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Normally, the thing that ruins a serpentine belt...is a failed idler pulley or tensioner (or ocassionally, waterpump/PS pump/alternator/A/C compressor) Just replace tensioner/idler pulleys and belt...and don't worry about it. If any of the other components fail...having a new belt won't do much for you anyway.
Brian.
Amen. Replace the 3 idlers/pulleys and keep the used ones as spares in the rig. I carry a spare power steering pump also. Rotoflex as mentioned. Fuses, hose clamps, thermostat.
Replaced the front driveshaft with Lucky8 yesterday. Changed viscous fan clutch to Hayden 2991 and fan blade to Dorman 620-112. I'm going to change the oil tomorrow.
Changed the oil and filter a few weeks ago, used Rotella T4 15w-40 and K&N HP-3001.
Medano Pass primitive road, Colorado
Last weekend my wife and I drove out to Sand Dunes National Park and camped off of the Medano Pass primitive road. Between the dunes and the campsite 1.8 miles in, the road is mostly just sand but it becomes more technical and interesting as you go further from the dunes. Passed one LR3/4 headed the other way. We traveled about 8-9 miles in and then turned around at a campsite and returned back to the start. Then we drove to Zapata Falls nearby, which takes you a few miles (?) up a rocky fire road that isn't very fun to drive. The trail at the falls is nice, though. A short 0.5 miles, and at the end is a small cave that contains the falls. We took our pup on this short hike, he made it through the rougher surface areas without issues, and he loved seeing the waterfall.
George at Zapata Falls, Colorado Zapata Falls, Colorado
I am coming up on 60,000 miles soon, so I'm going to order a transmission filter kit and change that and the ATF next weekend.
I'm also noticing a very slight leak in the coolant. The overflow bottle level reduces a few mm every couple of weeks. I've looked around at the typical problem areas but no sign of any leaks. I guess the first, easiest possible solution to try is replacing the coolant cap?
Everything else is going well, it feels good to take it out for its intended purpose!
Changed the oil and filter a few weeks ago, used Rotella T4 15w-40 and K&N HP-3001.
Medano Pass primitive road, Colorado
Last weekend my wife and I drove out to Sand Dunes National Park and camped off of the Medano Pass primitive road. Between the dunes and the campsite 1.8 miles in, the road is mostly just sand but it becomes more technical and interesting as you go further from the dunes. Passed one LR3/4 headed the other way. We traveled about 8-9 miles in and then turned around at a campsite and returned back to the start. Then we drove to Zapata Falls nearby, which takes you a few miles (?) up a rocky fire road that isn't very fun to drive. The trail at the falls is nice, though. A short 0.5 miles, and at the end is a small cave that contains the falls. We took our pup on this short hike, he made it through the rougher surface areas without issues, and he loved seeing the waterfall.
George at Zapata Falls, Colorado Zapata Falls, Colorado
I am coming up on 60,000 miles soon, so I'm going to order a transmission filter kit and change that and the ATF next weekend.
I'm also noticing a very slight leak in the coolant. The overflow bottle level reduces a few mm every couple of weeks. I've looked around at the typical problem areas but no sign of any leaks. I guess the first, easiest possible solution to try is replacing the coolant cap?
Everything else is going well, it feels good to take it out for its intended purpose!
Put Castrol Transyd in it - google it and read up off the diesel truck forums. Your truck is so low mile the transyd will guarantee a long life.
Unfortunately your small coolant loss is likely the beginning of head gasket issues. I recommend you run your cap 1/4 turn open from fully seated. That will prevent the system from building pressure but will not result in it leaking out. With a small leak if you run it fully closed it will overpressurize the system and blow a hose or otherwise cause a leak that will lower the level faster and result in an overheat on a long drive. You can probably drive it with a slow drink for a year or more.
BTW, you can get the combustion gas tester for free at Oreilly auto parts and test to see if you have comb gas in the coolant.
Thanks! I actually have a combustion gas test kit, which I used when I bought the truck. I will test it again.
Supposedly, the head gasket was done at the LR dealer in March. I actually looked over the service records on the day I purchased the truck but I forgot take pictures of them and I haven't received them from the previous owner... last week he asked for my email address to send pictures, but they haven't come yet. Hopefully I don't have to do the head gasket again so soon.
Just read this whole thread. Really fun when folks document the whole process. A couple questions and thoughts:
Questions:
- on the fan clutch, is that the extreme duty or HD?
- what are your temps with the UG now that you did it?
- what were the results of your coolant in the combustion chamber tests.
Thoughts:
- I think you paid a very fair price and it sounds like you did the due diligence. I paid $4k for mine with a good not great body, absolutely zero rust (not even surface on the underside) and dealer passbook populated to 92k miles. I also had a pretty decent (but not a big deal) list of stuff to fix like door lock actuators and a few cosmetic things here and there.
- don’t ever expect to do head gaskets. The only reason you ever have to is because the engine got hot and it sounds like you are doing constant monitoring with an UG. Fix the problem before it becomes a much bigger problem. Your temps were a bit high for my liking in regular driving, but I’d like to hear how they are now with the fan clutch. Also, is there Dexcool in there? It’s somewhat charged as a subject, but I’m on the 50/50 side of the fence.
- on the rear sunroof, it could be what mine is in the assembly being messed up which means the headliner comes out (I’m doing mine when I do the headliner).
- depending on budget, get a D2 specific scanner for the Amigos- and everything else for that matter. I spent the $$$ and got a Nanocom and don’t regret it for a second. I’ve also got an icarsoft for about a quarter the price that lives in the vehicle.
- on the Amigos, I’d bet a lot of money Option B is in your future. I get the amigos every blue moon and only the Nanocom has told me it’s the shuttle valve when they aren’t on.
- as you are in a cold weather state, I’d change viscosity of oil to something different for the winter months. I ran the Rotella stuff with a bottle of Lucas the last 3 oil changes and just did an oil change yesterday with just the Rotella, but am going back to 10w40 for the next change during the winter to deal with cold weather starts (it doesnt get a space in the garage).
I’m using mine in a similar fashion in just doing relatively mild off road and as a commuter. Mine is equipped in a similar fashion aesthetically and we do use it like a truck as the rack has carried a substantial amount of stuff. I’ve got airbags in the rear and the ACE system is perfect and we’ve used all 7 seats a decent bit. If you add in a multi state week long family trip, it truly has defined SUV. There is constantly stuff to monkey with, but a total hoot to drive. I’m at 155k now with head gaskets never done, zero leaks, and everything still works perfectly (except the rear sunroof mentioned above). The only downside is it used a quart of oil in the last change. I’m about to do an oil pressure gauge just to make sure I don’t have bigger fish to fry.
Last edited by longtallsally; 10-06-2018 at 10:02 AM.
Put Castrol Transyd in it - google it and read up off the diesel truck forums. Your truck is so low mile the transyd will guarantee a long life.
Unfortunately your small coolant loss is likely the beginning of head gasket issues. I recommend you run your cap 1/4 turn open from fully seated. That will prevent the system from building pressure but will not result in it leaking out. With a small leak if you run it fully closed it will overpressurize the system and blow a hose or otherwise cause a leak that will lower the level faster and result in an overheat on a long drive. You can probably drive it with a slow drink for a year or more.
BTW, you can get the combustion gas tester for free at Oreilly auto parts and test to see if you have comb gas in the coolant.
Factory head gaskets were just crap.
Please don't be a fearmonger. There is no need to do so; no need to be a buzz kill. There are many things that can cause a small coolant leak.
There is a psychological phenomenon whereby if someone suffers a misfortune they want others to suffer it too. I don't recall what the phenomenon is called, but just because many of us have had the headgasket experience doesn't mean rtm will have it.
Headgaskets most often fail because the engine overheats for long enough to warp the heads, which the factory temp gauge facilitates. I suppose some Rover V8 headgaskets fail without overheating due to the design of the coolant passages at the rear of the block, but it seems most fail because of an unnoticed leak elsewhere in the cooling system that results in the engine overheating.
The coolant leak could be the throttle body heater, the radiator or something else. As long as rtm keeps an eye on the reservoir and an eye on the Ultragauge he and his truck will be fine. Even if it is a headgasket leak some owners successfully drive their trucks for years just keeping to coolant topped up.
Yes, I would start with replacing the coolant reservoir cap. Diagnose, diagnose, diagnose. And always start with the least expensive, easiest possibilities.
I use Dexcool 50/50. It's what came in the truck. I've been topping off with 50/50 premix. I haven't yet looked into why people change to green coolant.
Fan clutch is Hayden 2991 Heavy Duty, fan blade is Dorman 620-112
Temps since fan clutch swap are 194-203. It reduced my range by a few degrees, used to be 196-205. So not a huge effect.
Going to do combustion gas in coolant test later today (watching the game) and will post results here.
I have a Nanocom Evo - no regrets there. It shows ABS fault "23-05 shuttle valve switch electrical failure" 23 times intermittent. I actually haven't had 3 amigos since I bought the Nanocom, and TC/HDC was working great last weekend.
I looked it over again yesterday morning before driving in to work, and noticed something new. There is some buildup up slightly orange crust underneath the throttle body housing. I'm guessing this is evidence of some coolant leakage there, but it's hard to know if it's recent.
Hard to capture but it is just above where the coolant hoses attach to the throttle body
Looking at the image above, I can also see some orange residue on the rocker cover, which goes along with the second image I took yesterday: Orange residue on rocker cover. Are those STI ignition cables stock or were they changed at some point?
Assuming the orange residue is Dexcool, I'm guessing it is definitely coming from the throttle body heater. What's the best way to clean it off to see if it reappears?
And I bet you found your coolant loss. Dexcool does spook me as I’ve read about it literally eating engine blocks when air is in the system. I’ve read of others who just flush it once a year, but that’s a PITA to me. I flushed it out of mine and it never goes over 197 at speed with it over 100F and one or both AC units blaring. It will go to 206 occasionally when idling at that temp and we hit 215 on the White Rim Trail and it was 105F ambient with crawling in 4 low and both ACs at full tilt.
09-04-2018, 09:47 AM
