my beloved multipla has started messing about.
the water temp is running high almost at the top of the gage, have fitted a new rad last year just before winter and a timing belt kit 2 months ago
changed the temp sender last week but still the same
its not using any water
and the oils clean.
starts off normal then after a bout 3 mile is getting hotter than normal and hills really hot
any suggestions what to try next..... thermostat or water pump

Thermostat then water pump I'd say if thermostat doesn't sort it. It the top hose of the radiator getting nice and hot as the temp hits the middle of the gauge?

will check when back from work tomorrow
only time i have seen a thermostat fail closed was on a seat but worth a try before striping the pump out.
just looked on ebay the stats quite pricey £60 ish

I'm not sure on the Multi setup but if its doable, another way to confirm if its the stat or not would be to remove the stats inners and refit just the housing, will probably over cool, but better than over heating tbh.

JTD water temp problem

Does the fan kick in when it should?
Definitely shouldn't be getting so hot so soon.

Does the Heater work?
I realise it's not going to be used at the moment, but try it anyway.
If you're getting little or no heat out when the Coolant temp is way up, it could also be Air (or an Airlock) in the system.
If you do get plenty of heat out, it's a good way to (temporarily) help cool the engine, just whack the heat and fan controls full on and drive with all the windows/sunroofs open

Re: JTD water temp problem

Did you replace the water pump when you did the cambelt? IIRC, the pumps' plastic impeller can strip from its' shaft, resulting in no pumped flow.

And yes, the stats are expensive, aren't they?

JOY of JOY looks like the thermostat solved it.
£50 at euro car parts but after getting the old one off not worth putting it back.
sod of a job easier to change the timing belt.
or the rear suspention arms.
or even the clutch!

wwwaaaaaaa
went to france on hols with the ugly bug.
started playing up again just south of leeds but not drastically.
got to dunkirk for the overnight stop and checked water level which was as usual ok.
set off next morning things were going fine till we got to a traffic jam and it got so hot the temp gage went off!!!
started to feel like engine was sticking
managed to limp in to the services, the top hose and bottom hose were coldish so assumed the water pump had gone.
got replacement pump and fitted at side of road.
problem seamed to go away so set off for Ruon made it to the camp site and had a day out in the town. on the way back problem started again???
my bottle had gone by this time so decided to head north to Abbeville, bled the top hose before setting off and had no problem car ran as normal.
left for home and ran hot to calais. in kent bled top hose and ran home to the frozen north ok.
so theres no oil in the water.
no water in the oil.
water level doesn't drop.
has new thermostat
water pump
radiator
and i have tested to water bottle for c02 with emissions sniffer, nothing found
the only thing left is the small bled pipes will check them next
has any one seen these symptoms before its getting a bit:bang:

Must be an airlock...you've changed everything else!

so why dose it keep coming back after clearing it.
200+ miles from kent no problem, yet hot again yesterday afternoon running round the doors?
just the head gasket left but symptoms are wrong for that

JTD water temp problem

Is it definitely getting hot, or could it be an indication fault?

This bit confuses me...

. . . it got so hot the temp guage went off!!!
started to feel like engine was sticking.
Managed to limp in to the services, the top hose and bottom hose were coldish so assumed the water pump had gone . . .

Click to expand...

Have you checked the hose temperature(s) since that?

I'll repeat my earlier questions as well . . .

Does the fan kick in when it should?
Definitely shouldn't be getting so hot so soon.

Does the Heater work?
I realise it's not going to be used at the moment, but try it anyway.
If you're getting little or no heat out when the Coolant temp is way up, it could also be Air (or an Airlock) in the system.
If you do get plenty of heat out, it's a good way to (temporarily) help cool the engine, just whack the heat and fan controls full on and drive with all the windows/sunroofs open.

Click to expand...

Re: JTD water temp problem

1 the first bit is when the gage hits the very top and cant get any higher it switches off
2 the heater seams to work but doesn't reduce temperature
3 never heard the fan run but if you unplug the sensor it starts
4 the red temp light has never lit up
5 when you open the bonnet the engine doesn't feel like its at melting point

have now tried the water/ air bled pipes (the small ones that go back to the bottle
thought that was it, as the one from the thermostat had something in it and was hard to blow through flushed it out but alas no still got hot yesterday.
bled top hose and ok again.
going to try the dishwasher tablet trick next as thinking its blocked tubes in the head gasket

Re: JTD water temp problem

petercat said:

. . .
2 the heater seams to work but doesn't reduce temperature
3 never heard the fan run but if you unplug the sensor it starts
. . .
5 when you open the bonnet the engine doesn't feel like its at melting point
. . .

Click to expand...

2. How hot does it blow? If the Coolant temp is indeed way up, the air from the vents should feel pretty hot.

3. Next time the gauge shows it getting hot (5 bars or more), pop the Bonnet and see if the fan's running. If not, switch on the Air-Con (if you have it), that should switch on the Fan too.

5. As above, but check the Radiator hoses for temp.
If it is overheating, they should be too hot to hold.

Re: JTD water temp problem

widemouthfrog said:

Did you replace the water pump when you did the cambelt? IIRC, the pumps' plastic impeller can strip from its' shaft, resulting in no pumped flow.

And yes, the stats are expensive, aren't they?

Click to expand...

+1. Waterpumps should always be changed when the cam-belt is replaced. Why do people skip this ???

Agree...considering a pump can be had for less than £30!

alas if only the above was true.
we still had the over heat problem all winter and yes the heater works fine thank god,but now the weathers warmed up i have got round to changing the head gasket this weekend and my what a lovely job it was.
just been for a run out and guess what..... its still the B&((£y same.
there where no signs of damage in the gasket i took off and the bores/pistons are mint all mating surfaces were in good condition and the head was flat.
could it be in the dash speedo display?
has any one else seen any thing like this?
how many temp senders are there?
i have only found one on the thermostat housing with 4 connectors in it but my new thermostat senser only had 2
if it really was over heating i would have thought it would have gone pop by now.