Any ideas what this could be? I rent for five minutes in the gauge got up to the first orange line. I cut it of and looked behind the car and coolant is everywhere and its smoking.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?feature=...&v=p8m1cM1Djq0
Posts: 47
Any ideas what this could be? I rent for five minutes in the gauge got up to the first orange line. I cut it of and looked behind the car and coolant is everywhere and its smoking.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?feature=...&v=p8m1cM1Djq0
Last edited by Time Machine; 01-04-2016 at 01:54 PM.
I am Looking to buy a D.
Location: Torquay, England
Posts: 247
Mate. You really need to of opened up the covers and have a look where it's coming from.
From the amount and placement I'd guess old coolant bottles splitting or hose split.
I loves my grooves!
Posts: 47
Car no longer starts. Just chugs and chugs
I am Looking to buy a D.
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Anyone have any contacts in New Orleans for a DeLorean mechanic?
I am Looking to buy a D.
Location: Florida: Pinellas County
Posts: 2,111
My VIN: 5003 Never placed Concourse
Club(s): (DCF)
Unless it is bypassed, the 3 brown wires that are supposed to attach to the alternator are clipped & hanging. If it is bypassed (I bypassed mine) and the bulkhead side is disconnected then clip the wires down or tie strap them so they're not getting caught or burned.
Without opening the engine compartment it is not possible to tell you what is wrong.
Last edited by dn010; 01-04-2016 at 02:44 PM.
-----Dan B.
Posts: 4,808
My VIN: 3937
What might have initially caused that could have been as simple as the cooling fans not coming on. Or it could have been something else entirely.
I would recommend getting it towed home and doing some diagnostic work and repairs in your own driveway or garage and not out in a public parking lot. If it won't start, that too could be a bunch of different reasons. Some related to the coolant overflow or some that aren't. A lot of guessing at this point and not much of it will correct any significant issues as it sits right now.
I would really not suggest trying to drive it home as it is. That's for your safety and the car. Whatever isn't a problem at the moment could get worse if you are driving a surprise.
Get it home, take a break, relax and don't panic. After that, go through the car systematically and test things one at a time. Testing the cooling fans to see if they come on is a very easy assignment to break you in. You'll also be able to determine if the coolant leaking came from the overflow hose via the reservoir bottle car or whether it did indeed come from a split or ruptured hose.
As I said, get it towed home and do not risk filling it with more coolant while you don't know what happened. You will save yourself a lot of money and grief regardless of how expensive you think that tow truck might cost today.
Sept. 81, auto, black interior
Posts: 4,808
My VIN: 3937
Thought of something else you can check quickly...Originally Posted by dn010
When you turn the key in the ignition to accessories only, but do not start (or try to start) the engine, do you get the battery warning light on the right hand side lit up?
The cars must have that light bulb coming on during that start-up/test stage or the charging system will not be working correctly. I don't know what your battery volts are doing, nor the alternator belt (I could only see a small portion of it in the photos), but that same belt drives the water pump. If the water pump isn't moving coolant around, it will overheat tout suite.
Robert mentioned something I think was very valuable advice (for anyone) in your "should I drive it home from Montana" thread. He advised doing a stationary idle test where you let the car sit and run long enough to see the temperature come up, the cooling fans come on, and the temperature go back down again. No one wants to hear any "hindsight is 20/20" comments, but this test may have helped prevent this. Not for certain though, we won't know until you figure out what caused it in the first place. That idle test, being it might take 10 minutes to get up to temp on some cars, gives you ample time while you wait to check other things on the car like all the lights and switches and whatnot. I think that is a really good thing to do with a new car before taking it for a drive.
Sept. 81, auto, black interior
Posts: 47
Thanks, I got it home, but I'm having trouble finding those fans…
Sure enough it starts up just fine even and 40° weather. But I'm terrified to drive her or let it idle.
I am Looking to buy a D.
Location: Maple Grove, MN (Minneapolis)
Posts: 1,423
My VIN: 05457
The cooling fans are in the front of the car, behind the radiator. There is a plastic shroud that holds them. They look like this (image from DAP's website):
radiator-fans-combo.jpg
You should be able to hear them turn on. When you start the car there is no sound up front apart from the fuel pump, then when the car gets warm...about 210F I think...they turn on. Just watch your temp guauge. If it gets above 220 and you don't hear the fans turn the car off. You can also manually turn them on by shorting the wires to the otterstat. If the fans don't turn on when the car is hot, but do turn on when you short the otterstat wires, then you need a new otterstat. If the fans don't turn on when you short the wires, then your fan relay (if you still have one) or the fan jumper fuses are likely bad.
David Proehl
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