YM3110D Overheating - Time for new radiator?

[California]

Hey! Is anyone else here old enough to remember when it was common practice to put specially cut pieces of cardboard in front of the radiator of both cars and tractors in order to get them to run at proper heat in the winter?
rScotty

Sure! I started out poor and had a number of $100 and under cars during high school and college. Used cardboard in a few cases to make the heater nice and warm. Later and more prosperous, I had a Volvo - around 1963 model, egg-shaped, looked like a '47 ford sedan - that I had admired when they were new and eventually bought used. Those have the equivalent of a roller window shade that pulls up from the bottom edge of the radiator as you pull a cable under the dashboard. That works great for getting the heater working in cold weather.

And when I bought the YM240 15 years ago, I tried cardboard in front of its radiator to warm it up. The owner's manual specifies 5 minutes warmup before moving the tractor and I thought this would help it warm up. I soon decided to ignore that recommendation and just drive gently to the first worksite to warm it up so I haven't used cardboard since. Or ever idled it a full five minutes before starting out.

On a related note - you would think the AMC Eagle, a station wagon with full time 4wd and obviously intended for those who live in snow country, would have competent heat. No. I bought that with some 15k miles on it, nearly new. Both the heat and in summer the A/C, were completely ineffective. Consumer Reports verified what I had observed, they said this model totally failed to meet modern (1980's) expectations for both heating and cooling the interior. A $100 radiator shop cooling system tune up - replace thermostat, flush etc - made no improvement. I used cardboard in that car occasionally, as long as I owned it.

 

[coosa]

If I may inquire.

What is the "correct" engine coolant temperature, and how has that been determined? From My understanding, Engines work best at "higher" temperatures, and pressurized radiator caps and high boiling point coolant mixes were developed to meet this requirement.

The "green bar" on the temperature gauge is a farce unless calibrated against a known good reference, such as boiling pure water. or according to the coolant, anti freeze mix guidelines.

Feeling good about coolant temperatures below the boiling point of pure water is foolish. Cooler is NOT better.
Find out the facts! Report back.

Blown head gaskets are an entirely different issue!

I blew the head gasket on mine the first time I used it hard. It turned out that the Fredrick's mechanic just didn't do a good job when he machined it. They picked it up and fixed it under warranty, but I suppose that experience has made me paranoid about it.

The highest temp I've measured on the radiator is 188. That is just short of the 3/4 mark on the temp gauge and I've always stopped it when it got to that point. But maybe that isn't really a problem? Perhaps I oughta just run it and not worry about it? Does Yanmar ever say how hot it should run? Some folks on here say it should not get above 160, but I really don't know. My Chevy truck is designed to run 210.

 

[kenmac]

I don't even have a gauge on my yanmar. I rely on the factory light. When the light starts to flicker I head to the barn to blow out the radiator

 

[coosa]

I don't even have a gauge on my yanmar. I rely on the factory light. When the light starts to flicker I head to the barn to blow out the radiator

Maybe my solution is to just put tape over the temp gauge.

I bought a bottle of Purple Ice and put it in this morning. I ran it hard for an hour and it never got over 160, but the issue with this tractor is that it just keeps getting hotter and hotter the longer you run it. I have a 75 hp JD tractor that will quickly reach operating temp and hold it there all day, but the Yanmar keeps getting hotter.

 

[kenmac]

Just got back from running my yanmar this morning. The temp. light never came on. It's hot out there today !
My kubota will get hotter and hotter when using the cutter.

Perhaps the purple ice fixed the heating issue. Before you added this, would it run over 160 operating it for an hour ?

 

[denchen]

I have never heard of Purple Ice, perhaps its only your side of the pond. Over the years I have known quite a few motor manufacturers insist on using anti freeze as an additive in with the water. I run a Mercedes car and the operating temperature for that is 92 C that's about 197 F, although I think this is high for a tractor, but the hotter a diesel gets, the more economical it becomes.

 

[coosa]

Just got back from running my yanmar this morning. The temp. light never came on. It's hot out there today !
My kubota will get hotter and hotter when using the cutter.

Perhaps the purple ice fixed the heating issue. Before you added this, would it run over 160 operating it for an hour ?

I think I spoke too soon on the Purple Ice. I ran out of grass to cut so I hooked up a 4' disc and plowed a fall plot. It only took about 15 minutes to get it up to 188. I let it idle in the shade for 5 minutes and it dropped a few degrees. I geared it down and slowed to 2000 rpm and was able to finish the job. These are the same temps it was getting before the additive, so I don't think it did anything. Reading on their website, it looks like the stuff works best if you use it with just water and no antifreeze in the mix. I might try that next year.

It looks like I can either continue to baby it and work a while and idle a while, or I can just keep running it and see if it can handle the high temp. It may be that it would work just fine at 190.

 

[normde2001]

I don't even have a gauge on my yanmar. I rely on the factory light. When the light starts to flicker I head to the barn to blow out the radiator

A whisk broom was the first tool in my tool box. At first notice of a rise off 1/4 of the temp gauge I stop and brush off the screen.
I hate to keep "saying" back-flush, but it has always worked for me with tractor and old cars. If the system will accept the full force of a water hose, in one side and out the other, and everything else, fan, water pump, exterior fins are good, it will run cool, all day, under any load in any weather..

 

[kenmac]

I think I spoke too soon on the Purple Ice. I ran out of grass to cut so I hooked up a 4' disc and plowed a fall plot. It only took about 15 minutes to get it up to 188. I let it idle in the shade for 5 minutes and it dropped a few degrees. I geared it down and slowed to 2000 rpm and was able to finish the job. These are the same temps it was getting before the additive, so I don't think it did anything. Reading on their website, it looks like the stuff works best if you use it with just water and no antifreeze in the mix. I might try that next year.

It looks like I can either continue to baby it and work a while and idle a while, or I can just keep running it and see if it can handle the high temp. It may be that it would work just fine at 190.

I think I would at least call and talk to Tom Fredricks and ask him about the temp. ranges you are getting and see if it's ok to operate it with those temps. If he says no, I would ask why is the tractor running those temps. after they made repairs to the tractor.
Like I said, I have no idea what my temps are, as I only have the factory light. Does my light come on at 160, 180 ? I have no idea. I Never have even shot it with my infrared thermometer to see what temps it's running

 

[California]

There used to be a lot of dealers posting in this forum. Here's a thread where they discussed operating temperature:

https://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/yanmar/105515-overheating-information.html


And here's a thread I started, where I posted my temperature and oil pressure observations that seemed normal for my YM240.
To summarize - I apparently lost oil pressure then found only the sender had failed. $6 for a new sender ended the issue.

Temperature - I observed 195 degrees at the top radiator tank and 140 on the bottom of the oil pan.

https://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/yanmar/156109-low-oil-pressure-no-bad.html