Overheating AGAIN - any ideas??!

OK, so I've had overheating issues with my 1.3 Hijet MPV (2002) for a while now and every time I take it to my local Daihatsu garage they fix something else. To date I've had the following work carried out:

New thermostat (this fixed the overheating the first time)

New fan switch and Diesel fan mod - this worked really well at first but then I noticed that the fan seemed to be all the time, even after short journeys. Then it started overheating again. We had the thermostat replaced again which seemed to solve it until the overheating probs returned. This time we had the fan switch replaced (again) and all was fine until some weeks later it started overheating again!

The cylinder head gasket has been replaced TWICE! The first time (last summer) we thought this had solved the problem and it ran fine for several months but then it started overheating again and so, under warranty, the work was done again (!). This was the last thing we had done on the van a couple of months ago but now we've experienced overheating twice in the last week - or at least the temp gauge has been rocketing up. The first time we pulled over for a few minutes and noticed that the fan wasn't on. Stopped the engine, waited for a few minutes and then set off and everything was fine again. Took in on the motorway at the weekend and within a few minutes the temp was up again. Left it to cool for 30 mins or so and then no probs (it seemed to cool down very quickly, much quicker than when I had probs with the head gasket) Been driving it on short journeys round town this week with no more probs but I don't want to take it on any long journeys and clearly something is still not right!

So, seeing as we've had pretty much everything done, does anyone have any ideas? Why is the fan not kicking in sometimes? Surely it can't be another faulty fan switch or thermostat?

I really want to get to the bottom of this as I want to sell the van asap and I thought we were good to go (the van is otherwise in great condition! Has had loads of work done to it and body work is superb condition for its age).

Was the bottom hose hot? ( and hard)

I've no idea I'm afraid - didn't check until after it had time to cool.

This is such a complex topic.

I have done about 20 to 25 overheating Hijets now, there is one in my workshop to be collected by the owner, and another got dropped off on Saturday.

More than likely they tend to have had other work done to them previously, quite often the head gasket.

Problem with the coolant system is, it is dependent on the WHOLE system operating correctly, so if one tiny bit isn't good e.g. a leaky £1.50 hose clip, then they whole system suffers the consequences.

Components I always change are:-
Decent Nipparts Thermostat - NOT A CIRCOLI ONE FROM EURO CAR PARTS!!!
A load of hose clips
Rad caps - AGAIN MUST BE DECENT ONES
Head skim/clean/valve test/set tappets
New gaskets
Oil/Filter and coolant
Plugs
(about £250 worth of parts on every one)

Extras if they need them are:-
Water pump (£40)
1.3 Radiator - very common (£85)
993 Radiator recore job (£140)
Metal coolant pipe(s) (£50)
Fan switch sensor (£10)
Coolant temperature sensor (£10)
Valve repairs and or valve stem oil seals (£50)
Coil pack and lead (£15)

Probably the most important factors of doing this kind of coolant system work are:-
Pressure testing before and after.
Getting good clean surfaces for the new gaskets
Getting a good seal on the thermostat housing and hose clips
Filling the system with coolant properly and bleeding the air out
The first 4 heat cycles need to be done gently with good monitoring of fluid levels
Setting the ignition timing to be spot on.

So far, non have come back, but I expect at least one will sooner or later, as such is life with these things. If I had a failure rate of 1 in 20, then I imagine I am doing a far better job than anywhere else with them!!!!

Cheapest one was about £750, most expensive was about £1100.

I get people on the phone telling me their local garage will do a head gasket job for £600 on their Hijet, and that I am way too expensive. HOw many Hijets have they done, do they know how to find parts and which ones to use? Truth is until I take it to bits how can I say what it will cost. Things like metal coolant pipes and radiators slap roughly another £200 on the bill, and if it needs them it needs them - can't just not bother as it will be over heating again in a months time then it was time and money in the bin.

The ones that puzzle me, is where people have brought me vans that run like a piece of crap, and then tell me its always been like that since it came from the previous garage. Stuff like the idle control valve not working correctly so the engine idles really fast - and then to try to counteract it the garage have retarded the cam sensor/ignition timing - this makes the van hard to start up, and it ruins the performance. A few people have called me the day after their first pilgrimage home after collecting their van from me, amazed at how they got 90 mph out of it on the motorway on their way home, and how it has used less fuel or LPG than they normally do.

Basically I'm pretty fed up of throwing money at this thing. The first time I had the cylinder head gasket done it cost me £1300 - that almost finished me off but we wanted to keep the van running. If I'd known it would still not be fixed a year later I'd have gotten rid of the thing then and there.

Thankfully the second time was under warranty but I've still had to pay to have the head checked etc (also had to replace the exhaust at the last MOT). I'm pretty confident in the mechanic who did the work on the van as he's Daihatsu trained and has been fixing Hijets for 20 odd years and he said he's never had one like mine before.

Now I just don't know what to do with it. I'd planned on selling it but can't really do so in its current condition. I either need to know its fixed or just sell it as is and let the buyer work it out (not very appealing I imagine!). It's a shame cos the van is otherwise a really great runner and as I said, for its age, is in very good nick with no rot.

Any suggestions folks?

You have 3 options at the end of the day:-

Sell it with false pretence.
Sell it honestly.
Fix it.


In all honesty, if I gave someone £1300 for something then I would expect exactly what was promised! I wouldn't pay them any more. And if they had not delivered their promises I would want my money back. At very least the labour money back - also they have wasted perfectly good gasket kits and fluids on the way.

But hell, I'm a mug - I spend 3 hours looking at a Mercedes electric power steering problem, but as I do not have the required test equipment I could not pin point the issue - and thus gave it back to the customer with no charge. I can't really morally expect them to pay for getting nothing. This happens a few times a week at my place - some customers actually force some money onto me as they appreciate my honesty and efforts! I won't say no

The problem is I've paid to have it 'fixed' a number of times already, and at some cost! I might let the garage take another look but who knows what they'll find this time...

I would never sell it with false pretence but who in their right mind would buy an overheating Hijet off me, let alone for a decent price?

The thing I don't get is why is it not overheating all the time, just now and then? Is it possible for the water pump to behave erratically? This is virtually the only thing that's not been replaced on my van.

No, water pump will not behave like this. Most likely thermostat issues - but the problem is, if the temp gauge has been upto the max then the head tends to warp again. I do worry about the wisdom of putting a different fan switch on a vehicle - it ain't going to solve anything.

Which garage are you taking it to? Is it a proper dealer? It sound like the wisdom of the dealer workshop lads - or filter spinners I like to call them.

I know you've paid to have it fixed - but that's not what you've received so far.

My other worry in life is, if I give someone a couple of chances to prove they can - erm lay a patio - but even after their 3rd go its total dog shit - I am forced to push them off the job, with out paying them as they can't do what they promised - even though they end up, with a little army of thugs, at my own front door at 11:30pm on a thursday night threatening to kick my face in if I don't pay them the £3800 I apparently owe them. They never got their money! I got my patio of some other lads. I did get phone calls at 2am for a few months though which made me giggle.

I'm taking it to an authorised Daihatsu garage: http://www.smgrover.co.uk/

If it's the thermostat that would be 3 that have failed (unless, of course there wasn't actually a problem with the other ones!). The fan mod was a precautionary thing but since they switched it the thing seems to come on all the time which makes me wonder if there's another underlying issue that they've not spotted.

The problem is, every time I have it 'fixed' it runs fine for a few weeks, or even months but eventually the over heating returns.

If you were nearer then I'd let you have a look but Cheshire is a good distance from Bristol!

Hi,  I bought a hijet with overheating issues,  very similar issues to yours and many other hijets. I drove up to Cheshire and left my van with highly jetted. Picked it up a week or do later and it's now runs without any issues at all.  Matt did it for a good price, and drove me to and from the train station. It has since done about 2500 miles and I have only had to top up as usual (less than 10mm in few months). If you want to keep the van I highly recommend the drive up there.

James, how did you drive up to Cheshire if you were overheating?

As quickly as possible with one eye on the temp gauge! I had done some work on it but it was still losing water out if the radiator, the fan wasn't kicking in and I guessed that the gasket had gone. I left pretty late in the evening when there wasn't much traffic, because it stayed pretty cool when travelling along at speed and made sure it was topped up before I left.

Here is my thread... 

https://hijet.forumotion.com/t2206-13-hijet-doesn-t-idle-well-until-warmed-up

Also consider chucking a bottle of Kseal in it, and remove the thermostat.

Then you can normally limp them across the country without them overheating.

First things first, I'm taking it to the Daihatsu garage in the morning. Most of the work is still under warranty so they're going to check it out in case its something simple. I'm certainly not paying them anything, whatever they say.

Let us know how you get on.

So, they took a look this morning and found that no fluid had been lost from the system, which was reassuring. They think it's likely something related to the thermostat or the fan itself. They're going to test the components today and get back to me. I'd be amazed if it was the thermostat again.

Turns out it was the fan switch again. Garage are blaming dodgy Piaggio parts and have decided to ditch the diesel mod and replace with an original Daihatsu fan switch (though it seems terrible bad luck to have had two faulty fan switches!). Test drives have been positive so far. I should be getting the van back today!

So far so good! The temp gauge has been hovering around half way with no signs of any overheating at all. In fact, the fan hasn't barely come on at all. I don't really understand why swapping out the fan switch would cause the van to run cooler but it is and I'm happy with that.

So now I need to sell the thing!

THE test....

Drive it really hard for 20 minutes. Then park up and keep it running.

So, for one reason or another I haven't gotten round to selling my Hijet. It's been sitting on the street for a few months now and I've taken her out a few times just to make sure things were ticking over. Well, guess what happened the last time I took her for a spin? Yep, you guessed it, the temp needle shot up AGAIN! UNBELIEVABLE! Seems like the fan isn't kicking in (yet again), and this is after numerous trips to the local Daihatsu garage and some fairly large bills (see posts above). I took her out again today, same problem. In both cases I switched engine off before any damage done.

Now what to do? I was hoping to sell the van for a decent amount as it's otherwise in very good condition and I've spent quite a bit on it. But who wants to shell out for an overheating hijet MPV??


What do you guys reckon? Try and sell 'as is' or sell it for breaking? I'm not in a position to throw any more money at it. Depressing.

You are stuck in a difficult position.

It's worth 300 maybe a tad more if it is really clean ... If you sell it honestly.

You could sell it in a less than honest way and get full market value 1000 to 1400 if its really clean.

Or you get it fixed by me which will cost you transport and parts and labour.

There are your choices really!