KV6 overheating-there is hope!

[heli flyer]

Hi all,
I am posting this as I have had an overheating problem with my 190SE for about two years! Yes I know thats bad but it was sort of liveable with until now when the cold weather arrived (no heater) and the themostat died (stuck open) But what was found to be the problem does'nt appear to be that common.
Symtoms were: loss of coolant with no sign of a leak.
Constant air locks causing temp to go all over the place
Heater cold at idle and luke warm when driving and passenger side colder.
Not overpressurising when driven gently (boring,no more than 3000 rpm) but severe when driven as it should be.
The fault? An almost completely blocked oil cooler!! Some clown had used K-seal, Barrs leaks whatever in the past as it was full of the stuff! Strangely, the heater matrix was fine, not blocked at all. Oil cooler bypassed for the time being, thermostat replaced and all is wonderful!
So, as has been said before, in my opinion, DO NOT USE that type of coolant system sealer in these systems! As a bonus, for some weird reason the air-con is now really quiet, it used to 'groan' at idle and low speed but now you can hardly hear it at all.
Hope the above helps with anyone struggling with overheating, it was driving me nuts! Oh, before I go, does anyone know where I can get a new oil cooler and pipes from, can't seem to find them on Rimmers site?
I love this car, it's just soooo good (mostly!!):D:D:D

[chris75]

Item 10 or 13 on this page ?
http://www.rimmerbros.co.uk/Item--i-GRID999770
:}

[MF1980]

They do give problems those coolers don't they!
A new one costs a small fortune.. a used one could be blocked too..
I have run with the cooler bypassed since May all through the summer and had no issue, but did do an oil change.
I was lucky enough to find a good used one, still not got round to fitting it though.
Hold out for a known good one and don't worry too much about it not being there!

[heli flyer]

Thanks Chris 75 and MF 1980, good grief, what silly money for a new cooler! Think I will be going for a used one and give it plenty of flushing! Just so good to have a cooling system that works as it should and be toasty warm even a idle!

[SD1too]

The fault? An almost completely blocked oil cooler!! Some clown had used K-seal, Barrs leaks whatever in the past as it was full of the stuff!
Thank you for posting this Will. A while ago one other forum member found exactly the same thing. Another member found traces of K-seal after wondering why he needed five successive replacement thermostats!

You were lucky not to have received the usual head gasket/cracked block/liner/head diagnosis. :D If a garage found this fault for you, give them a credit here and buy the mechanic several beers.

Simon

[heli flyer]

Thanks for that Simon, it was indeed my local garage that found the problem. He is ex BMW trained and knows these cars well. I also trust his judgment not only has he saved me money he has, annoyingly been right every time! His sense of humour though, is highly suspect. When he first saw my 190, he looked at the Mg badge he said "hey Will, they've left out the 'U' between the 'M' and the 'G'! Got to love him though!

[eumjmorris]

Magic, great posts, exactly the symptoms with one of mine, but just to ask, what did you both use for the bypass?..to join the two water pipes?..presume some plumbing fitting, perhaps 22mm or similar? Thanks, regards, Mike M.

[heli flyer]

As simple as a short length of 22mm copper pipe put paid to all the overheating. Has now been running like that for around 200 miles and all temps bang on target and a nice toasty heater!

[Organiser]

It looks like I will be doing the same tomorrow as my Typhoon ZT-T 190 decided to perform like an overflowing Cappuccino coffee machine :eek: as it was parked outside Steve's (Arctic) house yesterday afternoon, when I delivered five used rad fan units to him for reconditioning for next weeks Nano meet.

I had arrived without any problems (no overheating) and the car had been fitted with a new rad and air con condensor and a recon 3 speed fan unit last week along with a new waterpump and a full set of cambelts and tensioners.

After removing a lot of the foaming oil and water mixture from the header tank I drove home with the obd engine temp up and down till it decided to rise too high and I had to stop and wait for it to cool down. After another two stops to allow it to cool down, I got home an hour later. :o

Tomorrow will now be spent bypassing the oil cooler and removing the oilly mess from the cooling system! :duh:

Tom.

[Data]

Spookily I have just discovered the same thing. Had the exact same symptoms as the OP, coolant loss but no sign of a leak, hot running with temps all over the show, but no sign of smoke from the exhaust or mayo under the caps.

I had spotted some tell tale signs of k-seal or something similar, copper flecks visible in the expansion tank so was going to give the system a good flush and change the thermostat.

Before I got going I discovered the coolant rail was leaking, so pulled that off and once I cleaned the surface rust realised it has more holes than Swiss cheese. Interesting bit though was the pile of copper c**p in the lower pipe and the almost total lack of any in the top pipe. It looks to me as if the k-seal was dumped into the expansion tank and went straight down the pipe to the oil cooler and then clogged it up and didn't go much further round the system.

I did a flush through of the rad and block and saw pretty much clear water once the (clean) pink coolant had cleared, so fingers crossed not much damage has been done.

Cheers,

Mark S.

[SD1too]

... coolant loss but no sign of a leak, hot running with temps all over the show, but no sign of smoke from the exhaust or mayo under the caps. I had spotted some tell tale signs of k-seal or something similar ...
Thanks very much for sharing this with us Mark. :} Unfortunately there are still a few people who think that the devil's potion is a good idea, and those who are too quick to point to alleged head gasket failure or cracks in the engine block or cylinder liners. :o

Simon