Overheating

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Dodgeguy1942
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Overheating

Post by Dodgeguy1942 » Tue Nov 26, 2019 3:49 am

I took our Dukw for a run into town today ambient temp was around 28degrees Celsius and had to drive it by watching the temp gauge. If pushing it hard up the hills temp would rise to around 200degrees Fahrenheit. Is this normal?


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Steve Greenberg
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Re: Overheating

Post by Steve Greenberg » Tue Nov 26, 2019 5:31 am

Hello,
That is a little hot. DUKW's to tend to run hotter than their CCKW counter parts. You may want to have the radiator cleaned out.
Steve
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Re: Overheating

Post by Dodgeguy1942 » Tue Nov 26, 2019 7:49 am

Thanks for the reply. I had it cleaned out last year. If I drive it harder it would boil on long hills I drop it back a gear and sit around 1600 revs and it will slowly cool down

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W. Winget
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Re: Overheating

Post by W. Winget » Tue Nov 26, 2019 8:38 am

Sorry to be sitting on the side lines on this, although I have two DUKWs, one is now cut in half, the other not restored, Steve is the authority on them.

Logically a few factors in play I would check:

Air Flow (toward Radiator for DUKW, inlet and outlet Vents open and not blocked by gear or passengers, radiator isn't covered with birds nest or crud)
Coolant (mix of water and antifreeze correct?)
Coolant Flow (waterpump condition (and shaft lubed), weak thermostat, loose fan belt, clogged internal engine block or radiator passages)
Coolant Pressure (Seal on cap, loose hoses (would leak under pressure))
Oil (to low (especially on steep hills....), too thin, blocked by filter clogging, causing internal heat to increase)
Fuel (Air to fuel mix too thin, does pulling CHOKE out slightly when climbing hill help keep it cool?)

Could be multiple factors of the above just adding together to make her hotter.
Just curious which way your fan is pushing air flow, or if gear is covering is in the air inlet area possibly affecting flow?
If it had a CCKW fan blade, it might still cool it at lower RPM but not at higher speed, did someone remove the fan when you fixed the radiator? Was it the correct one before you pulled the radiator, i.e. DUKW fan?

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Re: Overheating

Post by junking » Tue Nov 26, 2019 9:41 am

Sorry to hear about your overheating problems. Been there! That's a lot of weight to be moving around. I imagine you checked the water pump impeller, how clear the block passages are, headgasket, and thermostat performance out of the engine in a pan of hot water. Doesnt take much for these old open systems to get off kilter.

On my wc 3, I pressure washed the water passages in the block and radiator and replaced the distribution tube. That seemed to take care of it.

I even tried installing a 3 psi cap and recirc bottle. I ended up taking the pressure cap off as it wasnt needed.

Good luck!
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Dodgeguy1942
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Re: Overheating

Post by Dodgeguy1942 » Tue Nov 26, 2019 4:30 pm

When I got the dukw it had a truck water pump in it so I bought a Dukw one, however the pusher fan wouldn’t fit as the hole in centre wasn’t large enough to go over locknut on shaft. There isn’t a thermostat in Dukw at present

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Re: Overheating

Post by motto » Tue Nov 26, 2019 5:07 pm

Dodgeguy1942 wrote:
Tue Nov 26, 2019 4:30 pm
When I got the dukw it had a truck water pump in it so I bought a Dukw one, however the pusher fan wouldn’t fit as the hole in centre wasn’t large enough to go over locknut on shaft. There isn’t a thermostat in Dukw at present
Does the foregoing mean that you are not running a DUKW fan? The cooling system was quite adequate in its original form and I would be inclined to stick with that. Do you have the radiator shroud in place? If so, installing a thermostat and original fan may be all that is required.

David

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Re: Overheating

Post by W. Winget » Tue Nov 26, 2019 5:21 pm

Funny, I wrote all that post and my original thought in starting was the line:
"Which way is your fan pushing" I couldn't have imagined it was that simple...
No as an alternative, you could mount a thermostatically controlled electric fan to push air or suck air through (not fighting the air flow against the one you have.
Bottom line if returned to original configuration (push fan and thermostat) your heating issues will likely disappear.
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Re: Overheating

Post by Dodgeguy1942 » Wed Nov 27, 2019 3:09 am

Definitely a pusher fan and it has the cowl in place. Unsure why it didn’t fit the pump though. Dukw is ex UK

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Re: Overheating

Post by fahtal » Wed Nov 27, 2019 5:28 am

maybe post some pictures of the engine bay.

Our dukw runs around 180-190. also when swimming wheels off in 2nd gear.

swimming with Wheels on or in 3rd gear heat goes quickly above 200 and higher.

Not sure what he does on a hot day on long distances... we tend to swim more then drive

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Re: Overheating

Post by motto » Wed Nov 27, 2019 3:01 pm

As Steve says, the amphibian version operates at a higher temperature than its CCKW counterpart. The installation of a surge tank as a standard fitting attests to this fact being recognised by the builders at the time. It is indeed impressive to see the exhaust manifold glowing on a night cruise.
It remains possible that the temperature gauge is in error. We do tend to take their accuracy for granted.

David

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Re: Overheating

Post by Dodgeguy1942 » Thu Nov 28, 2019 7:43 pm

Steve Greenberg wrote:
Tue Nov 26, 2019 5:31 am
Hello,
That is a little hot. DUKW's to tend to run hotter than their CCKW counter parts. You may want to have the radiator cleaned out.
Steve
Does yours get hot if you run it up long hills?

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Steve Greenberg
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Re: Overheating

Post by Steve Greenberg » Thu Nov 28, 2019 8:03 pm

On a hot day it will run around 190 195. On cooler days 180 or so.
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Re: Overheating

Post by fahtal » Thu Nov 28, 2019 9:44 pm

Steve Greenberg wrote:
Thu Nov 28, 2019 8:03 pm
On a hot day it will run around 190 195. On cooler days 180 or so.
So 200 on a hot day uphill is not that strange?

My experience is that everything extra makes your Dukw run hotter. See swimming with wheels on or off.

I also know someone who removed the last drive shaft so it is 2x2 and run better on the road

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Re: Overheating

Post by dukws4ever » Sat Nov 30, 2019 9:23 pm

Hi
I used to have a very nice Dukw when I was still living in Australia
Even when it was up near or even over 100F or hotter the Dukw always ran around 170 to max 185 no
Matter how hard we pushed it (55 mph was easy to attain)
I even modified my tandem trailer to tow my GPA behind the Dukw and still no issues
The only times I had a problem was when There was a small crack in the intake manifold causing a lean mixture and when first purchased before I had a chance to wash the engine side of the radiator core to remove oil mist and junk from it.
Make sure you keep your bilges clean and prevent candy wrappers or light materials from dropping through the holes in the floorboards
Does your engine have oil vapor issues?
Ie worn rings or valve guides
Wash the core with mild detergent and see if that makes a difference
I even drove it 850 miles to the GPA swim in down in New South Wales without an issue.
The only continuing problem was the Dukw would burn the bar off the spark plugs about every 500 miles or so
Faster if we ran it hard for long periods in the water
Lvd it and want another Dukw
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