So I'm working 7 days a week but am going to be off because of the hurricane. I have planned,

Paint wheel arches
Install 3 Door Lock actuators
Front U joints and Centering Ball
Radiator Fluid Flush
Replace Battery [DONE TODAY DURALAST GOLD]
Get D1 Wiper arms from junkyard and install.

So anyways two things im noticing besides the rattle sound at cold start.

New Battery and alternator still has low output, not as low as before now its around 11.8-12.8 But it drops the the lower end when engine is warm. If its a cool night it puts out 13.5 for a while.

Also Engine is getting Kinda warm NO ITS NOT HEAD GASKETS. Only does it with a/c off so im thinking its the fan clutch. It gets up to 220 when idling. but does fine when driving or a/c on [220 IS within normal operating termperature FYI]

Only question is I kinda forgot how to test it. Well I know it locks up when engine is warm and i tested it, if I spin it, it might spin 1/4 rotation before stopping with engine warm and off. Is this normal or too much?

It can wait, plus im gonna change my thermostat soon.

 

These are all wothless ideas, but fun to read anyway.

IMHO 220 is a temperature. But I would not want to be operating at it for long periods. Think about it, the factory stat is start to open at 180F, fully open at 204F. Once the stat is well past fully open temp, it won't be cycling open/close, and coolant will spend exactly the time it takes the water pump to push it through radiator, so it does not have time to cool off in hot conditions. The electric boost fan is supposed to pop on at 212F, so that is a threshold that Clive Whistlebritches, infamous Rover engineer, decided things were getting a little warm and needed help. I have a 180F stat in my D1, it makes 180-183 while on the back roads as 55 with AC on.

I agree with your idea that with AC off, at slow speeds, if temp rises then the fan clutch and belt route and marginal radiator could be suspect. The electric fan provides extra cooling, when not there you see thermal increase because system is already working at maximum performance (even though it should not be).

Fan is easy to test. With engine off, spin by hand when cold. When released, should stop in like 1/4 to 1/2 turn, feel like peanut butter inside. Warm up truck, switch off. Repeat test. Should not turn more than 1 revolution when spun and released. Ones that freewheel have lost their internal silicone fluid. This is a six inch clutch, reverse rotation, and several units that fit late 90's - early 2000's GMC will fit, same WP threads. May have to enlarge holes on fan slightly. Write up in tech section. Sounds like your clutch is OK.

So on to belt route. A paper towel sould be sucked toward grille at idle, not blown away. Fan blades on some models can be installed flipped after service, and electric fans can have wires spliced backwards. Air flow for all fans should go same direction, toward the block.


Radiator will not perform at peak unless fins are free of trash and mud. Wash out/blow out with compressed air. DO NOT use pressure washer, fins can't handle it. Clean out AC condenser, oil (tranny) and oil (engine, if equipped ) cooler(s), and main radiator. I would think that one performance test, if you have digital coolant temp readings from an Ultra Gauge or a scanner, would be to cut a cardboard strip that can go across the width of the radiator, about 4 inch high. Position strip to block bottom four inches of air flow at front of rad. Note changes, remove, allow rad to return to normal. Then try with strip positioned across top fin area. If sludged on the bottom, would expect smaller change from low area being blocked, and a faster and larger change on top area being blocked. Don't exceed 230F in either test. A new rad is like $208. Flush helps, but only if caught early. Also remove the themostat when doing all the flush work, small holes in the top leg will fill up with trash. If they are blocked now, that can fool thermostat and make it think engine is not warm enough.

A radiator half full of internal sludge and calcium has colder water on the bottom, because no flow or restricted flow. Surface of fins when warmed up should be within 10F top to bottom if really clean inside. A sludged radiator can also keep the airflow at the fan clutch from getting warm enough to come back on line. Face plate of clutch starts to bring fan back to lockup at about 170F air temp.

Your replacment stat should be one of the 82 degree C soft spring models, will reduce base temp 6 - 10F.

As for volts, you got issues. Either meter is not accurate (test on other vehicles, etc.), or something is not right. Voltage across battery should be 13.8 - 14.4 when truck at idle, nothing else on. On mine, when extras are switched on, as amps go up the volts drop slightly, with everything including wipers on it is down to maybe 13.2 volts. In addition to clean battery terminals, look at the large wires on bolts in the front of the underhood fuse box and clean those up as well. Also follow the negative wire from battery and clean up connections where it ties to frame. And check the belt route again. You could have a bad alternator that is not putting out enough amps or volts or both. You can remove alternator and take to parts store for testing on a bench tester.

 

Thanks for all that^ yea I'm not comfortable leaving it at 220 which is why I want to fix. It runs 198-208 with a/c i haven't thought to check fan rotation yet.

As for the alternator, I'm not too worried about it.. I'm fully convicted the more you worry something is wrong the higher the chance it is or will. I don't think I ever had a rover put out more than 13 and never any vehicle Of mine more than 13.5

It runs great, I'm just looking to keep it that way, avoid slipped liners and head gaskets. I'll try to do radiator before the storm

 

IMHO your test equipment is off. 13.8 - 14.4 is a very stock range for plenty of vehicles. How about next time you are at the parts store (with a Rover that can't be too long) let them check the battery and charging and starter draw in the truck with their computer and compare. One meter can read different from another. At least that has been my experience since late '60's when I started earning a paycheck with reading them. Now on older Mercedes, yes, they designed the regulator to barely charge the battery, and people now swap them out for the improved 14.2 volt regulator (on a W124 is simply takes two Phillips screws on the back of the alternator to change regulator and brush set).

In float charge applications, like a standby generator, 2.25 - 2.27 volts per cell (13.5 - 13.62). In automotive, 2.3 to 2.4 volts per cell, or 13.8 - 14.4. CCA rating is how many amps you can draw from battery for thirty seconds at 0F until it reaches 7.2 volts (exhausted). Reserve minutes is how many minutes at 80F you can draw 25 amps before battery drops to 10.5 volts (lots of electronics depends on built in regulators that cut off if low voltage). I think my D1 may draw 19 amps just running, so I may get a few extra minutes.

 

I'm an electrician lol this is correct voltage with two meters.

 

If you are running 11.8 volts you are not charging the battery.

Now you might have a diode out in the alternator. As a three phase AC generator that is rectified to DC, it needs all three phases good to produce full output amps. So if one phase is gone, it will make perhaps 80 amps of power, enough for minimal operation but fades when loaded with AC, condenser fan, wipers, etc. I had one like that which would read good in daytime, but if you drove in the rain with AC, wipers, headlights on, the battery would go dead in about 2 - 3 hours. May want to check your volts with no load, head lights on (load on battery, engine off), crank up, see that volts increase to allow charging, and switch on other loads to see what alternator can produce. A DC clamp on meter is also handy. My D1 reads about 300 amp draw when cranking, and charging amps seldom get over 10-15, usually more in the 4-8 amp range , or lower. With everything stock turned on I draw 85 amps from the alternator, at that point battery is 13.28 volts. D2 will be higher amp drain, more widgets.

We just don't want you stuck.

 

Also with the D2 you can retard the A/C system into thinking its on but the compressor isn't engaging making you run the boost fan without the compressor. This will lower temps. All you need to do is GENTLY unplug the A/C compressor from the power and ground. Its right there on the a/c compressor. Make sure your climate control system doesn't say econ. Econ means no a/c, and fan won't run.

 

Those temps sound very familiar. I replaced my fan clutch which I ordered off eBay for around 40$. After I did that my temps went down 210 at idle and I live in Florida so it's very hot and humid. I installed motorad 180 and I get about 200-205 on idle and 190-195 city driving temps. My observation was same as yours.... Good temps driving, bad temps idling. The thermostat was just to keep the temps lower but not as low as inline Tstat mod. It wasn't really necessary but I wanted them a little lower.