1999 Volvo V70R Engine stays hot for hours

bagman1995 · Post by **bagman1995** » 30 Apr 2015, 13:18

So the problem is that the engine temp. stays hot for a couple hours after I have shut off the car. I will go back to start her up and the temp. gauge will still read at 3'oclock position. Now I had a 2000 S70 and after I would shut off the car, especially in summer the radiator cooling fan would activate. I have not heard the fan activate once after the car is shut off. I have tested the fan by disconnecting the plug with yellow and yellow/white wires protruding out of it and grounded it. The fan runs fine on both speeds. When I blast the AC the fan also eventually turns on. So it seems that the fan is functional, however I am worried about the fan not activating if the AC is not on. Is this normal or should I be worried?

Post by **precopster** » 30 Apr 2015, 14:45

Some here say that cooling fan afterblow after engine shutdown isn't supposed to happen however our cars all do this. Our 95 850 did this. My '00 Denso V70 does this and our XC70 '02 does it.

Replace the ECT and the fan relay if you want to be sure that everyrhing is as it should be.

KEWROCK · Post by **KEWROCK** » 17 Jun 2015, 11:05

Hi Zach. Did you figure it out?
I'm telling you. IF the car is running too hot, you WILL know. The engine will stop revving, the transmission will stop shifting properly, it will run louder than usual and the temp gauge will be nailed exactly where normal meets red on the gauge. Then, when you shut it down the after-fan will continue to blow for like 10- 15 minutes. Even with the t-stat jammed shut it will not completely overheat. I think it's a rev limiter saving it. It happened 2 or three times before I replaced the t-stat.
The ONLY time that fan continued to run after keying off was when the t-stat failed. Never before, never since. Like I said before. It worked exactly when it was needed.

Normally the temp gauge on that particular car was halfway between 3 o'clock and the begining of red.
After 2 hours on a hot day, 3 o'clock sounds good to me. It is a cast iron block, with a turbo no less. Only the head is aluminum. So it's going to retain a lot of heat. Your S60 may have been an all aluminum engine with no turbo. It also may have had a hot t-stat tripping the fan.

Exactly what purpose would extended use of the fan serve? If the car doesn't run hot after an hour of driving on a day like this, why are you worrying? That car runs fantastic. My suggestion, waste your time and money fixing the little annoyances, like the muffler, the squeaky plastic trim in the cargo area, the broken headlight wiper. Maybe get the bumpers fixed properly. And in 20k or so a timing chain.
Oh yeah, the rubber boot on the driver's lower ball joint is shot. I would change that first before you need a whole arm ( I believe the ball joint is non-removable, but the boot is available separate).

The fuel pump is fine, the cooling system is fine, the drivetrain and turbo are impeccable.

Post by **tryingbe** » 17 Jun 2015, 11:34

Does it leak any coolant? Does it run hot? If not, there is nothing to worry.

Stock temperature is useless for telling you the exact temperature. It points to 3 o'clcok from 180F all the way to 225f.

KEWROCK · Post by **KEWROCK** » 17 Jun 2015, 15:51

It's accurate enough for what it does. Telling you when you're running too hot.
And I think it is pretty accurate. When the thermostat was failing the needle stayed exactly on the point where normal meets red. The car did not completely boil over and blow steam, and the gauge did not enter red. But the car did show all the signs of running too hot. So I could assume that red is the boil-over point. The electronics in the car, such as limp mode or a rev limiter keeps it out of the boiling point. so the gauge is pretty accurate. It just might not have enough lines or numbers on it to be read precisely.

Post by **FLXC90** » 17 Jun 2015, 16:18

Honestly, if the car does not get hotter than 3 o'clock while running, then it will run best on restart. All of the emissions equipment should be ready, the oil is at proper viscosity. If the engine and engine compartment retain heat, they're doing you a favor.

Post by **tryingbe** » 17 Jun 2015, 16:31

KEWROCK wrote:It's accurate enough for what it does. Telling you when you're running too hot.
And I think it is pretty accurate. When the thermostat was failing the needle stayed exactly on the point where normal meets red. The car did not completely boil over and blow steam, and the gauge did not enter red. But the car did show all the signs of running too hot. So I could assume that red is the boil-over point. The electronics in the car, such as limp mode or a rev limiter keeps it out of the boiling point. so the gauge is pretty accurate. It just might not have enough lines or numbers on it to be read precisely.

Once, I was teaching someone how to drive, the radiator fan failed to turn on due to a broke wire and coolant boiled over the coolant surge tank cap and sprayed everywhere, but the needle never moved from 3 o'clock. So, I disagree about the factory temp gauge. It's good for showing cold/warm/SUPER HOT but nothing more. I have an actual water gauge with numbers in my car so I know the exact temp and before it gets to SUPER HOT.

The only electronics that will keep the car from overheating is the radiator fan and what controls it. Limp mode or rev limiter is not going to keep the coolant from boiling if you continue to allow an overheated engine to run without solving the underlining issue.

Post by **jimmy57** » 17 Jun 2015, 20:43

You said with a/c the "eventually runs". If the ambient temp is mid 80's or above the fan should run almost immediately when compressor starts. Look closely at the two wire plug (small gauge wires) and make sure the sleeve connectors are both sliding up on the relay bullet pins. The plastic around the terminals is prone to disintegrate and if the plug is unplugged the sleeve terminals may not actually get pushed back on the bullets on relay. Your ECM may only be connecting to the high speed terminal and the after-run fan is low speed only. That would make fan del running for a/c until the high pressure gets high enough for high speed to be triggered and then only run 30 seconds or so.

KEWROCK · Post by **KEWROCK** » 17 Jun 2015, 21:21

You guys are really over thinking this whole thing. If the car is not running hot in 80+ weather with the A/C on. Then there is NO problem. Why invent one? The gauge sits at just past half way and never budges, plus the car is running properly. What more can you ask of it?
You would know immediately if it is running too hot, even without the "inaccurate gauge".

Post by **j-dawg** » 17 Jun 2015, 22:21

tryingbe wrote: Once, I was teaching someone how to drive, the radiator fan failed to turn on due to a broke wire and coolant boiled over the coolant surge tank cap and sprayed everywhere, but the needle never moved from 3 o'clock. So, I disagree about the factory temp gauge. It's good for showing cold/warm/SUPER HOT but nothing more. I have an actual water gauge with numbers in my car so I know the exact temp and before it gets to SUPER HOT.

When the radiator loses pressure, the temperature of the liquid will drop back down to 212F....and it will all boil away.