Help!! Engine Temp above 220

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majicchuck

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Joined
Aug 3, 2017
Posts
127
Location
Buffalo NY
On trip and all of sudden engine temp in my C7 went to 224 and above. This is first time that engine has run hot. This is also first time pulling a toad. Check engine light came on and not even five min later; the Engine Protect light came on. Pulled off to business plaza and shut engine off.  Definitely not how I wanted to start  vacation.

How long does engine need to be off to cool down? Is there anything else I should do?
 
Under those conditions you should NOT shut it off..Go to neutral set brakes, and bring RPM up to about 2 thousand and hold it there until a cooling indication is clearly showing.. Then drop the RPM to 1000 for a while longer until it stabilizes...
When RPM increases both the fan and the flow of coolant and oil also increases, with no load the engine temp will reduce to normal..
In the future when towing pay more attention to the temp gauge particularly when climbing, when temp starts to climb, start down shifting as needed to increase cooling,, speed is not a consideration when climbing.>>>Dan
  ( When an engine is hot, and is shut down, the heat WILL INCREASE before it begins to decrease. serious damage can occur during this short time when heat is excessive...Always remember the trans is also dumping heat into the cooling system and is cooled the same way,, in your case the radiator is in the rear and probably needs cleaning, they require more cleaning than side mounted systems.>>>D
 
A couple of probably causes on your coach:

1. Fan/water pump drive belt broke (most likely cause of a sudden change)
2. Engine water pump failed
3. Rear radiator is clogged with oily dirt, reducing air flow through it
4. Loss of coolant due to leak

#3 is a gradual change in cooling capacity, but often not noticed till it gets really serious.
 
majicchuck said:
On trip and all of sudden engine temp in my C7 went to 224 and above. This is first time that engine has run hot. This is also first time pulling a toad. Check engine light came on and not even five min later; the Engine Protect light came on. Pulled off to business plaza and shut engine off.  Definitely not how I wanted to start  vacation.

How long does engine need to be off to cool down? Is there anything else I should do?
Next time try manually downshifting to maybe 4th bring your rpm up (you may need to slow your road speed to keep your RPM below max) to improve cooling. I would check the front of your CAC to see if it is clogged with dirt/oil. Cleaning the CAC and radiater should be at least an annual practise.
With out more info like were you climbing a hill or what the conditions were That is the best advise with the available information. Have you done all your annual maintenance?
Bill
 
#3 that Gary mentioned is a real possibility, but so is a radiator that needs cleaned out from the inside. It is a classic sign that when you increased the load on the cooling system by adding a towed car to the overall load that the cooling system couldn't keep up.  The easiest part would be to clean the radiator outside first buy spraying it down with an aluminum friendly degreaser, then use a hose to wash away any dirt and grease.  Try to do it from both sides of the radiator. 

If that doesn't cure your problem after checking Gary's other suggestions, then it may be time to take it to a radiator shop to get it boiled out from the inside.
 
Utclmjmpr said:
Under those conditions you should NOT shut it off..Go to neutral set brakes, and bring RPM up to about 2 thousand and hold it there until a cooling indication is clearly showing.. Then drop the RPM to 1000 for a while longer until it stabilizes...
When RPM increases both the fan and the flow of coolant and oil also increases, with no load the engine temp will reduce to normal..
In the future when towing pay more attention to the temp gauge particularly when climbing, when temp starts to climb, start down shifting as needed to increase cooling,, speed is not a consideration when climbing.>>>Dan
  ( When an engine is hot, and is shut down, the heat WILL INCREASE before it begins to decrease. serious damage can occur during this short time when heat is excessive...Always remember the trans is also dumping heat into the cooling system and is cooled the same way,, in your case the radiator is in the rear and probably needs cleaning, they require more cleaning than side mounted systems.>>>D

I normally pay close attention to temp gauge. Definitely could have paid more attention this time. Thanks
 
Gary RV_Wizard said:
A couple of probably causes on your coach:

1. Fan/water pump drive belt broke (most likely cause of a sudden change)
2. Engine water pump failed
3. Rear radiator is clogged with oily dirt, reducing air flow through it
4. Loss of coolant due to leak

#3 is a gradual change in cooling capacity, but often not noticed till it gets really serious.

It was a shredded belt. Mobile tech came and put new belt. Luckily NAPA had my belt in stock. Well definitely keep extra from now on. Back on the road.
 
majicchuck said:
It was a shredded belt. Well definitely keep extra from now on. Back on the road.

Glad to hear.  Not in this case, but I always save my replaced worn belts for an emergency.
 
SpencerPJ said:
Glad to hear.  Not in this case, but I always save my replaced worn belts for an emergency.
All the people that do this make me laugh. Why would you keep a part you don't trust to be seversible/reliable (you changed it out) to use when you realey need it to work. This especially on a case like the OPs rear radiator coach. Where it is a pain to get the belt changed. I would and do carey a new belt.
Bill
 
I can see saving a replaced part, at least as a short term insurance in case the mechanic installing the part didn't  get  it just right and it failed or worse fell off. An old worn item is better than none at all when you are on the side of the road.
 
SargeW said:
I can see saving a replaced part, at least as a short term insurance in case the mechanic installing the part didn't  get  it just right and it failed or worse fell off. An old worn item is better than none at all when you are on the side of the road.

:)) :)) :))  I was going to leave it alone, but I agree. 
 
SpencerPJ said:
:)) :)) :))  I was going to leave it alone, but I agree.
;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D Amazing lojic old worn out parts are better than new.
"in case the mechanic installing the part didn't  get  it just right and it failed or worse fell off." So tell me how maney times this has happened to you, ever? Why wouldn't the "mechanic" have to re do it on his dime? 
;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D
Bill
 

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