Car was running hot.
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Super Member
Joined: Sep 2007
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Car was running hot.
First off, what is the normal operating temp of your C36? Mine typically has been in the 80-88c range but we recently had 103 degree day here that got my temp gauge moving, like up to 105 w/AC on. I have owned the car for less than a yr putting 10k on it w/ no issue, although not in these hot conditions, so is this normal? I had my mechanic just look over it, found no leaks and said fans seem to be operating correctly. Took it out yesterday when it was about 86 outside, stop and go traffic for about an hour w/ a slightly higher than usual operating temp but never over 90 degrees, no A/C this time.
Any advise or tests I can run on the car? Might be time for water pump, car has 110,600, think its orig too.
Thx!
Any advise or tests I can run on the car? Might be time for water pump, car has 110,600, think its orig too.
Thx!
Last edited by RPB; Jun 4, 2011 at 07:15 PM.
MBWorld Fanatic!
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From: Land of mountains, cheese, chocolate and watches
12' W204 C63 AMG coupe "T-Rex", 12' W451 Smart Fortwo Pulse (99' W202 C43 AMG + Ultima Can-Am sold)
Check the thermostat for correct operation. Remove it and place it a pan in boiling water and see if it opens completely. If not change...., that way you can flush out the cooling liquid and replace by some good MB approved stuff and not some snake oil. Our AMG's deserve the best even if they are old.
Junior Member
Joined: Mar 2006
Posts: 44
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From: Gold Coast Australia
Silver 1996 C36
The C36 is supposed to operate at a minimum temperature of 87 deg (set by the thermostat). This is the temp you should see 95% of the time.
Under very hard working conditions the temp will rise to much higher (say 100-115 deg). This is normal under hard working conditions only.
The system is cooled by the coolant being pumped by the "water" pump thru the radiator which is in turn cooled by the radiator fan.
The radiator fan is governed by a clutch system that cuts in when the temp starts to rise too high (and cuts out at high RPM to save HP and to preserve itself from destruction).
Two electric secondary fans cut in when the temps go above about 105 deg.
The most usual part (and insidious part) to fail is the fan clutch of the radiator fan. The symptoms of this failure are:
1. The coolant temp runs hot when stuck in traffic; and
2. The coolant temp is perfect at highway speeds.
Under very hard working conditions the temp will rise to much higher (say 100-115 deg). This is normal under hard working conditions only.
The system is cooled by the coolant being pumped by the "water" pump thru the radiator which is in turn cooled by the radiator fan.
The radiator fan is governed by a clutch system that cuts in when the temp starts to rise too high (and cuts out at high RPM to save HP and to preserve itself from destruction).
Two electric secondary fans cut in when the temps go above about 105 deg.
The most usual part (and insidious part) to fail is the fan clutch of the radiator fan. The symptoms of this failure are:
1. The coolant temp runs hot when stuck in traffic; and
2. The coolant temp is perfect at highway speeds.
