Engine temperature climbing

[jaykavan]

This is my first year owning an RV, 2008 Berkshire Diesel pusher. When climbing long hills on the interstates my engine temperature gauge climbs to 200+ degrees and getting close to the red zone. I am not pulling any vehicle. Is this customary?

[edgewant]

On my 2013 390rb with a 360 hp cummins it’s not unusual to see the temperature climb to 214 deg. The fan clutch then kicks in and the temperature drops pretty quickly to about 185 deg. You might want to put your digital engine temp on your LBCU and watch it. 214 deg is just above midway on my temperature gauge.

Not sure but yours doesn’t seem normal? Have you checked your coolant level lately?

[kenandterry]

Originally Posted by jaykavan

This is my first year owning an RV, 2008 Berkshire Diesel pusher. When climbing long hills on the interstates my engine temperature gauge climbs to 200+ degrees and getting close to the red zone. I am not pulling any vehicle. Is this customary?

Coolant strength and levels.
When was it last changed?
Being it’s your first year.....do you know the answer to any of these?

[ernest917]

My 2008 was doing the exact same thing in July....

Long story short- I ended up having to have the fan clutch replaced which instantly fixed the issue....

They were able to go thru the bedroom floor to access the old one and then install the new one... That made a 6 hr job be 1.5 hrs...

If not they’d have had to remove rear end of coach - radiator, etc to get to it.....

Part was almost $3G and then tag on labor you’re looking at around $4,300....

Praise the Lord for our CoachNet extended warranty....

[nomad297]

Just turn your heat on and set the fan to high and forget about it.

Bruce

[ernest917]

Forget about it..... Seriously....

What’s wrong with that picture??

Possible blown head gasket??? Cracked engine head???

And the list goes on....

Not to mention how “not fun” it is to have the “high coolant temp” warning and the high temp buzzer go off as you’re trying to climb a grade.....

I dealt with the above for a couple of weeks and re-routed trips to try and avoid climbs while in WY and CO, which totally messed up a super portion of our Summer travels....

Finally found a GREAT shop in Salt Lake City that correctly diagnosed my issue and fixed it.... (freightliner service in Idaho Falls failed miserably at that)

I’d highly NOT forgetting about it but finding someone to trace down it’s cause....

Since your rig is same age as mine I’d suspect a fan clutch issue....

[LiteEmUp]

Had the same issue - hills/mountains raising the temperature. Even had to slow way down or stop to let it cool below the red. Hopefully my quick fix is your solution..... My radiator fins became plugged with road grim on the engine side - particularly where the fan blows into it. Take a garden hose and spray (gently) straight through your radiator (while standing outside.) The stream should spray through your radiator fins. If it is plugged, most of the water will bounce/pour back. Keep spraying to loosen the grim. Eventually, you'll start to see black grim flowing off your radiator and then the stream will pass through the radiator. It was a huge relief when this fixed my problem! The worries about the costs of a cracked head, fan clutch, etc., went out the window.

[ernest917]

Hopefully that will be the easy fix.... Didn't work for me..... In fact, I had my radiator high-pressure steam cleaned - twice - about 6 months apart and my coach still overheated on hills.... I'd have to pull over and let it idle for a few minutes to cool down and then I start climbing again....

Finally realized I needed a "second opinion" because the Freightliner Service Centers I'd taken it couldn't seem to diagnose the problem...

Shop in SLC found problem in about 30 minutes and once fixed, I've been able to climb Raton Pass, Monarch Pass and a few no-name ones with ZERO issues.....

[wdweldon]

Very good information, my 2014 360 acts the same way.