everything to control engine temps. Assuming that the cooling system is rust free and not blocked and the radiator fan is working properly, there are only two things I have ever done that have had any significant effect on cooling.



First, thermostat. This will only affect normal operating temps. In all of my gas powered vehicles, I run a 160 degree thermostat. While this will lower the operating temps significantly, it has absolutely no affect on max temps.



Second, adding rows to the radiator. This will affect the normal operating temps as well. Perhaps the biggest advantage is the reduction in max temps.



Any good radiator shop will be able to add rows to your radiator.

 

[Turboman]

I'm sorry, I had the Comp on 1x3. A little cranial rectal inversion there.

 

[illflem]

Originally posted by DBoyd

They commented that the distilled water in the antifreeze mix would cause electrolysis.

Read this https://www.turbodieselregister.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=55129

 

[Lsfarm]

Check the radiator fins

Turboman, there was a thread several months back where a CTD was having a similar problem. It turned out to be clogged outside fins on the radiator. It turns out that our radiators can get coated on the engine side by the oil fog that gets sucked out of the blowby bottle and swirls around the tips of the fan. This oil is deposited on the engine side of the radiator and has all kinds of road dirt and stuff stick to it. It forms a ring of crud blocking the air flow.



I found a lot of this crud in my radiator at only 15K miles, and a fellow TDR member near me was completely clogged and overheating at 35K miles.



So, take a mirror and a bright light and check out the radiator fins. Or blow them out with compressed air, but be carefull to not bend the fins with too high pressure.



Hope this helps Greg L the Noise Nazi

 

[DBoyd]

Thanks very much ILLFLEM for the thread reference. Excellent information and my question is answered.

Don