Overheating Issues, Perplexed

[Wayne Maybury]

Originally Posted by elmariachi

When I got it home and bolted it into the go-kart, I then put 20+ miles on it running around the subdivision before mounting the body and it never got above 180*F. Then I mounted the body and it started idling hot. No way its the engine.
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I have been following this thread from the beginning and I am amazed at how thorough and diligent you have been at trying to solve this problem. I know that this is a crazy idea and involves a lot of work but if you cannot find the problem to your 100% satisfaction, why don't you remove the body and see what happens? I also think the problem may be the engine, not the cooling system. By taking the body off, you can see if it still runs hot once and for all.

Wayne

[elmariachi]

Originally Posted by Wayne Maybury

I also think the problem may be the engine, not the cooling system. By taking the body off, you can see if it still runs hot once and for all.Wayne

The car is presently painted Lamborghini Titanium with silver stripes. All along it has been my plan to repaint it to a more original color. That's been a "Fall 2009" event and my preference would be to not pull the body until then. I have a bigger fan and shroud coming and even if all we are doing is masking the problem, I may live with it until the fall so that I only have to remove the body one more time. But let's go down this path for the sake of discussion...

If I pull the body and it still overheats, then what is wrong? What about the engine >>specifically<< could be causing this?

[CobraEd]

Retarded timing and/or lean mixture at idle.


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[elmariachi]

Originally Posted by CobraEd

Retarded timing and/or lean mixture at idle.
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We've already been there some pages back (not expecting everyone to read every post in this massive thread.) Offline to this thread I have worked on timing and mixture with CC member "Patrick." We started out at the dyno settings of 20* base + 18* advance (which is where it was before mounting the body.) We then went to 18+18 and we are presently at 16* initial + 21* advance for a total of 37*, all in my 3200 rpm. It does seem to idle bit cooler now than it did at 20+18. Certainly idling cleaner and not so gassy.

I also have Don Gould's Word doc entitled "4 Seconds Flat" and he advises 24* initial + 10* advance via his 10* MSD bushing, which I have lying here on my desk but haven't tried. His whole argument around FE timing is not in line with what is recommended by people on this forum, but I am trying to approach this one step at a time.

After lots of road testing and using a vacuum gauge I am 1.75 turns out on the primary and 2 turns out on the secondary, Mighty Demon 750 Annular. Plugs look great and it runs and transitions great. Car starts time after time, no strain/knocking/pinging or backfires.