RAD4Runner

The plot thickens...

So far:

1. No coolant loss
2. On my 10-mile commute to work (yes, after bumming for 5 years - LOL!), including about 5 miles freeway, no running hot.
3. I drove to L.A. yesterday. On return trip it reached about 2/3 of the way. No higher.
4. I notice that I could not get significant hot air out of the heater until lever is about halfway up.
5. Max heater setting does not cool it down. It stays at 2/3 the "safe" zone, no higher, no lower.
6. Sitting in traffic does not seem to affect it.
7. Seems like low rpm of my commute does not cause engine to heat up as much so the system is able to handle it.

That NPW looks good, Damion! And I guess no reports of pumps that went bad on 22RE Performance engine, correct?

Would you agree with these possibilities?

1. Poor circulation from weak water pump. I suspect that this is another corner that The Truck Shop at Miramar cut even if I was charged for a total engine rebuild. However, I'm not aware of a way to check water pump other than feeling for smooth operation and removing and inspecting.
2. Fan clutch coupling not catching up with higher rpm when it's needed for the hotter engine. I will double-check my fan clutch (liquid coupling) in case it had gone bad.
3. Radiator could also be clogged. It is suspect because it looks really bad. Another corner The Truck Shop at Miramar cut charged me to replace this as well in 2013 but in 2016 this was how it looked.
4. Another reason I suspect it is because when I inspected before buying it, I saw hairline crack on radiator. Seller said he would get it replaced. Therefore, it is fairly safe to assume that he had bought a radiator that sorta worked OK - i.e., flushed but had hard deposits that my own chemical flushing would not dislodge.

Maybe do the radiator first because it is the one that is visibly suspect?

Debating between:
1) CSF like one that's on it now. (Grego and old87yota also have CSF's which I think are still working well). My reservation is the chamber used to cool auto tranny fluid sacrifices coolant capacity and some cooling surface area.
2) OEM for 22R-E; still not sure about difference about the regular and the "tow-package".
3) OEM for 3.0 that is supposed to be more efficient and should fit with minimal modification.
I'll search radiator replacement thread or start a new one.



DURING LONG DRIVE ON THE FREEWAY, APPROX120 MILES. GREEN LINE IS WHERE NEEDLE SITS DURING NORMAL OPERATING CONDITION.

rattlecanpaint

Check the inlet vs. the outlet temps of your radiator. (shoot the hoses with your temp gun when at operating temp) You should have approx 20º difference across it. It seems like it's cooling, just not as good as it used to.

det107

Props to you on trying to get the motor run a bit cooler. U toob vids are professional too.

The latex glove trick I used (sorry for late reply) is simple;
A) Like leaving truck to cool overnight
B) Remove rad cap & run motor to operating temp. In the meantime, turn on the heater and increase in steps (low, medium, hot)
C) When at a decent operating temp, turn off the heater & controls, shut down motor.
D) Let it cool about 5+ mins but in the meantime, plug the overflow tube & put on latex glove wr/rubberband
E) Start motor & see if glove dances, which indicates "a problem". If it lays flat, bingo!


again, interesting thread!!

coryc85

Ray - when I changed my water pump recently due to noisy bearing, I found that the fins on the new Aisin water pump were larger than the fins on the old water pump (believe old one came from engnbldr about 8/9 years ago). I did not take a picture of the fins side by side, wish I did though because the Aisin fins were noticeable longer in the sense that they protruded out into the engine further.

Anyhow, I have no idea whether or not those larger fins translate into more coolant flow, and what if anything that means in terms of your temperature. Like you, I have in the past seen my temperature creep up toward the high end of the normal range while on the highway. I've only been on the highway once since the new waterpump so I don't know if anything has changed regarding my engine temps...too soon to tell. Also, like you, when I saw the temperature creep up, it scared me and I turned on the heater, but heater had absolutely no effect on the temperature.

Damion812

Kinda strange it's an issue on the highway usually water cooled have issues in traffic but not unheard of. If you suspect the fan clutch you could try one of them fan clutch eliminatetors . I think LC Engineeringhas em.

old87yota

This problem sounds like either a coolant flow problem, or the cooling system is having a hard time transferring heat to the air through the radiator.

My first CSF radiator lasted about 9 years. It started seeping in a few areas, so I decided to get a new CSF radiator last summer rather than repair the old one. The CSF radiators are good, but I suspect the Genuine Toyota radiator to be better and last longer, if you can still find (and afford) the version that is specified for your 4Runner. I was surprised as to how many different radiator versions Toyota had for these Trucks and 4Runners for how similar everything else about them are.

I believe the "Tow Package" radiator is a 3-row radiator (regular is a 2-row), meant for extra cooling of engines that would see higher than "normal" loads. The main downside to getting a higher cooling capacity radiator for your truck is it could cover up other cooling system problems such as a partial blockage elsewhere in the cooling system.

The pictures you posted in your build thread a few years ago looked worse than my 9 year old CSF radiator did before I replaced it, and I am sure it hasn't gotten any better since then. The corroding fins on your radiator are an important part to the heat transfer from the coolant to the air, and are not working as well as they used to. I am not sure what material the fins are though. You are probably due for a new radiator.

The NPW water pumps are great quality water pumps, and do have a visibly better and smoother castings than the Aisin water pumps. Both NPW and Aisin are good choices.

magnet18

Only cooling issue I had was fixed by replacing the radiator cap
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Different symptoms, that was overheating rather than just running hot, but it's easy


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RASALIBRE

Have you drained, cleaned, and back flushed the block, radiator, and the heater core?
That and water pump cavitation is where I’d be looking.

RAD4Runner

Tnx, guys! Will reply more later. Hard to post from phone. but b4 I 4get, Ill put this here:
https://www.yotashop.com/water-pump-...-pump-wpt-007/

RAD4Runner

I hope everyone and loved ones are well. Thanks a lot for the inputs.

Rasalibre, Overheat actually happened on my first long drive after flush, drain and refill. Yes I did burp after first occurrence but maybe not as thoroughly so I did it again.

I completed the video of my McGyver'd burping setup here:

I used plastic water jug whose opening fits radiator port opening as tight as possible, and seal it with wetsuit material.
CAUTION: Plastic will deform from heat and move out of position. Makes sure it's secured well.
I jacked up front of the truck with "bottle" jack at maximum extension and resting on wooden blocks stacked 3 inches high. Heater control was set to MAX. I ran the engine until thermostat opened. Bubbles came out and coolant from the jug got sucked into the radiator. (My LCE two-stage thermostat has small second port that opens at 85°C, if I remember correctly.) I revved up and released, and each time I released bubbles about the size of marbles come out (not captured in video). I also squeezed lower radiator hose and same bubbles came out. I repeated above until no more bubbles were observed. I will monitor the next time I go for a long drive.

Meanwhile, still researching on water pump and radiator. I'm leaning toward whichever costs less between OEM Aisin and the NPW water pumps mentioned above.
I'm looking into the tow-rated radiator. Three-core?
I would also much rather have a radiator without the transmission cooler section. I think that sacrifices area exposed to air as well as coolant capacity. Your thoughts please?

wallytoo

iTrader: (1)

might be difficult to find a radiator without the trans cooler lines. i guess they are made with them because they work in vehicles without autos, but the opposite is not true. cuts down on manufacturing and logistics costs.

Melrose 4r

to add to Wally’s comments, i don’t think you’d gain much in cooling area even if you had no tubing for trans cooling in there.
Ray is there a dedicated radiator shop anywhere nearby? I had one in my town and it was great. The guy would plug up the radiator, inject air and submerge it in a tank and be able to identify leaks and weak spots. He would recore radiators keeping the brass tanks if they were good. I dont know if yours has the plastic tanks like mine but mine sucks and leaks, seeping at the crimps. I’ll replace it someday when i pull the engine for rebuild.

SomedayJ

Does your 4R have the lower radiator fan shroud?

Ezrider_92356

try turning the heater off. i know it sounds a bit counter productive. but i have run into where the heater dumps enough cooled coolant in right before the thermostat to keep the t-stat from opening and causes the engine to overheat..... just a thought its free to try.

RAD4Runner

Thanks a lot, guys!
There is no leak but seeing the condition (as old87yota says, his 9YO radiator looked better than mine), It's not worth the trouble, and it's hard to find shops I would trust. The Truck Shop at Miramar has RAVE reviews but look at where we are now.

Yes, shroud all good.

Thanks, but I got the two-stage aka dual-stage thermostat (here) to address that.

Damion812

Hey, how's it going? I came across something the other day and it made me think about your situation. If it is running lean it can get got too. Take a look at your spark plugs if you haven't already. Other than that I haven't really researched on how to really verify that when running.

RAD4Runner

Tnx, Damion. No devopment. No chance for a long drive, but good to check the spark plugs, anyway.
Hoping everybody and loved ones are well. After this #CCPVirus mess is over, we'll have a revenge road trip. I'll drink Corona for a change. LOL!

Damion812

darn tablet! Get hot, not get got. But you knew what I ment. Lol

I'm with you, I'll try Carona when all is said and done 😃

RAD4Runner

Last Wednesday we went for a drive to the beach to observe bioluminescence. Temp went up approaching the upper white mark again. I checked with HF thermometer and read 190 degrees F on thermostat housing. Lower radiator hose was approx 50 degrees cooler than upper one. Those seem like normal temps.
Thursday, I attempted to disconnect the connector for temp gage sender; that's the one below the CSI and under the EGR vacuum hoses, correct? (below) However, it is too hard to access, I only wiggled it. Went for exactly the same drive and the temp gage did not go as high.
It seems too intermittent, changing from day to day without any change in the cooling system, so I'm optimistic that the high display is merely from poor connection.
Any trick to be able to remove and clean temp sender, its mounting threads and tighten connections? Looks like I may have to disconnect the vacuum hoses and remove the metal tube array.

wallytoo

iTrader: (1)

ray, i was able to remove and replace it without disconnecting anything else.

and that is the gauge sender, yes.