Help On The Road

[Eric Johnson]

Hello Kerry,
I can't speak to how much of the heat buildup was a result of engine load vs
transmission
load but I did observe higher coolant temperatures even when transmission was
operating
normally but the engine was under load and ambient temperatures were high
(95º-100ºF).
Bennie didn't mention transmission cooling as a distinct and separate issue, we
just talked
about overall heat load.

Old radiator cap had a pressure rating of 7# and new cap has same rating. I
discussed the
possibility of raising pressure rating of the cap but Cat & Blue Bird folks said
this wasn't a
good idea due to possible failure of other components (like radiator) if I did
this.

I think the fan switch is a good idea no matter the source of the heat as it
will increase
cooling capacity before you get so close to redline on temperature. Simple to
install and
certainly worth a try.

Curious about the Evans coolant. Never heard about it. Could be a good idea
for older
cooling systems if it meets requirements of Cat diesels. Cat antifreeze isn't
cheap either.
Costs about $10/gallon.

Good idea about the transmission fluid. I'll check it to see if it's black.

Regards, Eric
84FC35SB

--- In WanderlodgeForum@yahoogroups.com, "davidkerryedwards"
wrote:
>
> The road coming into Ouray from the south could make any coach boil over.
> I was just thinking a few days ago that a manual fan switch would be a
> valuable addition to the coach since it could be used to stop the
> initial climb from 180 to 195 degrees.
> However, I think a lot of the heat produced on those kinds of climbs
> comes from the fact that the lock up convertor unlocks and produces a
> heck of a lot of heat in lower gears. Did the tech mention that at
> all? A separate transmission cooler might be helpful if a person was
> to drive in those conditions continually.
> Did you put a higher pressure cap on the system?
> There is another alternative but it might be prohibitively expensive
> given the size and complexity of the Bird cooling system. Evans
> Waterless Coolant has a boiling temperature of around 335 degrees.
> You can run Evans in an unpressurized system, reducing the possibility
> of leaks from high pressure, without worrying about boil overs and
> providing cooling over a wider range of temperatures. The stuff is
> not cheap however.
> Did you check your tranmission fluid to see if it got burnt from the
> heat load?
>
> Kerry
> 82 FC 35
> Denver
>
> --- In WanderlodgeForum@yahoogroups.com, "Eric Johnson"
> wrote:
> >
> > While traveling in Colorado a couple of weeks ago our FC35 had to
> tackle some grades we
> > hadn't seen in a long time. We experienced some "boil-overs" from
> the cooling system
> > and lost about 3 gallons of Cat antifreeze solution.
> >
> > I called the Caterpillar Engine Call Center Hotline I had read about
> in the FMCA magazine.
> > The line is staffed 24/7 to help Cat powered RV owners. The number
> is (877) 777-3126.
> > The man on the line was very knowledgeable and helped me locate the
> nearest source of
> > Cat parts and antifreeze.
> >
> > I called Bennie Collier at the factory on (800) 992-6337 and
> consulted with him on the
> > symptoms and got some good advice on a cap replacement plus
> suggestion to add a
> > cooling fan manual switch I don't currently have. Local NAPA store
> didn't have my cap so
> > Blue Bird parts (800) 495-7787 overnighted a new cap to me to the
> Ouray, CO KOA and
> > we had no more problems on return trip to Texas.
> >
> > I don't know of many 22 year old coaches that enjoy this level of
> technical support and I'm
> > danged glad I own a Blue Bird. I wanted to share the phone numbers
> with others in case
> > they don't know about them.
> >
> > Eric in San Antonio
> > 84FC35SB
> >
>