Hey guys,

My wagon has a serious overheating problem...after it has fully warmed up if I leave it idling or have to sit in traffic for 15 min or more the temperature starts to raise rapidly. I can combat this somewhat by running the heat full blast which isn't too unpleasant now, but it will get old very fast in the summer. The T-stat in the car is reasonably new, the radiator fins are not clogged and the radiator itself has no obvious blockages. I also recently replaced the heater core. I find it hard to believe that there is a blockage in the engine itself because it was replaced in September, and the problem remains. I can't think of anything else to check. I'm considering wiring in dual electric fans to come on at a preset temp, but I'd like to get to the bottom of the problem rather than just putting a band-aid on it. Any ideas?

Thanks,

Matthew C. Hall

My 87 240 DL had the same problem when I bought it. The cooling system was ok. I replace a new sensor for the gauge, nothing changed. I then removed the instrument panel from the dash and polished the connector pins with fine emery paper. That was 2 years ago and all is well.

Checked/replaced the fan clutch? That is the culprit of idle overheats in a lot of cases. They're cheap and simple to replace. I'd recommend it highly if you suspect that to be the problem. ALso a bad water pump can do the same thing, if the impeller is slipping ont he shaft. That's RARE but not unheard of especially with some cheap parts.

The engine fan should make a real roar the first few blocks of driving on a cold morning (on cold start). Then it goes away. If you never hear it, suspect it.

Also, I take it that it is truly overheating, not just showing it on the gauge, which is known to be defective. Verify that before you write it off to a bad gauge though!
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Chris Herbst, near Chicago, IL. 93 940, 91 240, 90 240, 88 740, 87 240

perhaps you have a defective thermostat? cheap and easy to rule out

I'm new to the Volvo sceen, but it sounds like a thermostat to me too. I had a simular problem in an old Chevy.

Mine took a new radiator (same prob) Didn't cost that much. Mine wasn't fan clutch, or water pump. It was about 110K miles