Temp Fluctuates while towing caravan ????

[ian2144]

My 3rd Gen tempature guage normal position is just bellow the half way mark, and never moves.

I now have a twin axle caravan and on long uphill sections of the Motorway the guage moves up beyond the half way mark, but returns to normal on the level or downhill sections, is this OK or do I have a problem ???? I know there is much debate on here about overheating ?

Checked the usuall things like water level, blockages etc but apears to be ok here.

Your thoughts please.

[Predictable Bob]

Been there, got the T shirt !

1. Has the Surf ever been off road ? If it has make sure the radiator is clear of mud - DON'T use a pressure washer to clean it

2. Fit an ATF cooler (Assuming it's an auto)


Despite having the coolant changed mine still had a tendency to get warm when towing and since I'd damaged the rad a bit with a pressure washer I got Dr Anglegrinder to fit a new one - it turned out that the old rad was full of sludge ...

[si tate]

I can't wait for Tony-N & Hazzo to see this thread, after our last episode im sure they will be wanting a word with me.

[TonyN]

If the van is under 2ton it shouldn't be doing it, but ATF coolers are soooooo good for autos that tow, you ought to get one, even if rads is blocked and needs a new one.

[che2318]

surely the temp gauge is normal.

if towing uphill the engine will be working more to pull the weight, combined with the lack of air cooling the coolant through the radiator due to the low speed. thus the temp increases.

once on the level or downhill the engine does not have to work so hard to pull the weight so the temp reduces.

[TonyN]

To a degree yes, it should be able to run at full throttle uphill without going into the red, if you have an issue you'll have to back off and slow down to keep the temp down.

surely the temp gauge is normal.

if towing uphill the engine will be working more to pull the weight, combined with the lack of air cooling the coolant through the radiator due to the low speed. thus the temp increases.

once on the level or downhill the engine does not have to work so hard to pull the weight so the temp reduces.

[che2318]

My 3rd Gen tempature guage normal position is just bellow the half way mark, and never moves.

I now have a twin axle caravan and on long uphill sections of the Motorway the guage moves up beyond the half way mark, but returns to normal on the level or downhill sections, is this OK or do I have a problem ???? I know there is much debate on here about overheating ?

Checked the usuall things like water level, blockages etc but apears to be ok here.

Your thoughts please.

you say it goes the half way mark, but does it go into the red??

if not, then id say your fine and its the normal temp change for an engine under a workload.

[ian2144]

you say it goes the half way mark, but does it go into the red??

if not, then id say your fine and its the normal temp change for an engine under a workload.

No not in the red, only about three quarters up the gauge !!


Whats this ATF cooler your all on about ???? Where can I get one and how much ?? Also looked on roughtrax they have a new rad for £199 or do I go to Toyota for an OMP ??

[Spoggle]

ATF cooler is an extra oil cooler for your transmision oil. Towing a caravan uphill will make the engine work harder, so it will get a bit warmer than running on the level. As long as you dont cook the engine by letting it run up into the red it should be ok. Make sure that you have plenty of coolent in the rad and that the rad is in good nick. You could also fit a cut in switch for the electric fan, so you can turn it on when you see a hill coming up.Thread on here with instructions somewhere. But I would say that if you have an auto box and are going to tow, get an ATF cooler fitted.I got a kit from Kenlow for about a hundred quid, fitted it myself in about two hours, and i aint no mechanic.I've also lifted the rear edge of my bonnet by using a few washers as spacers and this allows a betters flow of air through the engine bay.

Cheers Spoggle

[red barron]

ATF cooler is an extra oil cooler for your transmision oil. Towing a caravan uphill will make the engine work harder, so it will get a bit warmer than running on the level. As long as you dont cook the engine by letting it run up into the red it should be ok. Make sure that you have plenty of coolent in the rad and that the rad is in good nick. You could also fit a cut in switch for the electric fan, so you can turn it on when you see a hill coming up.Thread on here with instructions somewhere. But I would say that if you have an auto box and are going to tow, get an ATF cooler fitted.I got a kit from Kenlow for about a hundred quid, fitted it myself in about two hours, and i aint no mechanic.I've also lifted the rear edge of my bonnet by using a few washers as spacers and this allows a betters flow of air through the engine bay.

Cheers Spoggle

The toyota temperature gauge is completly inaccurate, you will only get a true temp reading by fitting a good aftermarket gauge and sender and you will then get a true reading.There are many threads on this forum about this issue and i did read that there is a mod you can do to by changing the resistors on the circuit board to make the gauge work correctly.!!
Barron

[Spoggle]

The toyota temperature gauge is completly inaccurate, you will only get a true temp reading by fitting a good aftermarket gauge and sender and you will then get a true reading.There are many threads on this forum about this issue and i did read that there is a mod you can do to by changing the resistors on the circuit board to make the gauge work correctly.!!
Barron

Had mine for about 6 years now, and it always tells me if things are getting a bit too warm.Think I'd rather have a decent rad and an ATF cooler than an aftermaket temp gauge though.

Spoggle

[Tallyman]

Had mine for about 6 years now, and it always tells me if things are getting a bit too warm.Think I'd rather have a decent rad and an ATF cooler than an aftermaket temp gauge though.

Spoggle

I've got an ATF oil cooler fitted and an auxhiliary temp guage & sender. The extra guage is very accurate, showing increases as little as a few degrees C when the engine is under load. Whilst towing a heavy load, especially uphill, the ATF will get much hotter than normal. The standard ATF cooler is in the bottom of the radiator, just where the "cooled" water returns to the engine. When the ATF is overheating it's dumping all that excess heat into the bottom of the rad, so heating the water going back in to the engine, making it hotter.

By fitting a second ATF cooler in line before the main cooler you reduce the heat going into the rad, thereby giving it more chance to cool the ATF without overheating the engine coolant.

Oh, and just as a belt & braces approach, I also fitted a bonnet fan extracter for those odd occasions when you need a little extra help by pulling more air through the rad and around the engine, as it can get really hot under the bonnet on a summers day!!

[Hazzo]

I've been through thousands of threads on various sites on this topic as I only want to fit a new head once, general opinion overall is Toyota's temp guage is as good as the one on yer kids peddle car, SO FIT ANOTHER.

Bought mine here:http://www.rspec.co.uk/index.php?mai...action=success

These cars are designed in Japan, for nips who never tow apparently, so the design of the coolant system isn't up to the mark for the extra stress and needs help, SO FIT AN INLINE, BEFORE THE RAD, TRANNY OIL COOLER.

Block off the egr ports too, the gunge which blocks up the intake manifold and breathing system of your car CAN NOT BE GOOD FOR IT, all you need going into your engine is nice cool air and dribble of diesel, not a gloop of tar and superheated turbo exhaust gas, get rid.

There are also opinions on EGT temp guages, intercoolers and better/big bore exhausts to further assist in keeping these muthas cool under load, which I'm looking into as and when I have the cash, intercooler will be first.

Scrapyards will have most of this $hit in stock, save your surf, its too big a bill to scrimp on essentials if towing.H

PS. regular servicing will help too, but having done mine religiously every 3-4000 miles didn't stop this ba$tard blowing its top, then again all was fine till the thermostat stuck, (closed) which kind engineer decided this to be a good idea. Get a 4.2 landcruiser if you don't want to do the work, and si

[si tate]

I've been through thousands of threads on various sites on this topic as I only want to fit a new head once, general opinion overall is Toyota's temp guage is as good as the one on yer kids peddle car, SO FIT ANOTHER.

Bought mine here:http://www.rspec.co.uk/index.php?mai...action=success

These cars are designed in Japan, for nips who never tow apparently, so the design of the coolant system isn't up to the mark for the extra stress and needs help, SO FIT AN INLINE, BEFORE THE RAD, TRANNY OIL COOLER.

Block off the egr ports too, the gunge which blocks up the intake manifold and breathing system of your car CAN NOT BE GOOD FOR IT, all you need going into your engine is nice cool air and dribble of diesel, not a gloop of tar and superheated turbo exhaust gas, get rid.

There are also opinions on EGT temp guages, intercoolers and better/big bore exhausts to further assist in keeping these muthas cool under load, which I'm looking into as and when I have the cash, intercooler will be first.

Scrapyards will have most of this $hit in stock, save your surf, its too big a bill to scrimp on essentials if towing.H

PS. regular servicing will help too, but having done mine religiously every 3-4000 miles didn't stop this ba$tard blowing its top, then again all was fine till the thermostat stuck, (closed) which kind engineer decided this to be a good idea. Get a 4.2 landcruiser if you don't want to do the work, and si

[Spoggle]

I've got an ATF oil cooler fitted and an auxhiliary temp guage & sender. The extra guage is very accurate, showing increases as little as a few degrees C when the engine is under load. Whilst towing a heavy load, especially uphill, the ATF will get much hotter than normal. The standard ATF cooler is in the bottom of the radiator, just where the "cooled" water returns to the engine. When the ATF is overheating it's dumping all that excess heat into the bottom of the rad, so heating the water going back in to the engine, making it hotter.

By fitting a second ATF cooler in line before the main cooler you reduce the heat going into the rad, thereby giving it more chance to cool the ATF without overheating the engine coolant.

Oh, and just as a belt & braces approach, I also fitted a bonnet fan extracter for those odd occasions when you need a little extra help by pulling more air through the rad and around the engine, as it can get really hot under the bonnet on a summers day!!

Thought about a bonnet extractor fan in the past, but thought that I would try the bonnet lift first, only cost a few coppers for a pack of washers. Up to now it appears to be effective having been done for about three years, and a lot of summer towing ago. But have say that when I first started towing with the surf it was a bit hairy watching the temp guage when I hit a hill. A new rad from Roughtrax and an ATF cooler from Kelowe and it was a different motor, running much cooler.My old 2.4 has over 240k Km.s under her belt now and still has the head she was imported with, provided its driven in a sensible manner she performes prety well enough (touch wood). As for an after market temp guage, well it's worth thinking about. Just how easy are they to fit?

Spoggle