Swift ZXI : Won't get to optimum engine temperature level

bhogalrajnish · 19th November 2009, 18:17

I recently drove over a big pothole in my Swift Zxi done 9000 km and the radiator got damaged, I got it replaced by MAS. After the repair the car dose not warm up fully. It takes a very long time for the temp gague to come to half point(15 KM around ) and it goes down to 1/4 if the car is driven on an open road or at night in 5th gear.

I went back to the MAS and they said it is normal(I dont think so) I told them to check the colant flow valve, the guy checked the hose by pressing it with his hand and said that the valve is closing as the hose has pressure else the hose will be eazily pressed.(I dont think so)

Not sure what else should I check or should I force them to replace the Coolant Valve ?

vdiatech · 19th November 2009, 19:49

hello pal, i dont think there is any issue with your car at all. You should be happy !

Cheers

bhogalrajnish · 19th November 2009, 20:18

Quote:

Originally Posted by vdiatech

hello pal, i dont think there is any issue with your car at all. You should be happy !

Cheers

I never saw this happen before on the Swift or my old Esteem. Now if the car is not coming to its optimum temperature here in Delhi where the temperature is around 18-20 degrees it will not even warm up in the mountains where its going to be 0-5 degrees which will surely cause engine issues apart from low fuel efficiency. I am expecting the thermostat valve to be bad, Is there a way of checking the valve, I am good to open the valve myself as MAS dose not seem intrested. To my knowledge the temp gague should not move at all once the engine is warm.

CrackedHead · 19th November 2009, 20:43

Its possible that your MASS removed the thermostat valve while replacing the radiator.

Please try a different MASS.

srishiva · 19th November 2009, 20:54

Guess what, my temperature sensor had some loose connection and it was showing very high temperatures on the guage.
Found out that it also had effect on the AC by turning it off repeatedly.

Jaggu · 19th November 2009, 20:54

Yup check thermostat, then see if the temp sensor is attached/connected/working properly.

ksethuram · 19th November 2009, 20:56

The temperature would be a little high when you drive in start stop traffic and will drop when you are in a stretch or during nights, but it should not be that substantial as the fan would be keeping the radiator cool enough.

Please check whether the radiator fan is correctly connected.. I suspect that not be connected considering your symptoms..

If the thermostat has issues you will face overheating not the one you are facing.

Jaggu · 19th November 2009, 21:24

huh?!! thermostat removed will mean engine will not heat up fast, how will it cause heating up?

Moonraker · 19th November 2009, 21:31

Quote:

Originally Posted by bhogalrajnish

I never saw this happen before on the Swift or my old Esteem. Now if the car is not coming to its optimum temperature here in Delhi where the temperature is around 18-20 degrees it will not even warm up in the mountains where its going to be 0-5 degrees which will surely cause engine issues apart from low fuel efficiency. I am expecting the thermostat valve to be bad, Is there a way of checking the valve, I am good to open the valve myself as MAS dose not seem intrested. To my knowledge the temp gague should not move at all once the engine is warm.

Here are some reads which you can use before you try to test the Temperature sensor. You may need a multimeter to have these tests done (ofcourse you need to locate these sensors in your car)

http://www.autoshop101.com/forms/h32.pdf

AUTO REPAIR HELP - COOLANT TEMPERATURE SENSOR

I have a partly simple and partly dangerous process for testing,

1. Buy a thermometer (digital would be better)
2. When the engine is cold, open the radiator cap and place the thermometer lead in the radiator water
3. Now start the engine and watch the temperature rise, if the thermostat is working fine at a given temperature setting the radiator fan should switch on and the temperature should drop. If this is happening then you are fine else you have a problem.
4. Water has its boiling point at 100C so your temperature sensor would be configured to handle atleast 130 to 140C, 1/4th of it should be around 35 to 36C and when your temp guage shows 1/4th your thermometer should show somewhat similar temperature. If its showing higher temperature then you can have the sensor replaced (please keep in mind that its a crude way of testing so expect atleast 5C temp variance)

Do you really want to take all this pain to test the thermostat when the vehicle is running perfectly alright. Until and unless you see a dip in your fuel efficiency i wouldnt recommend taking the pain of doing the testing.

Choice is yours

bhogalrajnish · 19th November 2009, 21:43

Thanks for the gyan,

I am worried because I frequently travel to the mountains and it is going to be real cold there this time of the year. Not is there something wrong with the car I dont want to get stuck in the cold there. I will try and replace the thermostat valve(if it is there and not stolen my the MAS) and then check the temprature. Will update the thread tomorrow if I find the time to get that done.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Moonraker

Here are some reads which you can use before you try to test the Temperature sensor. You may need a multimeter to have these tests done (ofcourse you need to locate these sensors in your car)

http://www.autoshop101.com/forms/h32.pdf

AUTO REPAIR HELP - COOLANT TEMPERATURE SENSOR

I have a partly simple and partly dangerous process for testing,

1. Buy a thermometer (digital would be better)
2. When the engine is cold, open the radiator cap and place the thermometer lead in the radiator water
3. Now start the engine and watch the temperature rise, if the thermostat is working fine at a given temperature setting the radiator fan should switch on and the temperature should drop. If this is happening then you are fine else you have a problem.
4. Water has its boiling point at 100C so your temperature sensor would be configured to handle atleast 130 to 140C, 1/4th of it should be around 35 to 36C and when your temp guage shows 1/4th your thermometer should show somewhat similar temperature. If its showing higher temperature then you can have the sensor replaced (please keep in mind that its a crude way of testing so expect atleast 5C temp variance)

Do you really want to take all this pain to test the thermostat when the vehicle is running perfectly alright. Until and unless you see a dip in your fuel efficiency i wouldnt recommend taking the pain of doing the testing.

Choice is yours

bhogalrajnish · 20th November 2009, 17:48

Issue resolved.

It was the Thermostat valve, The valve was stuck and open all the time. My local Mass did not have a new one but the old one was just stuck and not broken. So the valve was fixed in place.

Thanks for the guidance.

bhogalrajnish · 27th November 2009, 17:20

Well the issue got resolved, and good that I did not listen to you, If the Thermostat on the car is not working properly and the car dose not heat up properly it will not be performing at its optimum level and will result in low fuel average and more wear and tear of the engine:

HowStuffWorks "How Car Cooling Systems Work"

Quote:

Originally Posted by vdiatech

hello pal, i dont think there is any issue with your car at all. You should be happy !

Cheers

19th November 2009, 18:17	#1
bhogalrajnish BHPian Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Gurgaon Posts: 215 Thanked: 67 Times	Swift ZXI : Won't get to optimum engine temperature level I recently drove over a big pothole in my Swift Zxi done 9000 km and the radiator got damaged, I got it replaced by MAS. After the repair the car dose not warm up fully. It takes a very long time for the temp gague to come to half point(15 KM around ) and it goes down to 1/4 if the car is driven on an open road or at night in 5th gear. I went back to the MAS and they said it is normal(I dont think so) I told them to check the colant flow valve, the guy checked the hose by pressing it with his hand and said that the valve is closing as the hose has pressure else the hose will be eazily pressed.(I dont think so) Not sure what else should I check or should I force them to replace the Coolant Valve ? Last edited by bhogalrajnish : 19th November 2009 at 18:20.
	() Thanks

19th November 2009, 19:49	#2
vdiatech BHPian Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Bangalore Posts: 414 Thanked: 10 Times	hello pal, i dont think there is any issue with your car at all. You should be happy ! Cheers
	() Thanks

19th November 2009, 20:43	#4
CrackedHead BHPian Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: Seattle Posts: 585 Thanked: 81 Times	Its possible that your MASS removed the thermostat valve while replacing the radiator. Please try a different MASS.
	() Thanks

19th November 2009, 20:54	#5
srishiva Senior - BHPian Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Bengaluru Posts: 4,372 Thanked: 2,260 Times	Guess what, my temperature sensor had some loose connection and it was showing very high temperatures on the guage. Found out that it also had effect on the AC by turning it off repeatedly.
	() Thanks

19th November 2009, 20:54	#6
Jaggu Team-BHP Support Join Date: May 2004 Location: Bangalore Posts: 20,369 Thanked: 17,301 Times	Yup check thermostat, then see if the temp sensor is attached/connected/working properly.
	() Thanks

19th November 2009, 20:56	#7
ksethuram BHPian Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Chennai , London (now) Posts: 233 Thanked: Once	The temperature would be a little high when you drive in start stop traffic and will drop when you are in a stretch or during nights, but it should not be that substantial as the fan would be keeping the radiator cool enough. Please check whether the radiator fan is correctly connected.. I suspect that not be connected considering your symptoms.. If the thermostat has issues you will face overheating not the one you are facing.
	() Thanks

19th November 2009, 21:24	#8
Jaggu Team-BHP Support Join Date: May 2004 Location: Bangalore Posts: 20,369 Thanked: 17,301 Times	huh?!! thermostat removed will mean engine will not heat up fast, how will it cause heating up?
	() Thanks

20th November 2009, 17:48	#11
bhogalrajnish BHPian Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Gurgaon Posts: 215 Thanked: 67 Times	Issue resolved. It was the Thermostat valve, The valve was stuck and open all the time. My local Mass did not have a new one but the old one was just stuck and not broken. So the valve was fixed in place. Thanks for the guidance.
	() Thanks