Two days ago, I rode 90 miles up into the flat farmland of NW Ohio to work at the family farm. A 70 degF day in the middle of March. The ride up was normal, and my Connie ran fine. Normal cooling. 165 degF in the cool morning, up to 175 degF thermostat temp when I arrived. I'm running 3 inch vent flaps, on my '93, and have digital temp sensors in the thermostat drain plug, and the oil pan. Haven't had a cooling hiccup in several years. 145K on her.
At 1800 hrs I packed up and headed back home. Air temp was in the mid 60s, and she warmed up to 175 degF on the thermostat. Was doing 65 mph on the county roads, and didn't pay any more attention to the engine for a while. Running fine. About 20 miles into the ride, it got weird. Noticed that the temp gauge on the dash was showing cold. Off scale to the left. Checking the digital for the thermostat temp, it was at 120 degF, and slowly dropping. Still at 65 mph, on empty county roads. Big farms with few houses. Not the place one wants to break down late in the evening. Connie was running fine, and sounded good. Air temp dropping to around 60. Kept going at 65 mph.
Hoped it was a stuck open thermostat, but the thermostat temp dropped down to 80 degF, and held there. No coolant smell, so thinking water pump? Checking the oil pan temp, it was at 185 degF and steady. Made it to the motorway, and ran the last 40 miles for home at 70+ mph. Air temp down to 55 degF. Oil temp steady at 185 degF. Hoped the cool air at speed, and the cool oil, would get me home.
Flipped on the radiator fan bypass switch, coming off the motorway. Rolled a few stop signs, and hit the 3 traffic lights on green. Pulled into the driveway, and shut her down. Had run great. A small dribble of coolant came out, and stopped.
The leak was the small hose on the inlet of the water pump. Had swollen over the years, and touched the exhaust. Blew the coolant out onto the road, without any steam or smell or anything. After putting the new hose on, and refilling the coolant, she leaked at all 4 o-rings on the front coolant log. But after running her around the neighborhood a bit, they sealed again, and no drips this morning. Rode 20 miles of errands, fairly close to home.
Was this a common experience on C10s?
At 1800 hrs I packed up and headed back home. Air temp was in the mid 60s, and she warmed up to 175 degF on the thermostat. Was doing 65 mph on the county roads, and didn't pay any more attention to the engine for a while. Running fine. About 20 miles into the ride, it got weird. Noticed that the temp gauge on the dash was showing cold. Off scale to the left. Checking the digital for the thermostat temp, it was at 120 degF, and slowly dropping. Still at 65 mph, on empty county roads. Big farms with few houses. Not the place one wants to break down late in the evening. Connie was running fine, and sounded good. Air temp dropping to around 60. Kept going at 65 mph.
Hoped it was a stuck open thermostat, but the thermostat temp dropped down to 80 degF, and held there. No coolant smell, so thinking water pump? Checking the oil pan temp, it was at 185 degF and steady. Made it to the motorway, and ran the last 40 miles for home at 70+ mph. Air temp down to 55 degF. Oil temp steady at 185 degF. Hoped the cool air at speed, and the cool oil, would get me home.
Flipped on the radiator fan bypass switch, coming off the motorway. Rolled a few stop signs, and hit the 3 traffic lights on green. Pulled into the driveway, and shut her down. Had run great. A small dribble of coolant came out, and stopped.
The leak was the small hose on the inlet of the water pump. Had swollen over the years, and touched the exhaust. Blew the coolant out onto the road, without any steam or smell or anything. After putting the new hose on, and refilling the coolant, she leaked at all 4 o-rings on the front coolant log. But after running her around the neighborhood a bit, they sealed again, and no drips this morning. Rode 20 miles of errands, fairly close to home.
Was this a common experience on C10s?
