Anywhere on Lombard Street... lol

 

LOL. Found this: TechShop is the SF Bay Area's Only Open-Access Public Workshop -- TechShop San Francisco

Not sure if this is what I'm looking for. Need to check it out.

 

Error code is P1118 - according to Rave: Radiator outlet temperature thermister high

Talked to LR repair man, suggests to replace the sensors. Does that make sense?

 

No, it does not. According to the RAVE it for detection of a stuck thermostat.

 

Thanks a lot, very helpful. The coolant temp was rock solid at 9 when the light was on.

 

Well, which sensor do you trust? Might be a good idea to measure temp of radiator hose, etc. to be sure you are not really at 284F, which would be "smokin'". Another thing that can be checked is the actual connector on the lower sensor, if it had corrosion or gunk in it, that could make the sensor have a strange reading. Normal temp is like 200F, so 284 F would be very bad.

 

well, may be I'm naive, but I would trust the temperature gauge in the dashboard more because it starts at the bottom at cold start and goes to 9 and stays there while the engine is on. If it was not reliable I would expect it to show freak results more often or always stay at 7 o'clock. Hence I think the sensor theory does make sense. But i agree it does make sense to test.

 

Except the temp gauge on the dash of any car is not accurate, it give's a general idea of what the temp is, it will read normal even with a good 20+*F temp change, but then it will start to climb, and quick.
Using a live data scanner will show you the actual temp of the engine unlike the gauge which only shows you the "normal" range.

Whenever you work on a car you always start with the free stuff, then the cheap stuff and work your way up from there.
Replace your thermostat, its only $30.

 

couzteau,

Sorry for the confusion. It is natural to be cautious if one sensor on the truck logs a code that is supposed to represent that the temp sensor on the radiator has a resistance that if true would represent 284 F, on the bottom of the radiator.

Now that is not very likely, as a 50/50 mix of standard coolant and water, at 20 psi pressure cap (as comes on Discos), will boil over at 275 F. So yes, your mechanic, with no smoke showing , no steam venting into coolant container, and hoses not swelled up; probably concluded you were not boiling over, and that the scanner he had connected showing the temp from the sensor on top of the engine was in a reasonable zone. All good.

The sensor in question could be defective, and could have a very gunky connection that is lowering the overall resistance, making the system read wrong for this test. Or it could be a thermostat being erratic.

Discos don't take well to overheat, it can warp heads and ruin head gaskets; and just one severe oveheat can cause the cast iron cylinder liner to break loose, becoming the infamous slipped sleeve.

With respect to heat gauge in the D2, it is really less of a gauge and more of a pointer at a few ranges. The ECU monitors the ECT, and drives the pointer.

If ECT (temp sensor) is within in a magic "normal range" the gauge holds at 9:00. If below that temp it will display in the "cold" band, if above normal temp (which is a wide range): (from RAVE, and it means what it says):

When the engine is over heating the temperature gauge will display in the high
temperature band.

So if a wide normal range = 9:00, above 9:00 is trouble, even if we have not reached the high temp light just yet.

And if sensor is disconnected, it wil read cold and way2hot light will be on.

Your code again was:


Radiator

 

Thanks Savannah and Spike. A lot to learn. I appreciate every bit of info and the worst thing that could happen would be a damaged engine, especially with an appropriate heads up from the sensors. Hence I do honestly value your opinions very much.