Major Overheating Problems And Very Sluggish Operation. Help!!!

[Deadhead86]

Ok, so heres my situation. I recently drove my Disco back home ,which is about 500 miles one way. I had no issues with it on the trip there. I was home for about 2 weeks, and I put an additional 300 miles on it (roughly). Around the end of those 2 weeks, I started to notice the the RPM needle wasnt working anymore. Every once and a while it would jump, but by no means was working. 3 days before I had to return I started having problems with the alternator. I got into it that morning, drove about 7 miles to the store (lights on, radio on, and ipod plugged in) and nothing unusual. After I came out of the store, I couldnt get it to turn over. I figured it was the battery from the way it sounded when I tried to crank it over. I had it jumped and it turned over just fine. As I was un hooking the cables and checking the terminals for bad connections (both were tight), I noticed the alt. was making a wining sound, but it wasnt bad so I decided it would last me a little while. No one in my area would have been able to get one for me for days so I really had no other choice. I drove on it for the rest of the time I was home and didnt have any problems (during this time I wasnt running any power, besides the rig itself). On my return trip back to base, I got about 120 miles and started getting problems as it was getting sluggish on the gas. I decided to pull off at the next exit and found someone to rebuild the alt. It was do to a bad bearing. It worked and soon I was back on the road (RPM gauge working again). I was able to get about another 150 miles or so, and again started having problems. At times I wasnt able to get about 60 mph. Very sluggish again, but the alternator seemed to be working. I pulled off once again, popped the hood... You could have probably been able to fry an egg on the block in about 5 secs. The oil was also very hot. Once the engine cooled for a few minutes, I was able to get back on the road and the rig was operating fine. A short time later, the same thing. Let cool, and same thing. Everytime this happened, the intervals got shorter and shorter. By the time I got within about 50 miles, I wouldnt get it over 35 to 40 mph, partly in fear of cracking something, part because it just wouldnt do it. The last 10 miles of my trip consisted of stopping about every 2 miles to let it cool. Im sure youre shaking your head as to me driving it for so long in the condition it was in, but I really had no other choice. I was already late for my return formation and had to be back on base. I know it was a big no no.


I have never run into a problem like this (as far as the overheating?) with any rig I have ever owned. What are a list of things I can trouble shoot and check myself before I have the dealer here look at it? The alternator did seem that it was now rubbing, do to a grinding sound it was making after the rebuild, and was very hot to the touch. Could this, if that is the case, be enough to cause the engine to start over heating? Once again, I have never had any engine problems before I had this alternator rebuilt.

Vehicle details:

97' Disco I se
133000 miles
3.9L v8

Thank you for the help!

 

[joey]

Unless you changed it or you live outside of the USA, you 97 will have a 4.0 not a 3.9. Either way that isn't what you asked.

Tach issue was an indicator that your Alternator was going bad. Normally a rebuild doesn't work out well on a Land Rover Alternator, I would recommend getting a new one, but only if your engine is still good.

If in fact you were over heating, I would check to make sure you have antifreeze (I hope you check this weekly at minimum).

Did the temp gauge show hot?

Did you get a check engine light? If so pull the codes.

But if you were over heating and you drove it like you stated, you will more than likely need a new engine. If it was just the alternator causing nasty issues, then you may be okay.

First check, antifreeze and depending on you last major tune up, new thermostat to make sure it is working correctly. Check to make sure you are still full of oil.

More info on any gauge issues or indicators that you seen, i.e. steam?

 

[Deadhead86]

The anitfreeze was at good opereating level, and the temp gauge wasnt reading hot at all. That was the wierd thing. As far as all indicators go, it was fine. Fresh oil. I did have a slight amount of steam when I pulled the cap off the oil reservoir. I do have a check engine light on, but thats been there since I bought it. It does have a snorkel, so that might be the reason for the check engine light. Im going to try and have the codes pulled today. Ill let you know what comes up.

 

[joey]

Could also be a bad VSS (Vehicle Speed Sensor)

This can cause real odd speed issues.

 

[Deadhead86]

Ok, heres what I have so far. I took the Disco up to the local Autozone to have them pull the codes on it. It made it there and back (about 12 miles) without problems or over heating. I had 4 codes come up, and unfortunately I dont have them with me, I left them in the Rover and Ill have to drive back out to get them. The one I do remember off hand is P01191. I called Land Rover, and all 4 codes have to do with the O2 sensors, banks 1 and 2. Like I said before, I had a check engine light before this, so Im not sure if this is has anything to do with the problem. I do know that I have a crack somewhere in the manifold on the drivers side. I can imagine this is why its bringing up O2 codes.

I did smell what seemed to be a heavy scent of gas on the oil dip stick when I pulled that out to check it after I got back from Autozone. Could this be the sign of a major problem? There was also steam coming from the anti freeze overflow box when I pulled the cap off, but not alot of pressure build up though.

Im sure the info Im providing isnt the best, but Im trying to be as descriptive as possible. Besides this forum, the only other option I have is to drive it 58 miles to the closes dealer and have them charge me an ungodly amount of money just to figure out whats wrong. And thats at the risk of blowing the engine.

My questions:
1) Would these 4 O2 codes have anything to do with the overheating?
2) Is the heavy smell of gas on the the oil dipstick a issue?
3) How hot is normal for the oil dipstick to be after running the engine (local driving of about 12 miles)?
4) How hot is normal for the hose running from the radiator to the engine after running the engine (same distance)?
5) Is it even possible for the alternator to produce enough heat to be the over heating issue?


Once again, Id like to thank you for all the help youve provided thus far. Im sure youre saving me a ton of money.

 

[joey]

Ok, with the codes if they are for all 4 O2 sensors, I might think that you have been running extra rich on the fuel and have possible fried both Cats... check to see if they are glowing when you let it run for a while around 30 minutes or so... this will also cause the other issues noted, with the exception of the gas smell.

 

[Deadhead86]

Here are the codes as the read on the device:

1) P1194 - Fuel air meter
2) P0158 - O2 sensor, high volt bank 2 sensor 2
3) P0138 - O2 sensor, bank 1 sensor 2
4) P1191 - Fuel air meter

I had the data pulled for all these codes, and this is what came back:

1) P1194 - Component (O2 Heaters), Monitoring stategy descripiton (Heater current), Malfunction (Heater current[open/short])
2) P0158 - Component (Oxygen sensors), Monitoring stategy descripiton (Response rate), Malfunction (Maximum rich to lean time)
3) P0138 - Component (Oxygen sensors bank1 and 2), Monitoring stategy descripiton (Single range), Malfunction (Minimum O2 volt[titanium sensor])


Im trying to paint the picture for you as best possible, but if Im throwing too much info at you let me know. My guess, from what Im looking at with this data, is that my fuel mix is far too rich (explaining the heavy smell in the oil), because the O2 sensors are shot and the cats are now bad, and in turn this might be the reason the engine bay is getting so hot, do to the exaust not being able to exit properly. Could this be as simple as replacing the entire exaust system for a new one, replacing the oil, and flusing the cooling system?

 

[Deadhead86]

And yes, the Cats are getting pretty hot when run. I havent let it run for a very long period for fears of damage. But they do heat up pretty quickly, even at an idle.

 

[joey]

I am going to guess and say possible MAF sensor issue, Fuel Injector issue, or a Temp sensor (fuel that is). One of these three is either bad or going bad.

MAF I would clean it.

The Injectors you can have tested or replace them, same with the fuel temp sensor. Either way if the CATS are bad, you will need to fix that before you can do much else.

 

[Deadhead86]

Thank you Joey, once again, youve been a huge help. Ill look into all your recommendations.