Engine cooling problems.

[Rocconagy]

Hello. So I have been having problems with the 5.9 cooling system. I have checked the brand new water pump it works, I have the thermostat is new I have drilled a little hole in there so the air can get through flushed the system The radiator is only 3 years old, and I poured water through one end and came out cleaning the other so the radiator is not clogged. What I'm thinking is that it's airlocked in the block because when I start it from cold it literally takes some minutes and that thing is already hot in the red zone. I have lifted the truck passenger side up high in elevation and I have my little burping funnel that I put on the radiator I let it run with the full heat on blast I get some air out of it and then it just doesn't seem to be taking any more. The top hose gets hot The bottom hose doesn't really it's almost like it's not circulating and the strange thing is the first time I drained let's just say 2 gallons came out I put the whole system back together and it went back in and then all of a sudden when I drained it the second time opened all back up there was only like a gallon that came out which was strange nothing poured out on the floor. Nothing is leaking into the block or engine itself so head gaskets seem to be okay it's not mixing with the oil it's not coming out of the exhaust so that was strange when that happened. Anyways just curious to see if anybody might know of something I haven't tried yet? But I do believe that there's still air trapped in that system for it to heat up that fast. Any information would be great. Thanks.

 

[Fast69Mopar]

Hello. So I have been having problems with the 5.9 cooling system. I have checked the brand new water pump it works, I have the thermostat is new I have drilled a little hole in there so the air can get through flushed the system The radiator is only 3 years old, and I poured water through one end and came out cleaning the other so the radiator is not clogged. What I'm thinking is that it's airlocked in the block because when I start it from cold it literally takes some minutes and that thing is already hot in the red zone. I have lifted the truck passenger side up high in elevation and I have my little burping funnel that I put on the radiator I let it run with the full heat on blast I get some air out of it and then it just doesn't seem to be taking any more. The top hose gets hot The bottom hose doesn't really it's almost like it's not circulating and the strange thing is the first time I drained let's just say 2 gallons came out I put the whole system back together and it went back in and then all of a sudden when I drained it the second time opened all back up there was only like a gallon that came out which was strange nothing poured out on the floor. Nothing is leaking into the block or engine itself so head gaskets seem to be okay it's not mixing with the oil it's not coming out of the exhaust so that was strange when that happened. Anyways just curious to see if anybody might know of something I haven't tried yet? But I do believe that there's still air trapped in that system for it to heat up that fast. Any information would be great. Thanks.

If you suspect that you have air trapped in the system I would use the vacuum fill procedure. I have the Icon brand from Harbor Freight because I couldn't justify spending another $500 from SnapOn to replace my old, broken unit.

This is the kit I have...

https://www.harborfreight.com/pneumatic-cooling-system-filler-and-tester-58001.html?hftm_sc=2942&hftm_source=google&utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=23905019943&campaignid=23905019943&utm_content=195860513454&adsetid=195860513454&product=58001&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=23905019943&gbraid=0AAAAADAHb4cEcIaf7hS312NI2_5tKtQhB&gclid=CjwKCAjwx7LSBhB3EiwAjcodxNvW5NvZsuC8yhw91woj6Cxv_86-K9BSOM9uPaHB9rmasfa6rZ7Q8RoCjVAQAvD_BwE

There is also a Maddox brand kit available that will do the job but it is not made of metal like the Icon brand so just be careful not to break the plastic. The plastic will be fine if you connect it properly and use it like it should be.

 

[Rocconagy]

Hey thanks for the info Yes I did get the Maddox brand one and it definitely helped but I did find out that the heater core was completely full of crud so I flush that out and looks like the radiator which is only 3 years old got crud from the heater core apparently so once I put the new radiator in tomorrow I'll know for sure but it's definitely doing a lot better after I cleaned the heater core because it's definitely getting heat in the cab now in circulating

 

[Fast69Mopar]

Hey thanks for the info Yes I did get the Maddox brand one and it definitely helped but I did find out that the heater core was completely full of crud so I flush that out and looks like the radiator which is only 3 years old got crud from the heater core apparently so once I put the new radiator in tomorrow I'll know for sure but it's definitely doing a lot better after I cleaned the heater core because it's definitely getting heat in the cab now in circulating

Good to hear something is working. Older cooling systems can be a pain. These systems can still cool the engine even in a degraded state but when a part requires replacement we normally find that there are several other parts that need attention too.