Clifford: dzJeepChic's '92 XJ [ongoing project]

[taggart_lumpy 0]

i start freaking when mine is above 225 haha

usually does great all day until the end of the day with the ac on as well

[GRUNT 111]

Is that an XJ thing? There has to be a fix.

[theksmith 5,778]

G - do you have the open or closed loop cooling system?

[Number7 89]

G - do you have the open or closed loop cooling system?

 

Open. George:cool:

[theksmith 5,778]

Open. George:cool:

 

well then considering that i think you've changed everything in the cooling system (radiator, hoses, t-stat, water pump, etc) - perhaps you have a small combustion leak. i'd at least investigate that possibility considering it doesn't cost much to check:

 

http://www.amazon.com/LISLE-75500-COMBUSTION-DETECTOR-BLOCKS-HEADS-GASKET/dp/B0002KPZ2Q

 

http://www.blockchek.com/store.htm

 

http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_12605_SPM1189752201P?prdNo=5&blockNo=5&blockType=G5

 

or a good shop will have an electronic sniffer that can check it. keep in mind each time you've overheated, it could have warped or cracked further causing the problem to actually get worse each time. so even if the original problem was the radiator and you fixed that, you might now have a combustion leak causing the same symptom.

 

sucks that the gauge was accurate all this time and you spent the money to put in the other gauge, but at least you know for sure now!

[K7VZ 19]

For what it's worth, the stock thermostat is supposed to be 195. I've known guys that have run 140 degree thermostats, but if you do your research, that can mess other stuff up. I compromised and went with a 185 degree thermostat when I swapped the radiator and water pump on my XJ. After that, it ran around 200 degrees under normal driving conditions. I felt it gave me just a little extra padding when the XJ did start to get hot. Instead of it running up to 230-240, I was able to keep it 220-230 respectively. Also, I never had heating issues with my XJ under normal driving conditions even with the A/C on. The only time it ever tried to get hot on me was towing my 3000+ pound camper.

 

Also, I'm not sure how much it worked or helped, but I also added a bottle of Royal Purple water ice or something like that to the coolant. It's supposed to work magic with the water molecules bonding to dissipate heat. Snake oil? I don't know. For an $8-10 bottle and a chance at keeping the XJ a few degrees cooler, I figured it was worth a shot.

[scottL 185]

Also, I never had heating issues with my XJ under normal driving conditions even with the A/C on. The only time it ever tried to get hot on me was towing my 3000+ pound camper.

 

Also, I'm not sure how much it worked or helped, but I also added a bottle of Royal Purple water ice or something like that to the coolant. It's supposed to work magic with the water molecules bonding to dissipate heat. Snake oil? I don't know. For an $8-10 bottle and a chance at keeping the XJ a few degrees cooler, I figured it was worth a shot.

 

my xj runs between 195-210 all the time (knock on wood)..

whenever i turn the a/c on the secondary fan kicks in and the temp drops to 195. i never have pulled any trailer with it nor added snake oil.

[Project510 24]

For what it's worth, the stock thermostat is supposed to be 195. I've known guys that have run 140 degree thermostats, but if you do your research, that can mess other stuff up. I compromised and went with a 185 degree thermostat when I swapped the radiator and water pump on my XJ. After that, it ran around 200 degrees under normal driving conditions. I felt it gave me just a little extra padding when the XJ did start to get hot. Instead of it running up to 230-240, I was able to keep it 220-230 respectively. Also, I never had heating issues with my XJ under normal driving conditions even with the A/C on. The only time it ever tried to get hot on me was towing my 3000+ pound camper.

 

Also, I'm not sure how much it worked or helped, but I also added a bottle of Royal Purple water ice or something like that to the coolant. It's supposed to work magic with the water molecules bonding to dissipate heat. Snake oil? I don't know. For an $8-10 bottle and a chance at keeping the XJ a few degrees cooler, I figured it was worth a shot.

 

Water Wetter

[dzJeepChic 2,897]

G took Clifford to a well established auto mechanic here in Fountain Hills yesterday, and the mechanic checked everything: there is no combustion leak, it's not running lean, in fact he couldn't find anything wrong with it at all. The only thing he could come up with was maybe the new 'High Flow' water pump G put on is not working properly or just doesn't work or something.

 

So G drained Clifford again and took the High Flow water pump off today. He says the only difference between it and the stock one he bought this morning is that there's a plate rivited onto the blades and it cost about $100.00 vs $38.00. But anyhow, now we both wonder if this 'High Flow' pump has been restricting flow thereby creating our problems all along? The 'High Flow' pump was installed before any of the other mods were done; way back when he first started the build.

 

I guess time is going to tell. Cross your fingers cuz Clifford never gets to go anywhere anymore except on test drives to see if he'll get hot. d

[K7VZ 19]

I've heard that high flow water pumps can actually move the coolant through the radiator so fast that it doesn't have time to cool. Maybe your problem?