Hello All! About 2 days ago I noticed that my 1998 Land Rover Discovery started to heat up while I was driving. Normally it takes about 30 - 45 minutes to get hot and if I turn the heat on it will drop the temp back down to normal. Originally I thought it was only when I used the AC, but I drove for about 45 minutes today in city traffic and it began to creep up again. Any suggestions? The fluids are new and full and it has a new 195 thermostat in it, but not sure it is working properly.

Thanks!

 

Start with checking the fan clutch, if it spins freely then its bad. I personally run a 190 thermostat. When was the last time you checked to see if the radiator was full of leaves and mud?

 

Sure, stop driving it before you toast your engine.
How many miles on the engine, when was the t/stat last changed, when was the radiator last flushed, when was the viscus clutch last changed and are both your electric fans running?

 

Thanks! When I spin the fan it moves about the same when the engine is cold or hot. It doesn't spin freely, but it probably moves about 1/2 to 3/4 around. The Disco has about 140k on it and the fluids were changed about a week ago and I changed the thermostat once it started to heat up on me. I have not looked at the electrical fans yet and the clutch has never been changed as far as I know.

 

What thermostat did you have in it before? Also, the electric fans should come on when the A/C is engaged or when the temp gets above 212*F.

 

Does it get hot while constantly driving or stop and go driving? Does it overheat if you just let it idle after you drive it?

 

Replace the viscus clutch and make sure the electric fans are working before you drive it again.

 

Thanks everyone, I ordered a clutch fan and will leave it in the garage until it shows up. The electrical fans definitely kick in when the AC is on, but they don't seem to do anything to cool the engine. I believe the original thermo was still in it and I replaced it with a 195. Would you suggest going to a 180 thermo?

 

I run a 195*F t-stat, almost 5 years, no problems.
192 is OEM temp, 3 degrees will not make a difference.
Replace your fan clutch, which you are going to do.

 

Without a digital code reader gauge, it would be hard to see the impact made by the electric fans, the stock temp gauge is "slow response". On mine they make 25-30% increase in air flow over the stock radiator fan alone. There is a write up in the tech section for a $50 or so Chevy fan clutch conversion, which works very well. Spike is on the money, fan clutch first. Then if you still don't have temp where you want it you can look at radiator flush and rod out, mud and leaves stuck in radiator fins, maybe a 180F stat if you feel the need. But the stat won't fix all the other physical issues, it just changes the set point.