Deutz Allis 5215 overheat when mowing

[artfull dodger]

I have a Deutz Allis(hinomoto)5215 that will overheat when mowing, but if just cruising around like we did at the tractor show in the high heat and humidity it did ok, or atleast never popped the red overheat light on. But when I run at PTO rpm mowing after a few min she will boil over and pop the overheat light on. Top and bottom of radiator are hot, hard to tell in the middle and I didnt bring my laser temp reader home this weekend. Do I go towards a new water pump or do I have a partial closed thermostat? Nothing funny out the exhaust and the oil looks fine, so I am not thinking its a head gasket issue. Radiator is clean looking to me unless its restricted internaly in the core. Tractor has 1638 hours on it. Mike

 

[artfull dodger]

I pulled the thermostat and tested it in a pot of boiling water, it opens ok. I put her back together without the thermostat just to see how it behaved, didnt take long to start pushing coolant past the cap and out the overflow hose. The rad cap is new. I am thinking the radiator needs to be boiled out and isnt flowing coolant fast enough. The lower hose that feeds back to the water pump feels almost like its being sucked dry under high engine rpm, where as when I throttle back the hose gets hot again and feels like it has fluid in it. There is some sediment build up but I didnt think it was bad enough. Mike

 

[Cougsfan]

One thing I have found when I mow certain weeds is the seeds get clogged in the radiator fins and block airflow. Try running a water hose through the fins backwards to see if there is any resistance to flow or if junk comes out. May not be your trouble, but is worth checking.
The second thing to do would be to take the radiator to a radiator repair shop and have it boiled out. That sounds most likely to be the problem. You can tell when you take the radiator out if it needs it because it will be fairly heavy.
Another thing you can do is pull the bottom hose and run a garden hose into the radiator and see how fast the water comes out the bottom. That is not a sure fire way because there could be a channel that allows flow, and the bulk of the tubes are still plugged, but if you can fill the radiator faster than it comes out, it is definitely plugged.

 

[artfull dodger]

It was very heavy, took to rad shop and they were unable to boil out or even rod out the blockage in the core tubes. Its getting a new core installed right now, should have it back in a couple days. Mike

 

[Industrial Toys]

What is boiling out of a rad?

 

[artfull dodger]

old rad has most of the core tubes blocked with build up, calcium ect. We have very hard water were we live. Probably didnt have cooling system serviced like it should have over the years. Seen that in many of the smaller diesel GT's in this area. He could have rodded it out with some work, but the cost for that VS a better and more heavy duty core was very little. So a new core it is.

 

[Industrial Toys]

I never service cooling systems, except for testing the freezing point. I have a machine that is running hot, changed the stat and same thing. If I blow the dust out of the rad, it helps. I should bite the bullet and do the same thing. Hate being fixated on the temp gauge!

 

[artfull dodger]

Coolant can go bad over time. Newer stuff is better than older. Tractor only has 1600 hours on it, probably original coolant from 1986! Plus the tractor sat unused for 5+ years. Not real happy at the cost, but better than having other engine issues from more overheating. I am not totaly happy with the amount of blow by she has out the breather tube, but she starts fairly easy and has plenty of power. After new rad and a fresh oil change, I will run a heavy dose of Power Services thru the fuel to help clean the injectors. Some good hard work with proper cooling will help reseat the rings after so many years of sitting. I have only mowed twice with it(small residential yards and stopped use once it overheated). So not much run time to wake her up again. Mike

 

[artfull dodger]

Got the radiator back from the shop today, looking brand new, industrial quality high flow core and any weak solder joints repaired. Cost $319 with tax. Got it back in the 5215, changed the oil and filter with JD High Guard 15w40, JD filter and JD Cool Gard coolant. Only ran it for a couple min as its in the back of our garage and the neighbors complain if the noise if to much after dark. She will get run good tomorrow as I have 3 yards to mow. Not anticipating any issues for now(knocks on wood). I will get some pics of the freshly painted rad, shroud and I even touched up the engine with some black paint till I get some proper DA gunmetal blue. Mike

 

[artfull dodger]

Head gasket is seeping, you can see it along the block to head gap along the intake side of the engine. Not mixing fluids in the crankcase or the rad yet but definatly getting pressure into the rad. Guess off comes the head and a new gasket along with checking the head with a straight edge. Seeping at the closest point to each cylinder bore on all 3, so I am guessing a combination of age and overheating has done in the head gasket. Found atleast one source for it, waiting on shaffers to email or call me back next week on a price for the gasket. Hope this cures the problem once and for all. She runs fine otherwise, just a bit more blow by than I like, but that might be the head gasket issue to some extent as the tractor starts easily. Mike

 

[Cougsfan]

No doubt replacing the head gasket and milling the head if necessary is the right thing to do. You might try some Bar's leak or other cooling system sealant until you can get to it. I put it in a Toyota Corona once that had a leaking head gasket. My daughter drove the car for several years with no problems after that and I never did bother fixing the head gasket.

 

[artfull dodger]

The head is at the machine show now, was a bit warped, getting milled flat, pressure tested good and no cracks. New head gasket will be here late this week. Mike

 

[artfull dodger]

Started putting her back together tonight, taking a break right now to watch the news and eat. Hope to start her up in a couple hours. So far I have the head torqued down, valve train installed and lash adjusted, injectors reinstalled, lines tight at the pump, loose at the injectors for initial bleeding. Need to install upper rad hose, fill the coolant back up and install the valve cover. Then I can bleed the injector lines out and fire her up. Mike

 

[artfull dodger]

Just a quick update, got her the rest of the way back together. Had to deal with a few minor fuel leaks from injector lines that didn't want to seat down and seal but I got them squared away. Took her out and worked her good in some tall field grass. After a good working, the blow by goes away to nearly nothing. And each time I restart from cold, it returns but less and less the more I run her. The overheating has stopped. With only 1641 hours on the meter, I think with some more use, it will subside to minimal level. She sure sounds better now. Mike