i got a call today to look at a manitou 629 that sometimes overheats it is a 4 cylinder turbo perkins phaser. the owner got the radiator reconditioned last year so thats fine. I removed the water pump to check the impellor it was fine but very rusty. all inside the engine was rusty there is even rust stuck to the main rad hoses internally. there is a small steel hose probably about 1 inch outside diamater coming from the top of the water pump heading towards a cooler and it is nearly blocked solid inside! has anybody else ever came across this problem or any idea how to sort it? it runs fine most of the time but cannot do any heavy work without getting hot.
Simple - For a long period of time it's had water instead of the correct coolant inside it .......... one of the properties of coolant is corrosion-resistance. It might respond to some heavy-duty cooling system cleaner but judging by your description I doubt it. If my suspicions are correct you'll be pulling the engine apart and hot-dipping every component with a cooling system passage in it.
Run rain water in it and drain every night, until the overnight low is forecast for about 25 F, then leave the water in. If it runs in the morning the rust will be all gone once you patch the tubes that burst in the radiator. For radiator cleaning use 28 F.
Probably will not be long before the cylinders are rusted thru into the pistons either. Saved money on anti-freeze though.
Bascially what we're all saying is it's fecked .......... walk away from it or better still run, as far and as fast as you can.
Could you lads not just have told me that there is a can of magic gunk that i can put in to wash it out lol. The more worrying part is that when it gets about 3/4 way up the temp guage if stopped it wont start just crank over, if it gets further up the guage say just below the red if you stop it it locks and the starter cant turn till its cooled down a while. I must check the intercooler too because it lets out constant black smoke when idling. Not much but constant like a blocked air filter. What you reckon engine and radiator out get the rad checked and overhaul the engine?
The best use for it in that condition is a boat anchor IMHO ....... but if you do decide to pull it and overhaul it take some photos of what you find and give us all a laugh ......
One could boil the block and look at it, but personally I would look for another engine and rebuild a decent one if a rebuild is necessary. Plain water is probably the biggest enemy of engines today. Especially see alot of it in warmer climates. Do not overlook your radiator. Your water pump is probably ate up as well hindering what little flow you are getting. If the engine is seising up every time you are using it it won't be long.
I was only HALF joking. I've used that procedure at least a couple times, it works. If it doesn't get used enough to justify fixing it right, then use the rainwater method, with or without the freezing, or use compressed air blasts to loosen the rust. Once you get the worst of the rust out, fill it with the proper coolant and forget it.
Del, where in Ireland do you think you'll ever get temperatures below freezing - now or any other time of the year ..?
another man has told me he used a dishwasher tablet in the water and it loosened his rust. For now it is going to be left work away until something happens. (farmers!!)
Good point, it has been a little muggy here lately. I figured this problem was a long time in coming, so it's no rush to get it fixed immediately. Doesn't it freeze in Ireland ever? I thought it would be easier there than here when the forecast is 25 it could go to 15. It almost doesn't matter what you use, as long as it gets some agitation and drained it will get better if the engine doesn't lock up first.
Yeah, and if your aunt had balls she'd be your uncle ......