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Tue Jul 15, 2008 6:40 pm

Left a long day of work at 6pm. I left the windows down in my '85 Westy to keep her cool.

On the way in this morning, I thought I saw the lights flash on the dash, then looked again - nothing. Must have been sunshine in the morning light.

Tonight, I drive home. No dramas on the Interstate (I like to get her wound up and running every now and then) and I pulled up through UNC-Asheville towards home.

A block from my turn off, the H20 light went off like a beacon of red in my eyes. Heat gauge was off the scale. I cut the power and coasted to my driveway. I turned it on briefly to crawl the driveway, then shut her down outside the garage.

After getting out of work clothes and into something a bit more comfortable, I pulled out all the camping gear, stowed the bed foam, pulled the cover. Simple, no drama.

I noticed the cooling system boiling.

And I noticed the Alternator was so loose the belt was sagging.

A 5 minute job (30 since I dropped the bolt and had go to Lowes for replacement...of all the bolts in the shop, not a single 13mm 1.25 bolt...grrrr).

Alternator tightened up, oil checked, water up, she purrs again. I took her out for a 20 minute sortie.

No drama.

Good Westy. She got me home.

Wed Jul 16, 2008 7:20 am

Well your timing couldn't be better, I'd say you got lucky.

Wed Jul 16, 2008 8:27 am

BMW,

I noticed something similar recently when I lost some coolant due to an H-pipe crack. When I shut it down, and the system cooled, it sucked air into the system through the crack in the H-pipe, where is was leaking before. After a couple of drives, I noticed what seemed to be boiling as well. I think it may actually be air returning from somewhere in the lines back to the expansion and overflow tank. It may be the sound of bubbling air in the system and perhaps not actual boiling. Is your radiator cap OK? Mine was shot, no resistance either way, so the system wasn't building proper pressure.

Scott

Wed Jul 16, 2008 12:07 pm

bmwloco wrote:

A block from my turn off, the H20 light went off like a beacon of red in my eyes. Heat gauge was off the scale. I cut the power and coasted to my driveway. I turned it on briefly to crawl the driveway, then shut her down outside the garage.

Aren't you better off leaving the engine one? (making sure the fan are on).

Stoping the engine stops the coolant circulation, raising the engine temp by a good chunk.

I also don't see the link between the alt and the temps issue.

You still have the (maybe random) overheating problem, aren't you?

JP

Wed Jul 16, 2008 12:48 pm

My fan stays on for a bit even after I shut off the motor. But I agree that shutting down the motor will shut off the water pump and circulation.

My issue has been some overheating, or close to it, when I am idling in traffic, so I shut down if the temp rises to high for my liking.

Wed Jul 16, 2008 1:57 pm

A few months ago I had a saggy alternator belt due to a leak from the short hose on the two pipes that go between the right head and the water pump. The coolant would spray and/or drip on the hose, causing it to slip and deteriorate.

So maybe your loose belt is an effect rather than a cause of your overheating issue.

I'd check that short hose and maybe pressure up the coolant system with the engine off to see if any hoses start gurgling.

Wed Jul 16, 2008 7:07 pm

This would be a good application for a cooling system pressure tester. If the system will not hold pressure, its time to find out why. Stating the painfully obvious, engines aren't cheap.

http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=216358&highlight=cooling+system+pressure+tester