TA22 Getting too hot. Cooling System upgrade questions

[Ashh]

Hi,

My TA22 (with a 2T) gets quite hot (100+ degrees indicated on thermostat) when I’m cruising along the highway at 100-110. It takes a while for it to get up to that temperature but it always does and then I have to drive along with the heater on ]too keep it at a reasonable temperature. Australia is hot. I don't want to drive with the heater on. Enough said.

I have never let it get as far as overheating so I’m not sure whether it would or not (don’t really want to find out) but the temperature definitely seems to creep upwards so I’d say it would.

I’ve only had this car for about a month but I have done quite a bit of work on it. As for things that would affect the cooling system I’ve changed the Headgasket, cleaned the thermostat/water pump and flushed itcountless (and I mean countless…) times with various things so that now the coolant doesn’t come out a rusty brown.

Any suggestions as to fixing it?

So far I’ve got a couple of ideas:
1. fit a 3T waterpump so then I can fit an electric fan
2. Buy a newer/larger radiator
3. Convert existing radiator into a 3 pass radiator (would need to move the inlet or outlet so they’re on opposite sides)

Or do all three (3 pass new radiator with electric fan).
Suggestions? I would like to avoid unnecessary work… I even considered/am still considering ducting the heating vents to the outside of the car and just sticking with that solution! Haha

TL;DR modifications to make it run cooler!

[caam]

Pm riceburnerGTV on these forums, he owns JAR alloy radiators and makes nice units for 22/23's. I put one in mine and now the car is lucky to see over 60 degrees on a hot day

Cam

[Ashh]

Cheers. Will do

[Ashh]

I can't find riceburnerGTV.. he doesn't appear to be on hte members list. Do you have another way of contacting him?

[Ashh]

Also with temperatures that low, did you take your thermostat out of the system?

[lexsmaz]

I'm not up on the early Celicas but the 2T is the standard motor isnt it ? If it is the standard motor there is no need to upgrade just fix what you have, you say you have cleaned the thermostat & water pump, what did you do to clean them ? Really dont waste your time on cleaning a thermostat just throw it out if you have an issue with a car running hot & fit a brand new Geniune Toyota one, also the water pump did you actually remove it as some cars the impeller can corode or come loose from the shaft but before you take off the water pump remove the radiator & take it to a radiator shop & ask them to clean it explain that the car is over heating ( they remove the tank end & actaully drive a rod through the all the cores making sure its not blocked ) & ask them for a report as to how blocked it is ..

So first thing replace thermostat & gasket, make sure the thermostat is in the correct way i have seen some fitted upside down ... Remove radiator to be cleaned, no amount of flushing will really clean it especially if some of the cores are completely blocked & maybe whilst the radiator is out have a look at the water pump impeller ..

Dont get sucked into taking the thermostat out either as it can cause issues & its not fixing the problem ...

Rob ..

[tomvale13]

I can't find riceburnerGTV.. he doesn't appear to be on hte members list. Do you have another way of contacting him?

RiceburnaGTV - Toymods

[Ashh]

Ah cheers Tom, can't believe I missed that... haha
I ended up finding his company on the web and shooting them an email. We'll see what he says.

@lexsmaz
Cheers for the detailed response. In cleaning the thermostat all I really did was take it out, give it a scrub and then put it back in. As for the water pump, I took it out, checked the impeller was tight on the shaft, cleaned out the internals, checked the bearing spun ok and then put it back in.
How much do you think a radiator clean will cost? How do they remove the top? I thought they were all welded together? It’s just I’ve seen radiators on ebay for as little as 200 dollars shipped.

[jb_22]

I used running tap water and "rustbuster" (phosphoric acid) to flush out my cooling system, made the rad look brand new inside. All I did was run the hose at a dribble into the rad cap, cracked the coolant drain on the block below the exhaust and ran the motor with fresh water constantly entering the system. Then I added a little bit at a time of the phosphoric acid. I'm no expert nor mechanic, but the amount of extra stuff that flushed out with the rustbuster was phenomenal, it even cleaned the concrete under the car hehe...

New thermostat is a good idea. sometimes when you take them out the motor will take ages to get warm, and when it does the hot coolant flows too quick through the radiator. Thus, the coolant is still too hot as it flows back into the motor.

Cheers, Jess

[Rens]

Also check the temperature of the top and bottom hoses after running it for around 15mins. The thermostat might not be opening at all

[lexsmaz]

The radaitors are soft soldered on the tanks, so they just heat it up to melt the solder & then take off the tank & then rod it out, i think you will pay around 100 but check with your guy first .. i personally would not recomend using phosphoric acid, sounds way to risky & way to strong, if you leave a little trace in there the damage would be huge long term, etc, etc ...

You can check the radiator by getting the car up to operating temp & feeling across the entire area of the radaitor, if there is cold bits it indicates a blocked section, but sometimes not all that easy to check due to space constraints etc .. .

[ToyTA22]

As has been suggested, put new thermostat in first. Out of memory my Ta22 has a 76 0r 79 degree C in it. It runs constantly around 82 degrees C , even when competing on gravel race tracks. When stopping pits it sometimes climbs to 95 degrees then cools down to 82 after 5 minutes at fast idle.

Also check ignition timing. If retarded can cause temp to rise at higher revs, due to later fuel burn.

[lexsmaz]

Good point ToyTA22 about the retarded ignition timing, i have seen it happen first hand when running in limp home mode ( as it retards the timing too )..

[Ashh]

Cheers guys, planning on getting a new thermostat and a timing light today.
My radiator is pretty rooted though, lots of small little leaks (seeps out). Ahhh the money pit.

[Ashh]

Changed the thermostat (with a 72 deg C one – it was that or an 87), still no change, still heats up way to much. I think it’s time for a new radiator. (I’ve checked that the water pump’s impellar is tight on the shaft)