Engine overheating

dshinnick wrote:
Hey all-

We have a 2005 Holiday Rambler with a Cummins ISC 330. On our way to Flagstaff AZ, at 7,000 feet, we began to experience some overheating. The water temp gauge spent quite awhile in the red zone. We unhooked our tow vehicle, which didn't seem to help a lot. When we were level or downhill the temp dropped, as would be expected, but on any climb at all, it headed back up into the red.

It was probably in the mid-80's outside, not terribly warm, and the road was what I'd call a moderate incline, certainly not excessively steep.

The coolant level seems normal, as well as the oil level. I had the coolant SCA level checked within the last 6 months and I was told that it was fine.

Interestingly, the OIL temperature seemed normal; the oil temp gauge stayed down where it normally is. It would seem if the engine is running hot then the oil temp would be up too, but it didn't seem to be.

Anyway, I'm planning on taking it in to a Cummins shop on Friday, but I thought I'd run it by the forum to see if y'all had similar experiences, or any thoughts.

Thanks!

Dave

Dave,
First off, is this the first time you've experienced this on this rig? Have you had it on long grades before, at about the same ambient temp and the same load? If so, how'd it act then? And, as Wolf and others have stated, if you haven't done so, get in there and look real close at the back side of the CAC and perimeter of the radiator to see if you have "fin clogging" due to oil residue/dirt/dust/debris etc.

I don't know about Cummins but the CAT engines have a blowby tube that unless is extended, it can cause oil mist to be transferred to those fins and the, the fan, like a giant vacuum cleaner, sucks up every particle of dust and debris from the road surface and deposits all of it on those oil/mist coated fins and what do you have, pretty soon a solid surface and no FINS!!

Now, not saying this is your problem but, it's a place to start. If you do have clogged fins, and it is that bad, it's going to take some serious time and effort to get them clean thoroughly. Not an easy job.
Scott