Mountain driving and engine temperature

kingwood390bh · 08-06-2013, 10:33 PM

I had my first experience driving in the mountains of California and Colorado this month. Climbing Big Bear, I climbed a steep grade and watched my temp gauge go from 1/4 to over 3/4 in seconds. I thought I would have some time to ease up but that was not the case. I had to pull off several times to keep from over heating. I pulled out the books and geared down to make it up the mountain. Then, every other climb I was paranoid and glued my eyes to the temp guage. I scraped up a couple of doors on a guard rail trying to negotiate switchbacks on descent, but thats another story. Any other diesel owners have some magic answer to mountain climbs?

NV245 · 08-06-2013, 11:10 PM

Did it really overheat? In my 2008 360QS I wanted to know how fast I could pull my 2009 Grand Cherokee if needed. I was on a straight stretch of highway and put the pedal down. About 75 mph the temp gauge started to climb from it's normal 5/8 position. I figured this was OK as that was a sufficient speed, considering vehicle. Months later, traveling to Gettysburg, Pa. I encountered hills that required flat accelerator. Watching the temp gauge, it started to climb, and as I began to worry about the temp getting too high, I heard the cooling fan come up to speed, and the temp gauge maintained a 3/4 gauge status. Never overheated. the fan maintained the temp. Now I want to check the hub bolts, from other threads in this forum, however I know that if a Cummins engine detects overheat, it will shutdown power to prevent damage.

Grizzlygibbs · 08-07-2013, 12:25 AM

I would be looking to do some preventative maintenance on your cooling system. Your antifreeze/water mixture may be too rich.

I am not well versed with diesels but I do know that some vehicles have a "serviceable" fan clutch in which a heavier weight silicone oil can be replaced with possibly worn out older lighter weight oil. Changing to a heavier weight oil allows the fan clutch to engage earlier and stay engaged longer when temperature rise which could help keep your engine cooler.

Another option may be to install a pusher fan.

Frankm2 · 08-07-2013, 05:23 AM

Yea, I'd be checking the clutch fan first. My trail blazer had to have a new one at 50k miles. I was guessing the previous owner must have done a lot of idling.

boowho · 08-07-2013, 10:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kingwood390bh

I had my first experience driving in the mountains of California and Colorado this month. Climbing Big Bear, I climbed a steep grade and watched my temp gauge go from 1/4 to over 3/4 in seconds. I thought I would have some time to ease up but that was not the case. I had to pull off several times to keep from over heating. I pulled out the books and geared down to make it up the mountain. Then, every other climb I was paranoid and glued my eyes to the temp guage. I scraped up a couple of doors on a guard rail trying to negotiate switchbacks on descent, but thats another story. Any other diesel owners have some magic answer to mountain climbs?

Being a Western guy, I've been all over the mountains and have yet to come even close to overheating. How fast do you try to go up? If you're standing on the hammer, that could be an issue.

I usually don't try to crowd the accelerator; just let it take a bit more time to go up. If you're trying to go up as fast as you run on the level, that probably ain't gonna work.

As an aside, except for an extremely short (1000 feet or so) 13 percent "hill" in Utah, the steepest grades in the whole country(at least that I've been on) are around State College, PA. In driving the whole USA in a semi, those are the only ones on which I had to shift all the way down to 5th gear (from 10th)

And yes, I said 13%!!! Had to drop the toad to get over; My old Dutch Star gasser just came to a full stop with the hammer on the floor!

Boowho??

Jersey Guy · 08-07-2013, 11:55 AM

I did some driving in the hills of western Virginia on I81 and western N. Carolina on I77 at the beginning of July. Temp rose to about 215 and cooled back down to about 200 rather quickly. All was well.

jeeplj8 · 08-07-2013, 12:14 PM

unless you have actual gauges, you have no idea what your real coolant temp was. The idiot gauges on the dash are designed to only read normal and time to go the dealer.

For less than 20 bucks you pick up a bluetooth dongle that will read your factory inputs on your smart phone, tablet etc and you will know the real numbers. Then you can make educated choices about how hot is too hot.

For example, on our trip to Colorado last year, towing Monarch pass with my trailer (around 9200lbs) my truck frequently hit 220 coolant temp. the aux fan would kick in and drop it to 216, then cut off. Those temps are nothing to worry about. I never got over 225 in 104 degree heat on I-70 coming back across Kansas either. I also pay attention to my engine oil temp, and transmission temp too.

Grizzlygibbs · 08-07-2013, 12:39 PM

Not all vehicles are alike. Some, by the time the "idiot" light goes off, means Holy $&*!, I better pull over with the amount of steam spraying my windshield. I mean, too hot of temperatures can do thousands of dollars worth of damage to a vehicles engine and drivetrain.

The fact is, if the light or gauge is reading anything but normal, something is not right.

I do agree that its a good idea to monitor these temps closer and more accurately and you gave a good tip on the bluetooth temp sensors, however, some preventative maintenance goes a long way and gives a better piece of mind knowing it was done rather than hoping you can get through with just monitoring.

PineForestCamper · 08-07-2013, 01:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kingwood390bh

I scraped up a couple of doors on a guard rail trying to negotiate switchbacks on descent, but thats another story.

I am interested in that other story. Scrapes on doors from a guard rail does not sound good. Burning up an engine is one thing but going thru a guard rail and off the mtn is another. I travel thru mountains in Montana / Wyoming every year and have found myself on long descents (12-20 miles / 10% grades) and have found that going really slow is the answer. My experience is the best way to keep it slow is to put it in low gear and let the transmission take you down safely and slowly and that does mean slow. A rather large line of people who are in a hurry may develop behind you but that is not your concern. You cant burn thru your brakes if you never use them. If you are driving slow enough you will not put much of a burden on your brakes. Most importantly you wont have any danger of going over the edge if your speed remains slow as your brakes will always be able to get you stopped at lower speeds. Not sure how much if any of this applies to your scrapes. If none at all I apologize for babbling. Mountain driving is probably my favorite thing to do. Traversing all of those switchbacks is exhilirating! Here is a picture of one of my favorite trips (Chief Joseph Highway). Good luck to you.

ernest917 · 08-07-2013, 01:31 PM

Just returned from a month in the mountains of WY, MT UT and CO and didn't have a single overheating issue with my Mercedes engine in my Berk..... Always geared down going up and down in addition to using the engine brake coming down.... What ever gear I used going up I used one gear lower going down.... This was on numerous 6, 8 and even 10% grades.....

Jersey Guy · 08-07-2013, 01:38 PM

My onboard computer shows the actual temperature, I don't rely on the gauge on the dash.

speedmerchant · 08-07-2013, 01:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jeeplj8

unless you have actual gauges, you have no idea what your real coolant temp was. The idiot gauges on the dash are designed to only read normal and time to go the dealer.

For less than 20 bucks you pick up a bluetooth dongle that will read your factory inputs on your smart phone, tablet etc and you will know the real numbers. Then you can make educated choices about how hot is too hot.

For example, on our trip to Colorado last year, towing Monarch pass with my trailer (around 9200lbs) my truck frequently hit 220 coolant temp. the aux fan would kick in and drop it to 216, then cut off. Those temps are nothing to worry about. I never got over 225 in 104 degree heat on I-70 coming back across Kansas either. I also pay attention to my engine oil temp, and transmission temp too.

The Berkshires have the ability to pull up the digital readout on the Freightliner screen in addition to the actual gauges. I always set one of my preferences to have engine temp showing along with trans temp

klucas · 08-07-2013, 03:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by speedmerchant

The Berkshires have the ability to pull up the digital readout on the Freightliner screen in addition to the actual gauges. I always set one of my preferences to have engine temp showing along with trans temp

I agree with everyone else. I have never had a problem and been over many mountain passes. I will add -- I clean the radiator every few months. I spray a good cleaner degreaser let it sit a few minutes and spray with the hose to get it as clean as possible. It's amazing how much dirt / grease comes out. Good overall maintenance.

boowho · 08-07-2013, 04:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by WarMovies

. Mountain driving is probably my favorite thing to do. Traversing all of those switchbacks is exhilirating! Here is a picture of one of my favorite trips (Chief Joseph Highway). Good luck to you.

Have you been thru Salt River Canyon between Show Low and Globe AZ?? Or Red Mountain Pass between Silverton and Ouray, CO? Two of my favorites.

And where is a 10% in MT? I'm in Whitefish right now and if there's a good one nearby I'll find it!!

Boowho??

ernest917 · 08-07-2013, 05:22 PM

As we were entering Jackson, WY we passed a sign pointing out a side road up ahead "Dead Man's Gulch" 19% grade Drive with Care"... Are you serious!!!!! 19%!!!! Like I'm going there......

PineForestCamper · 08-07-2013, 10:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by boowho

Have you been thru Salt River Canyon between Show Low and Globe AZ?? Or Red Mountain Pass between Silverton and Ouray, CO? Two of my favorites.

And where is a 10% in MT? I'm in Whitefish right now and if there's a good one nearby I'll find it!!

Boowho??

Have not been to either one of those. Thanks for giving me some bed time research tonight.

The 10% is in WY. The Medicine Wheel Passage just outside of Lovell.

I-RV · 08-08-2013, 07:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by WarMovies

Have not been to either one of those. Thanks for giving me some bed time research tonight.

The 10% is in WY. The Medicine Wheel Passage just outside of Lovell.

With regard to previous conversations about Bluetooth transmitted engine information, can anyone give me more information. I have a 2012 Berk and was not aware that such data was transmitted.

I-RV

mhartzel · 08-08-2013, 08:29 AM

I have the Torque app for my Android phone and a bluetooth adapt that will fit any OBD2 (generally 1996 and newer) vehicle.

Bought the adapter from Amazon for $25 and the app is only a few dollars

jeeplj8 · 08-08-2013, 09:32 AM

http://www.forestriverforums.com/for...dii-35071.html

boowho · 08-08-2013, 10:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jeeplj8

http://www.forestriverforums.com/for...dii-35071.html

Who knew????

Anyone with the FL computer already on board (Class A Diesels) think this is worth having in addition to the FL in-dash device??

It's cheap enough, but I'm not one to buy such a gadget, just for the sake of hiving it. I already buy too many things that I don't need just because they're cool!!!

Boowho??

You may also like: