HELP! HLEP! HELP! Heat problems

[rovergal]

I have a Disc Series II with 87,000 miles. Last Thursday I noticed that my heat was only blowing out cool air. I checked the antifreeze and it was a little so I refilled and did the proper measure to get the thermostat to open. The heat is working now, but its not as hot as it was before. Someone suggested that the thermostat could be going out that is common with this much mileage. So I have one ordered.

But, then I got another response that the thermostat will not be the answer to the heat issue. They said if the thermostat was bad the engine would overheat and we don't believe Rover installs different thermostats for different areas of the country.

Is this true, the vehicle has not overheated or even indicated that its going to. I just dont know what to do. Im totally frustrated Im on a budget and within the last 6 months the vehicle has been into the dealership for wheelhub replacements r/l front...so, anyone with land rovers knows that was a big expense especially through the dealership.

The vehicle also has the SES light blinking which happened shortly after we added a quart of oil and some spilled over on the spark plugs. We notice it is not firing correctly since then... but someone responded that Spilling a little oil won't cause a mis-fire. The spark plug boot protects the wire.

But, its odd how that happened shortly after the oil spill like the next day it started.

ANY ADVICE TO A WOMAN ON A TIGHT BUDGET WOULD BE GREATLY APPRECIATED. I live in Maine and I need this vehicle to be working properly and Im about 2 hours away from the dealership for work.

 

[joey]

First, if it is not blowing as hot as it once was, I would check with a A/C-heat thermostat, you can buy just about any auto parts store for less then $5. It might just be real cold out.

The thermostat could be the issue, but I don't think so. Basically when a thermostat sticks, it is either stuck open(never warm up), Stuck closed(overheat fast) or partially stuck which would still over heat just not real fast.

Spark plug could be bad from the oil, depending on if it was hot when the oil hit the plug, or if it was alot of oil and the plug got hot and cracked from the oil. (change the plug)

 

[Jaak]

You could also have air in the coolant sytem. With the vehicle running, the heater controls on full heat and the rad cap off add a bit of coolant to the overflow tank. Let the vehicle rev up a slight bit but not constant. Monitor the overfow tank to see if the coolant goes down. Rev it periodicaly and do this for about a half hour or so. What does your temp gauge show? It should be in the middle. Usuallt when thermostats go they tend to stay open and not allow the engine to heat up properly.


If it is cold outside you may want to put on a rad shield that reduces the amout of cool air that flows over the rad ... like the truckers use on their rigs. A cheap way is to put a piece of cardboard in front of the rad with some air space between it and the rad. Best to attach it in front of the grill so you don't forget about it. When it gets ward remove the cardboard/grill cover!!!



Are the cooling fans always on? If it is especially when it is cold, there could be a problem with the temp. sensor which may need to be replaced. I have had this issue with the P-Car ....