m20 overheating help

[whipsey]

i've got an e34 520i that keeps overheating in traffic i have to rev the car and hold it to drop the temperature i've cleared the airlocks have a new thermostat fitted, water pump appears to be working or temp wouldnt drop when revved im gonna start pulling my hairout if i can tsort it other than this the car drives well anyone got any ideas?

[dazleeds]

dodgy viscous maybe??

try the rolled up newspaper trick
if it shreds it then its ok

if not and paper stops or slows it then ya viscous aint working right

also are you sure its really overheating??
and its not just the gauge rising? could be blue sensor for the temp gauge etc

[JOSEMI]

Just a couple of ideas, but it may be that the fan is not kicking in.

Also check for any leaks inside the cabin, around the central console area and the driver's/passenger's footrests, and if found any then it may be that the heater matrix and / or its pipes have blown.

Jose

[whipsey]

the fan seems to be cutting in right where are the temp sensors ?

[ClemQjeronimo]

on the m20 theyre close to the front of thwe engine, near the thermostat. theres a blue one and a brown one. you'll need a 19 spanner for this i think (or a 17) to unscrew the blue one.

[whipsey]

how do you test these when i bought the car it had a replacement head fitted i dont wanna have to replace it again

[dazleeds]

how do you test these when i bought the car it had a replacement head fitted i dont wanna have to replace it again

could possibly be down to a badly fitting head or badly torqued up maybe??

possibly even a cracked head

is it boiling up in the coolant reservoir?

[Martinaston]

If it only does it in traffic i'd say the fans shagged

[whipsey]

its not pressurising just seems to heat up in traffic whats the normal temp gauge reading on these?

[ClemQjeronimo]

if the gauge goes past the half way point somethings wrong. i'd say change the fan coupling first. its only 26£ or so from GSF and all you need is a 32 spanner and a hammer. turn it clockwise tho and if it dont work then just bring it back to gsf... that wat i did. lol

are you actually losing coolant tho?

[whipsey]

no if the temp gauge starts to go into the red i rev the engine so the temp drops

[whipsey]

im not losing any coolant either

[ClemQjeronimo]

sounds a bit weird. probably not the head. its obviously related to the engine speed... maybe the water pump belt is loose.

[julianm40]

I had a similar problem with my 316 and it was the thermostat.

[whipsey]

PUT A NEW THERMOSTAT IN IT THERE WASNT ONE THERE WHEN I BOUGHT IT

[whipsey]

just got round to trying the rolled p paper trick the fan stops dead do i need to do this with a hot engine?