Ka running hot, but not overheating.

[RyanS13]

So about a couple weeks ago I turned on my ac which never works, but this time it decide to work. I ran it for about ten minutes and I noticed my temperatures start going up. They went up to about 210*.

Ever since then it's been running hotter than usual. Usually it was around 180-200. Now it usually runs about 200-220.

Keep in mind I don't have the stock little ac fan in my car, or a thermostat installed, which might be the problem, but why now and not before? It always ran around 180, even without the ac fan and thermostat.

So what could be going on? I'm trying to get this fixed before it gets worse.

[mattack69]

INSTALL THERMO / thread.

[SLiDe_WaYz]

Man, why arent you using a thermostat ????

[90white240]

Shoot Im thinking about taking mine out too. My car has been overheating.

[abunai the drifter]

thats normal casue the ac condenser gets realy hot so some of the heat is absorbed by the radiator look up how ac works if you dont believe me

[RyanS13]

thats normal casue the ac condenser gets realy hot so some of the heat is absorbed by the radiator look up how ac works if you dont believe me

But I haven't turned the ac on since that day, and it still runs consistently hotter.

[RyanS13]

Man, why arent you using a thermostat ????

I took it out a long time ago when I was running into problems. Never really had a reason to put it back. But could that cause it to magically run hotter out of nowhere?

[abunai the drifter]

you may want to bleed the air form the system and thermostat would not hurt, check your fan clutch to see it it loose, pressure test the cooling system and cap, hope this helps

[RyanS13]

you may want to bleed the air form the system and thermostat would not hurt, check your fan clutch to see it it loose, pressure test the cooling system and cap, hope this helps

I've bled it plenty of times, it hasnt helped. Last time I tried to put a thermostat in it didn't open properly and water started flowing out of the radiator. So I took it out again. But I want to get it back to were ot used to be.

[abunai the drifter]

try a new fan clutch and pressure test the system to see if you have any leaks and check your cap to see if it at the right pressure

[RyanS13]

try a new fan clutch and pressure test the system to see if you have any leaks and check your cap to see if it at the right pressure

Haven't replaced the fan clutch, but the system is good. Doesn't leak or anything. And the cap is almost brand new, it's good, it doesn't push water out of the overflow or anything.

[abunai the drifter]

ok then that seems to be your problem good luck

[keytops]

Lol, running your car without a thermostat does NOT make it run cooler. It does quite the opposite actually and then some. I'll try to keep it simple, if you dont believe me google it.

Initially the car will take longer to warm up which will wear out your motor, engines are meant to be hot 180°F±30°F to be exact and engine tolerances are made accordingly. Also your oil needs to be hot to reach the proper viscosity, if your oil is 10-30 its 10w viscosity when it's cold and 30w when its hot. The lower the number the thinner the oil, the thinner the oil the less protection. The oil is not meant to operate at it's cold viscosity for long either, so the oil will break down and become more and more like water.

Ever wonder why the car warms up with no thermostat? You would think that the hot water would flow out of the motor, cool off in your koyo and return to the engine a few degrees above ambient temp. Well even that big @$$ koyo cant break the laws of thermodynamics. The water flows so fast it never has a chance to cool off, even with the thermostat wide open there is still some resistance to let the water cool off. Running with no thermostat greatly decreases the efficiency of the radiator. Think about it like this; with no thermostat the whole system is the same temprature (everything is HOT) vs. a normal system where the motor pumps its hot water to the top of the radiator and sucks in nice cooled water from the bottom.

Lastly a hot engine runs cleaner, all that carbon and soot cant burn up so its just hanging out on your piston tops and against your cylinder walls wearing your rings, all that expensive stuff.

If you dont understand then google running with no thermostat. If it was so good everyone would be doing it. Even the pro race teams use a thermostat, it's not just there to give better emmissions or something.

One thing about thermostats, DO NOT BUY ONE FROM AUTOZONE!!! Not pep boys or o'riley's either. Stant=POS. Those are all cheap chinese junk. when it sticks you'll be sorry. Go OEM... its not much more.

OEM 170° $17 at this link or $30 at the parts counter THERMOSTAT GENUINE NISSAN OEM (http://www.thenismoshop.com/THERMOSTAT-GENUINE-NISSAN-OEM-_p_25.html)

Nismo 145° $48 at this link or $80 and 3 days wait time at parts counter
NISMO JDM LOW TEMPERATURE THERMOSTAT (http://www.thenismoshop.com/NISMO-JDM-LOW-TEMPERATURE-THERMOSTAT_p_22.html)

[rebornS14]

wish they still had the like option, LIKE! and a thumbs up =)

Lol, running your car without a thermostat does NOT make it run cooler. It does quite the opposite actually and then some. I'll try to keep it simple, if you dont believe me google it.

Initially the car will take longer to warm up which will wear out your motor, engines are meant to be hot 180°F±30°F to be exact and engine tolerances are made accordingly. Also your oil needs to be hot to reach the proper viscosity, if your oil is 10-30 its 10w viscosity when it's cold and 30w when its hot. The lower the number the thinner the oil, the thinner the oil the less protection. The oil is not meant to operate at it's cold viscosity for long either, so the oil will break down and become more and more like water.

Ever wonder why the car warms up with no thermostat? You would think that the hot water would flow out of the motor, cool off in your koyo and return to the engine a few degrees above ambient temp. Well even that big @$$ koyo cant break the laws of thermodynamics. The water flows so fast it never has a chance to cool off, even with the thermostat wide open there is still some resistance to let the water cool off. Running with no thermostat greatly decreases the efficiency of the radiator. Think about it like this; with no thermostat the whole system is the same temprature (everything is HOT) vs. a normal system where the motor pumps its hot water to the top of the radiator and sucks in nice cooled water from the bottom.

Lastly a hot engine runs cleaner, all that carbon and soot cant burn up so its just hanging out on your piston tops and against your cylinder walls wearing your rings, all that expensive stuff.

If you dont understand then google running with no thermostat. If it was so good everyone would be doing it. Even the pro race teams use a thermostat, it's not just there to give better emmissions or something.

One thing about thermostats, DO NOT BUY ONE FROM AUTOZONE!!! Not pep boys or o'riley's either. Stant=POS. Those are all cheap chinese junk. when it sticks you'll be sorry. Go OEM... its not much more.

OEM 170° $17 at this link or $30 at the parts counter THERMOSTAT GENUINE NISSAN OEM (http://www.thenismoshop.com/THERMOSTAT-GENUINE-NISSAN-OEM-_p_25.html)

Nismo 145° $48 at this link or $80 and 3 days wait time at parts counter
NISMO JDM LOW TEMPERATURE THERMOSTAT (http://www.thenismoshop.com/NISMO-JDM-LOW-TEMPERATURE-THERMOSTAT_p_22.html)

[SLiDe_WaYz]

He is definitely correct, when I originally bought my car it had a stock automatic KA, I never could figure out why it would always go to hot when stopped then when cruising it would go under operating temps and would never regulate temperature properly. Well come to find out previous owner took out the t stat, which caused a leaking headgasket and fried piston rings which resulted in me getting a SR.

I would def get a Nismo or OEM T stat because I tried autozone and o Rielly's they never worked properly. Just make you you install it properly. If the t stat doesn't fix it I would def look for a H Gasket leak.

[jacobs13]

keytops is absolutely correct. Running your engine colder is worse than running it hotter.

[Prime]

Lol, running your car without a thermostat does NOT make it run cooler. It does quite the opposite actually and then some. I'll try to keep it simple, if you dont believe me google it.

Initially the car will take longer to warm up which will wear out your motor, engines are meant to be hot 180°F±30°F to be exact and engine tolerances are made accordingly. Also your oil needs to be hot to reach the proper viscosity, if your oil is 10-30 its 10w viscosity when it's cold and 30w when its hot. The lower the number the thinner the oil, the thinner the oil the less protection. The oil is not meant to operate at it's cold viscosity for long either, so the oil will break down and become more and more like water.

Ever wonder why the car warms up with no thermostat? You would think that the hot water would flow out of the motor, cool off in your koyo and return to the engine a few degrees above ambient temp. Well even that big @$$ koyo cant break the laws of thermodynamics. The water flows so fast it never has a chance to cool off, even with the thermostat wide open there is still some resistance to let the water cool off. Running with no thermostat greatly decreases the efficiency of the radiator. Think about it like this; with no thermostat the whole system is the same temprature (everything is HOT) vs. a normal system where the motor pumps its hot water to the top of the radiator and sucks in nice cooled water from the bottom.

Lastly a hot engine runs cleaner, all that carbon and soot cant burn up so its just hanging out on your piston tops and against your cylinder walls wearing your rings, all that expensive stuff.

If you dont understand then google running with no thermostat. If it was so good everyone would be doing it. Even the pro race teams use a thermostat, it's not just there to give better emmissions or something.


...What? There is so much misinformation here it makes my brain hurt.

The lack of a thermostat will not cause your car to overheat OP. Not possible. That's not to say you should be running without one, but it won't cause the problem you're having. You have another problem somewhere. Check the system for air bubbles, corrosion, clogs, leaks, or a broken pump. Check your temp sensor/gauge to be certain it is functioning properly and not sending you on a wild goose chase. The stock sensor/gauge combo isn't known for it's accuracy in the first place, though on second reading it seems you might have an aftermarket setup. Check it anyway. If all else fails, check compression. Headgasket may have already gone south. There are a lot of factors in this kind of thing.

[RyanS13]

Picked up a thermostat this morning, installed it, And of coarse, the piece of shit isn't working right. The heater never gets hot inside the car, and the temperature started rising pretty fast. It got up to about 210 and I shut it off.

So if the heater never gets hot that means the thermostat is stuck closed or not open enough correct?

Also I looked at the fan clutch, it seems to be spinning pretty slow. You could pretty much reach in there with your hand and stop it pretty easy. So that is a part of the problem too.

But what the hell is up with these thermostats? This is why I took it out in the first place to not have to deal with this bullshit.

[waxball88]

I always boil test my thermo's before they go in.

[RyanS13]

I always boil test my thermo's before they go in.

I did! It opened! I guess maybe it's just not opening enough? The heater isn't getting hot.

[RyanS13]

I always boil test my thermo's before they go in.

I did! It opened! I guess maybe it's just not opening enough? The heater isn't getting hot.

[VNG704]

Picked up a thermostat this morning, installed it, And of coarse, the piece of shit isn't working right. The heater never gets hot inside the car, and the temperature started rising pretty fast. It got up to about 210 and I shut it off.

So if the heater never gets hot that means the thermostat is stuck closed or not open enough correct?

Also I looked at the fan clutch, it seems to be spinning pretty slow. You could pretty much reach in there with your hand and stop it pretty easy. So that is a part of the problem too.

But what the hell is up with these thermostats? This is why I took it out in the first place to not have to deal with this bullshit.

The fan not spinning fast enough IS your problem. You also have another problem, your thermos... none of them are working right. That problem probably isn't the thermostats but something else. Maybe installation?

[abunai the drifter]

if your heater is not getting hot it means that coolant is not getting to it and you have an air pocket when you bleed it next time trun your heater on and run the car

[RyanS13]

The fan not spinning fast enough IS your problem. You also have another problem, your thermos... none of them are working right. That problem probably isn't the thermostats but something else. Maybe installation?

No it was installed properly. Spring facing towards firewall, jiggle thing at 12 o'clock.

[Bboy/dorikun88]

I did! It opened! I guess maybe it's just not opening enough? The heater isn't getting hot.

if your heater isnt getting hot u may have a restriction in your cooling system causing the issue. run your car with the rad cap off at idle and look for flow if it jus blurps coolant everywhere u have a problemo!

[jacobs13]

sounds like my friends ka. Got it with no thermo, put one in and it overheats. We soon find out it was the headgasket. the previous owner tried to cover up the fact it had a blown hg

[ddf2006]

no heater could mean blown hg

[fliprayzin240sx]

How about bleeding it some more...KAs are notoriously pain in the ass to bleed. It took me literally days to bleed the damn thing.

[RyanS13]

I got it figured out. It was the fan clutch. And the thermostat I put in it this morning was garbage. I took it out, swapped out the fan cultch, and it's all good now. Back to right around 180* all the time.

I knew it wasnt the headgasket. Ive dealt with a few head gasket problems on these cars already, it wasnt that. I knew it was something else.

[Zenki_516]

How about bleeding it some more...KAs are notoriously pain in the ass to bleed. It took me literally days to bleed the damn thing.

Exactly... bleed it till you think its good, then bleed it again. repeat 6473 times.

[Razi]

Same thing happened to me, and my engine also overheated after the thermostat install.

So I bled it a second time.

Take the radiator cap off and pinch the hose that goes to the overflow tank.
Grab a soda bottle and cut it in half, wrap the neck end in electric tape and stick it into your radiator.
Then jack your car up and run the engine.
Open your bleeder valve and pour water into the radiator until bubbles stop coming out of the bleeder valve.
Then I let the engine idle for a long ass time until I got to 180 degrees to make sure the thermostat was open.
I topped of the radiator and it's been running nicely ever since.

[JKL1031]

next time, just buy a 170F Tstat, drill 4 more holes in it the size of the jiggle valve, jack the front of the car up or park on hill and idle/blip until you reach 180/bottom hose is hot, never touch the system again.

[RyanS13]

next time, just buy a 170F Tstat, drill 4 more holes in it the size of the jiggle valve, jack the front of the car up or park on hill and idle/blip until you reach 180/bottom hose is hot, never touch the system again.

That's what I did. But as soon as I started to drive the car around the temperature didn't stay at 180*. it started going up real fast.

[Chaluska]

Same thing happened to me, and my engine also overheated after the thermostat install.

So I bled it a second time.

Take the radiator cap off and pinch the hose that goes to the overflow tank.
Grab a soda bottle and cut it in half, wrap the neck end in electric tape and stick it into your radiator.
Then jack your car up and run the engine.
Open your bleeder valve and pour water into the radiator until bubbles stop coming out of the bleeder valve.
Then I let the engine idle for a long ass time until I got to 180 degrees to make sure the thermostat was open.
I topped of the radiator and it's been running nicely ever since.

this is total fubardness...

bleeding the system is stupid easy, i used to have issues bleeding, until i spent an entire day figuring it out..

I used an OEM stat, 3 core radiator, and electric fans.. the key here is to get the hot water to the t-stat.


1- jack front end of the car as high as you can get it.
2- disable / remove radiator fan (for bleeding only)
3- remove top hose, and fill up engine from the top hose, until fluid rushes out of the radiator inlet. put top hose back on radiator
4- remove bleeder screw from top of intake manifold (optional.. i did it once, and left it closed once, made no difference on my method
5- turn heater to full blast, and 4 fan speed
6- crank up car, and wait until lower hose is hot.
7- grab the lower hose, and squeeze it a couple times to rush the water around the system, and free up any air bubbles, you will see them bubbling out of the radiator fill.
8- turn off car, lower it, fill it up with radiator fluid, top off your expansion tank, tighten the bleed port, toss your fan back on (or plug it back in). and go take it for a test drive.

if you can drive around for more than 3 minutes, and it doesn't overheat, you are gold. if it does get hot (hotter than mid-way on the temp gauge) turn back around, and try again.

[nismoracingsx]

I'm still a supporter of no t stat :p
my wife's ka just hates them, no leaks, passes all the pressure and leakage tests, but cannot bleed all the air

no t stat= no air to bleed out :p

car has never overheated and still gets high 20's on gas mileage....

i hate that bleeder valve, always feels like i'm just waiting for that thing to snap off...

[nightsauce]

call me whatever you want, but I just changed my radiator hoses/thermostat/hoses under the intake manifold this weekend and I have always had trouble bleeding the system. I went to auto parts stores looking for the funnel that attaches to the radiator (Lisle 24610) but couldnt find it.

soooooooo I made my own. I had spare hose and used a coolant bottle and wrapped it onto the rad cap location. Pinched the line to the reservoir (or else it'll flow out there). and filled it with fluid.

(pimpadellic)
http://a6.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc7/319591_626502068220_54902144_32948278_1351646246_n .jpg

1. Jacked the car up
2. Turned heat full blast
3. I let it idle for a long time as bubbles came out.
4. Then I reved it until more bubbles came out
5. Repeat for half hour until no more bubbles came out.

This worked perfectly and my bleeder screw is broken. Its been 2 days and no issues. I'm going to bleed it again just to be sure tho.

[wacko2]

im havin same problem to but different, when i warm up my car it take forever to warm up an the gauge showes it cold, it will jump to 2 line up an when i take off it goes down to cold, i replace the thermostat and nothing different

[JKL1031]

some of you may have leaky headgaskets then. if u have the tstat in, and the bottom hose is getting hot, u shud be ok. U may have to bleed 2 or 3 more times, but after that, I don tknow what to tell you. You could throw on a new water pump and see how that helps.

[VNG704]

im havin same problem to but different, when i warm up my car it take forever to warm up an the gauge showes it cold, it will jump to 2 line up an when i take off it goes down to cold, i replace the thermostat and nothing different
coolant temp sensor

[Chaluska]

im havin same problem to but different...

:picardfp:


Ohm out your coolant temp gauge sending unit.. sounds like it could be bad.. does your cars heater put out heat, even though the gauge shows cold?

[Chaluska]

.....

1. Jacked the car up
2. Turned heat full blast
3. I let it idle for a long time as bubbles came out.
4. Then I reved it until more bubbles came out
5. Repeat for half hour until no more bubbles came out.

This worked perfectly and my bleeder screw is broken. Its been 2 days and no issues. I'm going to bleed it again just to be sure tho.

why bleed it again, if it needs to be bled you will know within 2 minutes of driving.

i still think filling up the radiator through the engines upper radiator hose is a much better way of doing it.. your engines cooling system doesn't have THAT many areas for air to hide. disabling the fans helps speed up the t-stat opening... as soon as it opens, thats when you see the bubbles. its giving the air a new way to escape, and allowing new water pressure to force out any remaining air. by disabling the fan, my car got hot enough to open the tstat in like 4 minutes...

I didnt need any weird funnel system, when you jack up the front of the car, it makes the radiator the highest point, if you add a 2' section of hose, its not going to make any difference to whether or not air can escape..

bleeding the car is about opening up the t-stat.. that it

[nightsauce]

why bleed it again, if it needs to be bled you will know within 2 minutes of driving.

i still think filling up the radiator through the engines upper radiator hose is a much better way of doing it.. your engines cooling system doesn't have THAT many areas for air to hide. disabling the fans helps speed up the t-stat opening... as soon as it opens, thats when you see the bubbles. its giving the air a new way to escape, and allowing new water pressure to force out any remaining air. by disabling the fan, my car got hot enough to open the tstat in like 4 minutes...

I didnt need any weird funnel system, when you jack up the front of the car, it makes the radiator the highest point, if you add a 2' section of hose, its not going to make any difference to whether or not air can escape..

bleeding the car is about opening up the t-stat.. that it

bleed it again to be safe. I've worked on KA's long enough and have overheated enough times to know that the ka's coolant system holds lots of air. Especially when your have air locks in the heater core.

I've done the ol simply jacking up the front of the motor to make the radiator the highest but it does not always work out the way you want. It worked less than half of the time with that.

My system that I posted was to show people what I have done. It's all fluid dynamics. The extra hosing and the makeshift funnel guaranteed that the highest level of fluid was in the funnel and created a gravity feed into the coolant system. Mind you, my bleeder screw is broken so unlocking the air at the upper hose is a challenge. This system worked out perfectly. And yes I bled it again for safe measures and no bubbles came out. I'd rather spend the extra 10-15 minutes bleeding the car than having it overheat while im driving somewhere.

[fliprayzin240sx]

Exactly... bleed it till you think its good, then bleed it again. repeat 6473 times.

Or not bleed it 6473 times by installing a swirl pot!!!

[S-Nation S13]

Bleed !!! It takes awhile >>