talon Posted December 13, 2007 Report Share Posted December 13, 2007 (edited) I just had a bad overheat on the way home from my girlfriends office. About 3 minutes after starting the car and letting it warm, the CEL came on. Since the car still seemed to be running fine, and the CEL occasionally pop on but resets with a restart, I didn't pay it too much attention. About 15 miles later, as I came off the highway, the temperature was sitting just under 90 degrees and everything was fine. At the very next light I noticed that the temp was up to 100 and rocketing upwards. This was followed by the low coolant light coming on. After some indecision I decided to drive the car the last 3/4 mile home, which I am now thinking was a mistake. Regardless, I turned the heat on full blast to try and pull some heat out of the engine but it was only blowing cold air. This happened shortly after I got the car but I chalked that up to fluke. Once shutoff, I could hear the coolant boiling and there is coolant all over the starboard rear wheel where the overflow is. Any thoughts? Could it be thermostat related? What are the chances I damaged the motor by running it hot? Are there any ways to check? My current gameplan is to let the thing cool and then top the coolant off (more likely it will need a complete refill). What else should I do? Edited December 13, 2007 by talon Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bibs Posted December 13, 2007 Report Share Posted December 13, 2007 If the heaters are cold that's an indication that the heater matrix is empty, which could be caused by an airlock, as would fluid heading out of the overflow as the air expands with the heat. Have you changed the coolant recently or topped up a large amount? Quote 88 Esprit NA, 89 Esprit Turbo SE, Evora, Evora S, Evora IPS, Evora S IPS, Evora S IPS SR, Evora 400, Elise S1, Elise S1 111s, Evora GT410 Sport Evora NA For forum issues, please contact the Moderators. I will aim to respond to emails/PM's Mon-Fri 9-6 GMT. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
talon Posted December 13, 2007 Author Report Share Posted December 13, 2007 It's been quite some time since I topped up, but after the overheat I had 6 months ago I did have airlock problems for awhile. The car has run like a top for the past 4 months. Would an airlock throw the CEL? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neal Posted December 13, 2007 Report Share Posted December 13, 2007 It's been quite some time since I topped up, but after the overheat I had 6 months ago I did have airlock problems for awhile. The car has run like a top for the past 4 months. Would an airlock throw the CEL? If the engine coolant sensor goes out of range (e.g. by severe overheating) it would throw a CEL, but you say the gauge was ready 90' when the CEL came on? Do you know what the error code was? Quote May: DON'T hit it with a hammer! Clarkson: Why? May: Cause it's the tool of a pikey. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gold FFM Günter Posted December 13, 2007 Gold FFM Report Share Posted December 13, 2007 ... Would an airlock throw the CEL? let Bibs look into the members area , maybe he can find a "general engine overheat"-code in the code list. As all V8 have a watertemp.-sensor and also a intake airtem.-sensor (and maybe some a sensor in the engineoil drain-plug..) there can be a code. some codes exist without setting the MIL/CEL, but i have no doubt that it is a urgent warning if it comes up. Even some foreign specifications need an overheating signal for the catalysts, so why not having a CEL on overheating the engine !? PM Marcus and ask him, as he sells ECM chips he should also know the original Code setting circumstances in the Lotus setup. Quote ********************************************************************* to name the things if I see them, that's what I call integrity.. ********************************************************************* Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
superdavelotus Posted December 13, 2007 Report Share Posted December 13, 2007 I would check thermostat first and also if you've lost any coolant. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
talon Posted December 13, 2007 Author Report Share Posted December 13, 2007 I know I've lost coolant, and quite a bit of it. I'll run out to the car in a couple hours and see how much. No idea on the code yet. I was hoping Santa was going to bring me a cable and Freescan. Looks like I might not be able to wait. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neal Posted December 13, 2007 Report Share Posted December 13, 2007 (edited) I would check thermostat first and also if you've lost any coolant. The thermostat wouldn't directly stop the heater working. But it could have jammed shut, boiled off some coolant, and that created the air pocket stopping the heater. You can get at the thermostat without removing the plenum but it is quite fiddly. The front two bolts come off no problem but the back bolt won't lift clear of the plenum. But if you lift the back bolt out of the engine block and then slide the thermostat housing forward the the bolt comes free. Refitting is the reverse but you have to be careful when sliding the housing back not to dislodge either of the rubber O rings. If you dislodge the O rings it will be quite obvious from a pressure test but you should also notice some hissing or coolant bubbling out around the housing. Oh, and freescan doesn't work with the V8 - you need an OBDII scanner. [quote name='G Edited December 13, 2007 by neal Quote May: DON'T hit it with a hammer! Clarkson: Why? May: Cause it's the tool of a pikey. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
talon Posted December 13, 2007 Author Report Share Posted December 13, 2007 That would be about hte point that it came on. I was watching the temp creep up when the coolant light went on. Just came in from the car. It took almost two liters of coolant. I know there is a bleed screw on the radiator but can't remember where - can somebody post a pic for me? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neal Posted December 13, 2007 Report Share Posted December 13, 2007 That would be about hte point that it came on. I was watching the temp creep up when the coolant light went on. Just came in from the car. It took almost two liters of coolant. I know there is a bleed screw on the radiator but can't remember where - can somebody post a pic for me? Inside the left front wheel arch. The radiator is slanted back and you'll see the bleed screw at the top left hand corner. 10mm socket IIRC. There's also another bleed screw in the engine bay. It's at the front of the engine on top of the left hand coolant pipe leading forwards from the thermostat housing. 5/16 allen key ... I think. Quote May: DON'T hit it with a hammer! Clarkson: Why? May: Cause it's the tool of a pikey. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
talon Posted December 13, 2007 Author Report Share Posted December 13, 2007 ARGHHH! I think I have it temporarily fixed. Let's just say it took almost 5 gallons of coolant and some jumping up and down on the car to fix. I seem to be down a bit on power as well. I'll bleed it tomorrow and see what happens. Other than a small oil leak I was already aware of, nothing seems to be dripping. I wiped the motor down and will check again tomorrow. Is there anything else I should be looking for as far as damage that could have been donw? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
talon Posted December 14, 2007 Author Report Share Posted December 14, 2007 Well, the car really does seem a bit down on power. It is making boost, but overall it seems a bit sluggish. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joeyoesprit Posted December 14, 2007 Report Share Posted December 14, 2007 (edited) ARGHHH! I think I have it temporarily fixed. Let's just say it took almost 5 gallons of coolant and some jumping up and down on the car to fix. I seem to be down a bit on power as well. I'll bleed it tomorrow and see what happens. Other than a small oil leak I was already aware of, nothing seems to be dripping. I wiped the motor down and will check again tomorrow. Is there anything else I should be looking for as far as damage that could have been donw? WOW!!! According to the service manual the V8s only take 16qts which is 4 gallons. Therefore your car must have been almost emptied! I really don't know how accurate the service manual is on capacities. Because, I have also noticed when I drain my oil and changed the oil filter I get almost 7.5 qts out of the car. Car is always 3/4 full on the oil dipstick before I drain the oil. About 0.5 qt of oil for the oil filter, so my esprit usually takes about 7.75 qts of oil for an oil change. The last time the dealer did the oil change it added only 7 qts (as per the manual) and the oil barely registered on the oil dip stick. Has anyone else seen this? The service manual does state that 7.9 qts is needed when the engin is filled when "dry." So I guess I'm getting almost all of the engine oil out of the car when I change the oil. JoeyO 2001 V8 Edited December 14, 2007 by joeyoesprit Quote JoeyO 2001 V8 - Silver 2007 Ducati 1098 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gold FFM Günter Posted December 14, 2007 Gold FFM Report Share Posted December 14, 2007 the sump is sometimes not the deepest point, the oilcoolerlines and the complete oilcooler has also some oil in it (is 6.5 Liter or so for the Engine at a normal oil-change, and more than 7 if the car is new build in the factory at the productionline...) . Quote ********************************************************************* to name the things if I see them, that's what I call integrity.. ********************************************************************* Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
talon Posted December 15, 2007 Author Report Share Posted December 15, 2007 Well, it's official. The car is wounded. It's throwing the CEL any time I step into the throttle at all. No idea what the code is yet, but I'm looking for a scanner ASAP. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simon350S Posted December 17, 2007 Report Share Posted December 17, 2007 Well I'm sorry to say it but running your engine like that could have done some really serious damage..... Hopefully the gods are looking down on you and will save you from a stupidly expensice bill, this close to christmas.... not a good present to have at all.... Wish I could help you out with some good news and all but I can't.... egines really dont like this kinda stuff..... Could have just done your head gaskets.... but you also could have warped your block and head...... Keep us posted mate.... Simon Quote Chunky Lover Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
talon Posted December 17, 2007 Author Report Share Posted December 17, 2007 I am starting to think I may have gotten lucky. I went over the engine with a fine tooth comb yesterday and there is no sign of anything wrong / leaking / fluid where it shouldn't be, etc... The CEL has cleared itself and the car is making power again. I have ordered the OBDII scanner and will do further investigation once it arrives. In the meantime, it's fingers crossed and gentle driving for me Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simon350S Posted December 18, 2007 Report Share Posted December 18, 2007 Good luck mate..... I sincerely hope you have got away with it.......!!!! Simon Quote Chunky Lover Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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