2.8 injection engine re build

[monkeysox]

Hi guys

I have owned my Ford capri since 1986.
The mileage is a genuine 63300 miles.
I just can’t appear to stop the car over heating.
I have tried myself to rectify this also taken the car to professionals. I’m now at the end of my tether.
For the first time I have said that’s it I have had enough I’m selling my Capri.
But I woke up this morning and after many hours of thought came to my senses.
The system has been flushed many times by myself and professionals and I do believe they are. But driving home yesterday, I found my self in the situation of the car loosing coolant.
I now feel bitter towards my car as I just can’t get to the bottom of it, frustrated mortified and desperate.
Thanks in advance

Wayne

[Peter-S]

So was the engine literally losing water or just running hot. If it was losing it, where from?
When you say you have tried to sort it yourself can you let us know what you have done to save covering old ground. Presumably you have done basics like check for perished hoses and replaced the cap on the pressure tank.

[monkeysox]

I have changed all the old hoses for new. I even found what looked like snakes in the back hoses to the heater matrix, that’s the two small hoses at the back of the engine.
I’m not running with a thermostat in the car to allow better water flow.
I also have a bigger rad on for better cooling.
I’m now wondering if the head has issues.

Thank you guys for your response

[Mc Tool]

I would assume that the afore mentioned professionals did that check for combustion gasses in the coolant ( indicates head and or head gasket issues) , and another tricky one is ....does your water pump still have fins on the impeller ( I have seen them rusted off ) coz they wont circulate coolant if they are damaged.
When it does overheat does it do it soon after starting ......or does it just creep up ?.
Another thing you could do would be to remove spark plugs and look for clean ones (indicating coolant getting into the chamber ) . Also check piston crowns for clean ......like no carbon .
I bought a small usb endoscope / camera ( with led ) on ebay for $9 that plugs into I phone ( download app ) and it has been handy more than once for poking inside an engine for a look see

[Stroker]

Have the heads been off recently?

[Mr B]

Viscous fan inoperative

Silt in the engine which flushing will not remove?

Recently had an Essex V6 on an engine stand, knocked out the core plugs and the engine had loads of Silt sitting in the bottom of the water jacket - no way on earth this would be removed by normal flushing, I had to stick the garden hose in there through the core plug orifice to get it all out.

Wayne

[Bug]

Another daft question maybe, but do you have the caps the right way round?
Plain round cap (no spring etc) goes on the radiator.
What we would all consider to be a proper radiator cap goes on the bottle to the side.
Contrary to popular misconception this is NOT an expansion tank. It is a de-gassing tank and is a part of the whole circulatory system.
If you take the cap off that tank with the engine running you should see the coolant churning around. If not then the water pump is defunct.
This tank can also develop hairline cracks that only open up when hot, allowing the coolant to escape in a fine mist which leaves no evidence. Whilst this may not be enough to lower the level, it will drop the pressure, allowing the coolant to boil at a lower temperature.

[Andrew 2.8i]

How much coolant are you loosing?
On my 2.8, I was continually topping up to the top of the level indicator inside the degas tank. However, I found that if I left it, the level dropped to maybe 5-10mm below the max and then didn't ever drop any further. It seemed to be happy enough with that amount of coolant in the system so I just left it at that



Andrew.

[Mr B]

I have changed all the old hoses for new. I even found what looked like snakes in the back hoses to the heater matrix, that’s the two small hoses at the back of the engine.
I’m not running with a thermostat in the car to allow better water flow.
I also have a bigger rad on for better cooling.
I’m now wondering if the head has issues.

Thank you guys for your response

You say she now has a bigger radiator for better cooling, does the uprated radiator allow for the use of the original fan shroud?

If the shroud is missing the fan will draw air in from all around it instead of through the radiator itself - from what I have read this can dramatically affect the fans ability to cool
the engine.

Wayne

[pbar]

For the first time I have said that’s it I have had enough I’m selling my Capri.

Ongoing difficult to fix issues can make you feel like throwing in the towel, selling it, moving to another planet and donating your body to medical science but keep trying, people are in proper turmoil all over the place and you just have a car that gets hot that's all, and it's likely to be an easy cheap fix once you know the cause. The 'professionals' you mention, whoever they are, will not surpass the knowledge and help you will get on here, I'd wager that this thread will be the solution you need.

Just to add to the thoughts above - make sure you have the correct temp sender, so many people seem to have the wrong one in the car.

And even though you have new hoses, if you're losing coolant I'd check all the connections as the obvious cause of this is a small leak of course, could just need to slightly tighten a jubliee clip that's all.

Please keep adding to this thread whenever you do or find something else, the more you post, the more repies you will get and the greater/quicker chance of a fix. So many people seem to post an issue then go mysteriously quiet.

Good luck

[80s-new-man]

Interesting.. I just had a brand new alloy rad fitted. I’ve only used her a couple of times since. First time after I noticed tiny bit of coolant on the garage floor. Second time, today, I ran her up to temp, all ok. Took her for a spin, put back in garage. About 1 min after I switched her off, I heard a whoosh noise and discovered a massive blast of coolant on the floor. I checked underneath and all hoses etc seemed fine. No dripping or anything else covered.
I only noticed the tiny bit on the end of the overspill pipe, but it seemed in the direction of travel.
Then I checked the caps. My mechanic had replaced the radiator cap with a brand new one as the old one was naff.
It’s one with an inbuilt spring and says 13lb on it.
The degas tank has a flat cap and no spring.

Reading this thread, am I right to believe the degas plastic tank should have a spring loaded one? If so what pressure?
So the rad should’ve had a flat non-spring one? If so what pressure should it be?

Do you fill up at rad or degas tank?

Could it be the cause of my explosion of coolant out of the overflow pipe? I’m not sure how or why…
I don’t wanna blow anything up..

Advice most appreciated!

[Andrew 2.8i]

Reading this thread, am I right to believe the degas plastic tank should have a spring loaded one? If so what pressure?
So the rad should’ve had a flat non-spring one? If so what pressure should it be?

You are correct about the caps, the non spring one goes on the radiator.
From memory, the sprung cap on the degas tank has a 13 psi rating.

Andrew.

[Andrew 2.8i]

Do you fill up at rad or degas tank?

I fill up the degas tank to the level indicator inside.

Andrew.

[Peter-S]

Do you fill up at rad or degas tank?

I fill up the degas tank to the level indicator inside.

Andrew.

I agree with Andrew. The caps are the wrong way around.
Fill the tank - there is a level indicator in there and 13lb is correct.

[80s-new-man]

Ah! Just a schoolboy error then… I’ll swap em over.
So the cap on the rad is basically just there to flush it out I guess…

[80s-new-man]

I just ordered both caps from the club… I’m just hoping the expansion tank is the Capri one, not the BOb Scorpio one, as she has had that heart transplant

[80s-new-man]

Despite having correct new caps, coolant still pisses out the rad cap. I got from the club, but has anyone else had similar issues? Are they any good or is there a better version that seals better? Spoke with a fellow owner and he’s just put sealant on it which I’m reluctant to do.

[Peter-S]

Despite having correct new caps, coolant still pisses out the rad cap. I got from the club, but has anyone else had similar issues? Are they any good or is there a better version that seals better? Spoke with a fellow owner and he’s just put sealant on it which I’m reluctant to do.

Seems strange. Is there any damage on the rad where it contacts the rubber seal? Might be worth giving that area a good clean with wire wool.
The cap should also be a tight fit, if there is any movement at all try tapping the tabs on the cap in a little to make it a more snug fit.

[Caprigear]

I have found that the aftermarket caps for the 2.8i usually need the little tabs closing up slightly in order to make a good seal on the neck of the radiator.

[80s-new-man]

Thanks guys.. the rad cap feels tight to me without any movement. I took the rad outlet hose off and I noticed quite a bit of coolant then came out of the expansion tank. It stopped and I checked the expansion tank level - it was exactly up to the mark.
I looked in the rad… it was quite low, just up to its core.
Now is this the right level for both?
When my mechanic fitted the new alloy rad, he topped the rad up to the cap and the expansion tank up to its level.
Is that correct?
Or should I leave it like this now. ( rad level to core, expansion tank to the correct level). Thinking the water in rad will expand and go up….
Cheers