T.D. Jack - 'Check Engine' indicator. Overheating?

Submitted: Monday, Jan 07, 2008 at 22:20
ThreadID: 53228 Views:2262 Replies:3 FollowUps:0
This Thread has been Archived
I have a Y2000, manual, T.D. Jack with 130K on the clock.
Recently I towed my camper (about 1800kg loaded)up the SE freeway out of Adelaide. About 300m from the top the 'Check Engine' indicator came on. The temp gauge was a bit hight than normal but not what I would consider dangerously high. I pulled over and let the engine idle until the indicator went out and the temp gauge had dropped back to normal and then continued. I had made the climb in 3rd holding the revs to about 2800 which is a little over 60 Km/h.The vehicle seemed to do the climb quite easily with a fair amount of throttle travel left and 2nd seem far to low.
Given that the Jack is considered to be a reasonable towing vehicle and I was well within the 2500kg limit - was I using too high a gear or should I have the vehicle checked out.?
This is the second time that the 'Check Engine' indicator has come on when I have been towing the camper. The very first time I towed the camper involved a climb up Willunga Hill on a day of 42 degrees. Not only did the 'Check engine' indicator come on, the engine management system seemed to drop back to some sort of survival mode.That scared the hell out of me. I though I had blown up the engine!
Next year we plan to do a trip to Jindabyne and then up the East coast. There will be some long steep climbs in that lot - Mt Bulli comes to mind and a couple of places on the Snowy Mt highway.
So, have I been using too high a gear or should I have the vehicle checked out? Any advice gratefully received.
Back Expand Un-Read 0 Moderator

Reply By: Gronk - Monday, Jan 07, 2008 at 23:50

Monday, Jan 07, 2008 at 23:50
I'd have it checked out !!

Used to tow a CT with a 98 T/D and used to tow it as fast as the Jack would go up hills and only once did it go above the normal gauge position ( only moved a couple of mm )
AnswerID: 280403

Reply By: Gerhardp1 - Monday, Jan 07, 2008 at 23:54

Monday, Jan 07, 2008 at 23:54
Take it to the stealer and get Tech II plugged in. It may/should be able to read the reason the check engine light came on.

You might also consider getting a Scanguage which can read error codes while driving along, so you have a better idea of what's going wrong. www.scanguage.com

Not real sure about the diesels and their operating temperature, but the V6 3.5 petrol temperature never fluctuates no matter what. The needle doesn't even move its own thickness, so maybe you have a blocked radiator or the thermostat is not opening fully.

Come to think of it, the thermostat could be cheaply replaced and might fix it - I'm assuming the diesel is not like the 3.5 petrol in that the inlet manifold has to be removed to get to the thermostat.
AnswerID: 280404

Reply By: Jeeps - Tuesday, Jan 08, 2008 at 01:51

Tuesday, Jan 08, 2008 at 01:51
I've blown 2 fuses and had the check engine light come on (air intake sensor voltage too low) on the weekend and we think it might be the scangauge causing it... ! So it's unplugged and we'll see how we go...
AnswerID: 280413

Sponsored Links