The oil leak continues. Puddles on top of front cover. Think it is coming around the front corner of the intake from valve cover. Suspect the edge of the intake (messed up alignment) is pressing against the VC gasket or VC lip. Will have to pull off throttle body a take a better look. Already snugged up bolts I could get to on VC. Not taking intake off if I can avoid it. This is the one side where I have a single 7/16 bolt....

Guess there should be some space between VC gasket and intake.

And yes, there is that green line on the PS pump bracket, badge of honor from the boneyard, we recycle.

Noobs - Boneyards usually mark their parts with a color, to indicate what month it was bought, in case of a return. Parts with odd splashes of paint or letters drawn in paint may indicate partz vulturez had a hand in keeping your Rover rollin' .

 

Remounted valve covers, believe leak has slowed to normal.

Now radiator not cooling like it should, 30F difference top to bottom. Was 5F two months before HG work. Rad shop says any radiator sealer I might have had in the system would have dried out during my long working project; so might be able to rod it out, might not. He said hot flush is not going to touch it most likely.

As many owners will have stopz leakz from previous attempts to deal with HG, flush of rad as work starts and keeping distilled water in it (rubber glove and hose clamp on lower hose) may help.

 

Well... found something upon close inspection. One of the two AC cooling fans was not turning. Poke blade with a long screw driver and it started running, but not with the vim and vigor of the other one. Could stop with screw driver. And until nudged again it would not turn.

So at idle less air flow than expected, and the inoperative fan blocked air flow as well.

I had heard the the "singing" of the AC fans, I had checked with a paper towel to grille, but I had not put the Mark I eyeball on it.

Off with the front guards and grille for this, I have spares on the shelf.

 

I have one dead as well and a spare to go in but I really don't want to pull my front bumper. Wrestling that bastard on there with 2 people sucks! Especially when one is your 120 lb wife.

 

My bars unbolt and hinge to the ground. SWMBO has not been at 120 pounds in quite some time.....

 

The bars, grill, and and oil cooler are the easy part. I don't know how much a full brush guard RTE bumper weighs but I can assure you its not light!

 

Well, I took mine off, and the oil cooler I unbolted but did not remove. Gave enough space to slide it out thru the top, it would not go out the bottom.

That diagonal crossmember comes out, thru the hood lock hole.

With AC on, outdoor in mid 80s, evening, went for 20 mile ride at 60. Thermsotat stayed at 183F. Slowed down and turned at a light, up to 187, then back down. Parked at idle when home, after 25 minutes it had reached 207F. Seemed to take longer to rise up with second fan running. Will do more tests in daylight tomorrow.

 

Update on the dried out cooling system....

Tried commercial flush (Prestone). Tired muriatic acid in radiator only. Tried a big cup of borax laundy detergent booster and drove several days. Made distilled water quite cloudy and you could see flakes of scale in it. Reverse flushed this morning, then flushed out with distilled, then went back with 50/50 peak.

10 mile drive was 185F, where with water and watter wetter it had been 180-183. As water wetter says, it can't lower it below the thermostat. Idle for 10 minutes and I was at 212. With AC on, 92F outside. Differential on radiator top to bottom on the order of 20 degrees.

So, while vehicle is operational, and it is unlikely off spring will be doing much idling in her truck, questions remain:

to attempt for home remedy coolant flush;
attempt having rodded out again (188K radiator might not be too strong);
or buy one of those aluminum $240 ones.

Cooler weather will be here soon, so maybe just wait and see.

 

Buzz, once I remedy my high idle if I still Run hot with a/c on and idle I will buy an aluminum i should have done it to begin with imo time and money spent would be ahead with new

 

I may make a pass by the boneyard, but it is probably wishful thinking. This week is back to college for offspring, can't do any more major work for a few weeks, and a aluminum one would make a quick weekend project.