hello all,well ive had her about a fortnight now and took my first 3 hour traffic run from west to east london this evening.noticed after half hour or so the temp was coming up quite high so i wacked the blower on and while sitting in traffic it seemed to hold its own..but the gauge was up in the red...when i got to east london i popped the bonnet to check the water and everything was cold...engine wasnt hot water bottle wasnt hot.the water was but thats to be expected,,,so i was wondering if maybe they just run a little warm in traffic or is my guage reading wrong,,,a bit like the petrol one...thats back and forward like the windscreen wipers haha..any info gladly accepted..shes quicker than my gtv as well which is gooooooood
do they run hot
- Thread starter craig
- Start date
robwright
New member
They should never run in the red. So you have something afoot. Possible3 causes are:
Faulty temperature gauge.
Faulty temperature sender.
Faulty thermostat i.e. staying shut and not allowing water to the radiator.
Faulty thermostatic switch (senses hot radiator core temp and switches fans on).
Faulty fan.
Faulty fan relay or fuse.
Defective water pump.
There are some very good troubleshooting guides at www.clarks-garage.com Personally I would change the thermostat (or thermostats if you have a turbo) as a matter of course. She is probably running on the original ones. Trust me she will thank you for it.
Faulty temperature gauge.
Faulty temperature sender.
Faulty thermostat i.e. staying shut and not allowing water to the radiator.
Faulty thermostatic switch (senses hot radiator core temp and switches fans on).
Faulty fan.
Faulty fan relay or fuse.
Defective water pump.
There are some very good troubleshooting guides at www.clarks-garage.com Personally I would change the thermostat (or thermostats if you have a turbo) as a matter of course. She is probably running on the original ones. Trust me she will thank you for it.
robwright
New member
Actually on the contrary most 944s are actually running cold. Not sure about your particular set up mate as yours is a little specialist [
] However since finally changing my turbo thermostat I have now discovered that the proper running temperature is between the horizontal and the final mark. Prior to this mine would run at the first mark or just under.
] However since finally changing my turbo thermostat I have now discovered that the proper running temperature is between the horizontal and the final mark. Prior to this mine would run at the first mark or just under.
peanut
Active member
this should hopefully be a simple one to sort out craig. .
If it ever happens again don't wait until the guage reaches the Red mark because your head gasket could fail in minutes at that temperature
What I would suggest is pull out of the traffic cue and do a U turn and run the car at about 30mph in 4th gear keeping the revs as low as possible until the air flow through the bonnet has brought the temperature down again.
If you turn the engine off when the guage is in the red the engine will get even hotter as the pump will not be circulating the water.
If it ever happens again don't wait until the guage reaches the Red mark because your head gasket could fail in minutes at that temperature
What I would suggest is pull out of the traffic cue and do a U turn and run the car at about 30mph in 4th gear keeping the revs as low as possible until the air flow through the bonnet has brought the temperature down again.
If you turn the engine off when the guage is in the red the engine will get even hotter as the pump will not be circulating the water.
Sounds somewhat akin to what just happened to my S2, I'm sorry to say. The waterpump failed, and no water was moved around the engine. Temperature gauge was in the red for a 75-mile journey ... no damage was done, but the water pump needed replacing.
Look for my thread called 'Overheating' for more details.
I hope your situation is different - mine required quite a lot of work and a new waterpump - which wasn't cheap. (All done DIY, but that simply makes the cost a time cost rather than a monetary one.)
Oli.
Look for my thread called 'Overheating' for more details.
I hope your situation is different - mine required quite a lot of work and a new waterpump - which wasn't cheap. (All done DIY, but that simply makes the cost a time cost rather than a monetary one.)
Oli.
Nick,
Does sound very like it. Unfortunately. Having said that, my first thought was that my thermostat had jammed closed for some reason, which would explain the symptoms perfectly as well. My final diagnosis was made by running it without a thermostat, and by the fact that the water pump was making a grumbling noise.
No, nothing amiss before my pump packed up. The car was going particularly well (cool damp evening, very open A-road, no other traffic ... one of my biggest regrets about the whole incident was that it spoiled a very good drive!) No noise, no squeal, but bear in mind that the bearing wasn't what failed; the impeller came loose on the shaft, so I wouldn't necessarily expect a noise.
And no, my engine wasn't noticably hot when I opened the bonnet either. Warm - yes, as to be expected after a hard drive. Not red hot tho'. Had it been, I wouldn't have pressed on (very carefully) for home.
Oli.
Does sound very like it. Unfortunately. Having said that, my first thought was that my thermostat had jammed closed for some reason, which would explain the symptoms perfectly as well. My final diagnosis was made by running it without a thermostat, and by the fact that the water pump was making a grumbling noise.
No, nothing amiss before my pump packed up. The car was going particularly well (cool damp evening, very open A-road, no other traffic ... one of my biggest regrets about the whole incident was that it spoiled a very good drive!) No noise, no squeal, but bear in mind that the bearing wasn't what failed; the impeller came loose on the shaft, so I wouldn't necessarily expect a noise.
And no, my engine wasn't noticably hot when I opened the bonnet either. Warm - yes, as to be expected after a hard drive. Not red hot tho'. Had it been, I wouldn't have pressed on (very carefully) for home.
Oli.
peanut
Active member
I am not familiar with the waterpump housing so i wonered if the impellor could conceivably rub on any limescale buildup which might cause increased friction on the impellor blades.
It occurs to me that there must be an easy way to see inside the waterpump before stripping it. You'd only need a Surveyors Borescope. It would be an invaluable diagnostic tool to look into the cyclinder bores, sump, inlet, radiator all sorts of places especially the sills .
Maybe we should think about getting one for forumers to borrow.
It occurs to me that there must be an easy way to see inside the waterpump before stripping it. You'd only need a Surveyors Borescope. It would be an invaluable diagnostic tool to look into the cyclinder bores, sump, inlet, radiator all sorts of places especially the sills .
Maybe we should think about getting one for forumers to borrow.
Nick,
It's an idea. Although getting a view of the impeller would be tricky.
The pump has two ports - one on the block (which it bolts over), and one on the lower left hand side of the engine as you look from the front - the large rubber pipe which fits over the thermostat housing (the thermostat housing is part of the pump). If you took the thermostat out you would have good access to the front of the impeller, but to see whether it is loose on the shaft you'd really need to see the back. And this runs very close to the block, so getting any kind of 'scope in there would be difficult.
You MAY be able to see a loose impeller from the front but I'm not sure.
Having said that the clearance is small, youd' need quite a big limescale build-up to cause problems. Big to the point of being pretty unlikely, particularly if you use a good anti-freeze.
Oli.
It's an idea. Although getting a view of the impeller would be tricky.
The pump has two ports - one on the block (which it bolts over), and one on the lower left hand side of the engine as you look from the front - the large rubber pipe which fits over the thermostat housing (the thermostat housing is part of the pump). If you took the thermostat out you would have good access to the front of the impeller, but to see whether it is loose on the shaft you'd really need to see the back. And this runs very close to the block, so getting any kind of 'scope in there would be difficult.
You MAY be able to see a loose impeller from the front but I'm not sure.
Having said that the clearance is small, youd' need quite a big limescale build-up to cause problems. Big to the point of being pretty unlikely, particularly if you use a good anti-freeze.
Oli.
Nick,
I've never played with a scope, but have heard of them being used to good effect to examine the inside of body sections and also down spark plug holes to see bore condition and valve damage. The idea is a good one, but may not be practical in the waterpump instance.
Cills - for sure. Got to be better than dangling a digi camera down there.
Oli.
I've never played with a scope, but have heard of them being used to good effect to examine the inside of body sections and also down spark plug holes to see bore condition and valve damage. The idea is a good one, but may not be practical in the waterpump instance.
Cills - for sure. Got to be better than dangling a digi camera down there.
Oli.
OLD_ian
New member
That is what I found with mine. Used to run at around a quarter. After a new radiator, water pump and thermostat it now seems to run a little over the half way mark.
ORIGINAL: robwright
Actually on the contrary most 944s are actually running cold. Not sure about your particular set up mate as yours is a little specialist [
peanut
Active member
ORIGINAL: _ian
That is what I found with mine. Used to run at around a quarter. After a new radiator, water pump and thermostat it now seems to run a little over the half way mark.
ORIGINAL: robwright
Actually on the contrary most 944s are actually running cold. Not sure about your particular set up mate as yours is a little specialist [
Ian it sounds like you have got one of the thermostats with the higher operating temperature which seem to be available eveywhere now. Basically you buy your thermostat with the temperature rating that is applicable for the climate that you run the car in and the sort of use you need ie road ,road/track,or race
Personaly I don't like running my car so hot. My guage is just on the first bar never above and the heater is suffocatingly hot .
Having your temp guage needle at half way or higher and so near the red line is asking for trouble imo . You get so little warning before the guage hits red and the engine over-heats.
If Porsche designed the 944 to work at that temperature in the UK they would have been supplied our cars with that thermostat rating in the first place and they didn't.
They were certainly never intended to run so hot that the guage reads half way and above in the UK climate. Increasing the coolant temperature also raises the oil temperature giving poor lubricating qualites to say nothing of what it does to the ECU control of the fuel and ignition control for efficient and economical running
peanut
Active member
heres an interesting article about Porsche thermostats and associated coolant and oil temperatures which should settle the issue but will probably raise further heated discussion lol[]
http://www.lnengineering.com/lowtemperaturethermostat.html
I suspect that a lot of the thermostats supplied into the UK are from German and Scandinavian origin and are more suited to their seriously low temperatures than they are to the relatively temperate climate in the UK
]http://www.lnengineering.com/lowtemperaturethermostat.html
I suspect that a lot of the thermostats supplied into the UK are from German and Scandinavian origin and are more suited to their seriously low temperatures than they are to the relatively temperate climate in the UK
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