87 vanagon overheating

[maigaard]

I was thinking about purchasing a 87 vanagon that has an issue now that it is warm out of overheating. I guess it ran all winter without any problems, but once it got warmer this spring it had overheating issues. Is this common? Any suggestions on what it could be ? Thanks, Martin

[OxygenDestroyer]

It could be a whole lot of things. Is it leaking coolant? Have you checked the coolant level? Does the fan in the front work properly? Do you know the history of the van? It sounds like you know the owner - you could find out when the coolant was replaced. Might have a gunky radiator. Could be a stuck thermostat - that's been the source of overheating problems for me a couple of times and it's only a $20 part.

This article...

http://www.gowesty.com/library_article.php?id=52

... does a pretty good job of explaining the cooling system. If you could be more specific about the symptoms maybe some of the excellent mechanics here will weigh in. And yes - it is a common problem - , but sometimes relatively easy to fix, other times it's a symptom of a larger problem but it's not easy to know more without additional information about what's happening.

[maigaard]

I believe that the radiator was just replaced, and I do not think that it is leaking any fluids. I will get back with more info tomorrow. Thank you for your help.

[OxygenDestroyer]

OK - try the search function as well. There are lots of threads on overheating.

[weatherbill]

if air is in your radiator/cooling system.....
try getting the air out of the radiator by first loosening hte screw tot he radiator...should be on the left sid eof the radiator, then jack up the front or drive the front on a hill, then loosen the thermostat housing knob..... the thermostat housing knob is in the engine compartment at the left back....should be a black thing with a little knob....loosen that and let some air out....that might be the problem....... does your low speed fan come on when it heats up???? if not, behind one of the front lights is a tootsie roll shaped thing.....they often go out after 50k miles......that controls your low speed fan

[weatherbill]

edit

[maigaard]

New info, any suggestions. So it seems as if air keeps getting into the radiator and only half of the radiator is hot. No smoking or leaking though. Could this be a clogged/gunky radiator? Where could the air be leaking in from? Thanks for the help everyone.

[bucko]

If only half of the radiator is hot, then it is plugged. It will need replacement. If the previous owner cannot prove the radiator was replaced, then it wasn't. Pure and simple.

Your observations make sense as to the symptoms of a plugged radiator. Cold weather, heaters are on, which aid in cooling the engine temps, as they themselves are "mini me" radiators. Coolant flows through their core, and a fan blows air through this core (you get heat; the flowing coolant through the heater core cools down). The outside cold air can assist the partially blocked radiator when the Vanagon is in motion. When the outside temps get hot, that clogged radiator can no longer keep up with the hot engine temps. Does the radiator fan kick on at all when the temps climb? It should kick on when the needle gets right at, or slightly above the red temp warning lamp.

Try this: open up all the heaters (front and back if Vanagon has a rear heater). Put the heater fans on "high". Yes you will sweat, but what you want to observe is if the engine temps go down). If they do, the radiator is plugged.

You may also have a stuck thermostat, a bad radiator fan temp switch, and/or low coolant.
_________________
Current VW drives: 1984 Westfalia

Past VW drives: 1967 Beetle, 1973 Beetle, 1977 Bus, 1971 Military Type 181

[OxygenDestroyer]

If it is the radiator, don't be too dissuaded by that - not that bad of a job to do yourself and the radiator itself can be had for ~ $200.

One thing though - when messing around with cooling problens AND you don't know the prior service history, a lot of guys go ahead and replace the t-stat and fan switch at the same time and it's not a bad idea - especially the t-stat. It's a cheap part and easy to replace when he coolant is already flushed. I may or may not do the fan switch depending on budget - might just leave it if you know it's working as intended.

Good luck.

[maigaard]

thank you all for the info, I am going to go ahead and get my hands dirty with this one. It seems as if it is the radiator. Thanks again, Martin