I have a 1991 240 that since I've bought it has had a hot start and overheating issue. The overheating problem only seems to rear it's head during times when the weather is warm during stop and go traffic but as soon as I can drive at a steady pace it usually begins to creep back down to medium heating point. Now the hot start issue is only a problem when I go to start the car after it's been driven recently it won't idle on it's own after I turn the key to start it, I'll have to continue to give it gas while changing gears. Now mind you there is no problem after the car has had ample time cool down for a few hours you can turn the ignition and it'll start right up and idle.

I've already replaced the thermostat and air filter. When replacing the thermostat I noticed that it was broken and before replacing it noticed the temp. gauge didn't read normal which was fixed by the replacement. Unfortunately this didn't fix my hot start or overheating problem.

Let me know what you all think...

Thanks,

 

Sounds like a bad ECT sensor?

Wait for others to comment.

 

sounds like the overheating is related to a block somewhere in the system. when you replaced the tstat did you flush all the old coolant out? if not i would start there and see if its any better...i would also (when 'overheating') stop the car shut it off and spin the fan, if it spins with no effort the fan clutch needs replacing. on to the hot start...it sounds to me like the idle air controll valve is sticking (it lets air to bypass the throttle at idle) so it seems to be sticking and once cooled off it works again. so check into those few things and see where it gets ya.

 

The OEM radiator fluid was stable and could conceivable last 20 years but if it had a leak at some point and the owner was using pond water or some such thing, it could have built up deposits restricting the radiator flow. Was the thermostat clean or did it have crud on it? . A new radiator is an easy fix and under $100.

 

Hi,

I was reading the above article and I found that your site and articles are quite interesting and useful for us. Thanks for sharing.

Stella

 

Looks like I'm going with a new radiator, probably the cheapest one I can find seeing as how I don't have much of a budget at just $100.

Anyone have experience with these Spectra radiators, I've seen one on JC Whitney for less than $90 and wondered if it was any good?