Cold TC45D

[DVerbarg]

I live in northern Illinois and have temps for a couple weeks around 0 degrees. My TC40D operates the same way in that the temp gauge does not move much. If the engine runs around 2200 rpm the gauge moves a little more but never reaches the "normal" range.

 

[dieselpwr]

Sounds like nearly all normally run a little on the cool side. It's just comforting to know that the dealer wasn't jerking my chain.

I have found that @ 37% airflow the TC45D will get to the green zone down to about 20 degrees F. Also, if you cut the hole in the center of a cardboard piece with outside dimensions the same as the radiator, it stops enough air flow through the hydro. cooler to get everything flowing & moving pretty nicely too. I have made a few little circle cut outs (discs) that I can now install or remove easily on the cardboard pc with the hole in the center. It should (seems to so far anyway) allow me to compensate for the outside temp. pretty easily. Of course it always heats up faster if you remember to plug in the block heater an hour or two before. (only forgot one time & I didn't enjoy the wait before feeling any temp. in the bypass hose before I got started working)

Troy

 

[Anonymous Poster]

My 40D did the same thing until I added cardboard to the radiator. I had a Ford 1720, which is the same line of engines, and it did the exact same thing. It never came up in temp at all unless I worked it extremely hard in the winter, and even then the needle just come off of the bottom.

For both tractors I made a piece of cardboard slightly larger than the radiator. On the 1720 I only had one hole in the middle because the cardboard didn't fit tight to the radiator because there was a filter screen in front of the radiator and this allowed the are to distribute a little behind the hole. However, on the 40D I cut a small hole in the middle and 4 more in each corner. I put the 4 in the corners because along the sides, with the cardboard not tight to the radiator coils (it is tight to the housing) there is a little opportunity for the air to distribute. Otherwise, if you only put a hole in the middle, the cardboard is tight to the coils and the radiator seemed to have trouble doing any cooling when needed. Good luck. I think this should work for you.

I've also added fine screens to the front of both the radiator and hydro cooling coil to keep junk from getting stuck in the radiator and cooler throughout the year.

 

[Mike_S]

IMHO, with modern technology used in modern tractors such as the series III TC's, the engineering should be in place where cardboard is not necessary like it was in old tractors. Why hasn't NH created an upgrade fix for this problem for present owners and already re-engineered a solution for tractors coming off the assembly lines today??

 

[Anonymous Poster]

My guess is, it's just like the big diesels on the highway. Many of them block almost the entire grill in the winter. I think there just isn't "modern technology" available to account for the huge swing in cooling requirements that can occur from summertime high load, to wintertime light load.

 

[JJones]

What did you use for the screens around your radiators? Did you build a frame for the screens?

 

[bgott]

Diesel engines need more fuel put to 'em to raise the temperature. If you work it light it will run cool. Older trucks and maybe some newer ones ( I've been out of the OTR truck business for a few years) ran what they called "Shutterstats". These were shutters in front of the radiator that were thermostatically controlled and driven by brake air. If you're in need of a project you could get a set from a truck wrecking yard and cut them down and control them with a cable.

 

[John_Mc]

I read somewhere (either here or on CTB) that the NH class 3 series (TC 35/40/45) had a minor design flaw in the cooling system which supposedly made them run cold. Can't remember the exact cure, but it involved adding a valve in the coolant system line... I believed this valve would only be opened during a cooing system flush. If I remember correctly, not having this valve allowed coolant to bypass the thermostat and bring cold coolant into the engine even when the thermostat was closed. This MAY have been corrected on newer models (??) Perhaps someone here will know th ereal scoop on this.

Found the thread on CTB about cold running NH compacts: http://jplan.com/cgi-bin/tractor/fullThreadnh.pl?parentnum=25208

John
<P ID="edit"><FONT SIZE=-1>Edited by John_Mc on 09/25/01 09:29 AM (server time).</FONT></P>

 

[JJones]

I bought my TC40D used. Just got it this past weekend. It had 70 hours on it and is a 2000 model year according to sn. It also ran cold. Tried out the recommendation in post I found this tractor exhibited the same issue. Now I'm looking to go to dealer to see what he is going to do to help. This tractor has probably ran cold for the last 70 hours. Thanks for all the help. BTW Luv the tractor and this site.

 

[paccorti]

JJones,

My TC35 suffered the exact same problem (warmed up slowly, ran cold in the winter, etc.) I had a shutoff valve installed in the coolant drainage hose (as you sit in the tractor seat, it's on the right in the front near the frame rail and grill). This has caused the tractor to warm up far far faster. I'm confident that it will run much warmer in the winter too.

If you have any problems, I had a very good mechanic work on my machine. I'm reasonably sure he'd answer any questions.

Peter