Engine overheating while towing a caravan / trailer
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 24 ก.ย. 2017
- This was one of the most stressful drives I've had so far - driving from Coromandel Town to Whitianga in the Coromandel Peninsular in New Zealand.
My mechanic had wanted to do some work on the car before I did any big hills, but I decided to spend the money travelling instead.
The hill from Coromandel Town to Whitianga is surprisingly big and I got stuck behind a massive truck going 5km up. My engine overheated and started to steam but there was no place to pull over. Stressful.
Learn more about the journey here: travellingk.com/engine-overhea...
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You may want to lock your car in a lower gear and keep a constant throttle setting when going up a hill. Then turn your heater and fan on full as the heater is really a second radiator. When your gearbox changes up and down gears on a long hill it can produce a lot more heat. Also labouring the engine in a higher gear can cause overheating. A transmission cooler can really help your transmission last longer and keep your engine and transmission oil cooler. The heat from the transmissions on a lot of cars dissipates through the bottom of the radiator into the engine so when the transmission runs hot up a hill, so does the engine.
Thank you! My mechanic had a good look soon after and sounds like a few parts where showing wear and not working 100%. HOPEFULLY it can handle hills better in the future. My mechanic also mentioned having the fan and heater going to bring air through - a great tip!
The big mistake many folk make when choosing a tow vehicle is that they buy something which is “borderline” in towing capacity . Enjoying your vlog. Even though I’m in Oz
Living alone in a caravan seems to be quite an adventure. You seem like you really found an amazing location to park your caravan for a while. Love that sunrise where you were, what a gorgeous place!
The beach close to the caravan looks beautiful and the sunrise is stunning. Cathedral Cove looks pretty nice in the winter's sun.
Hi Karen, another great little video and feel your pain on that hill, we have done it a few times with the 'van on the back.
When you are leveling using a ramp, try reversing on to it instead. What happens is the brakes have an override on them so that you are able to reverse meaning they will roll about a metre backwards before the handbrake takes up, this is why it is rolling off the ramp. Going forward it should only roll a cm or so. A bit harder doing it by yourself but if you back up the ramp until you are slightly higher than you want to be, apply the handbrake then drive forward slightly, this will take the weight off the coupling and ensure the handbrake has engaged (the rubber boot should be extended). When you unhitch the 'van should stay on the ramp. To be safe you should chock the wheel if you can, not sure if those levelers came with a chock. Happy Caravaning and keep the vids coming!
Love your tip about reversing onto the ramp! And interesting point about chocking the other wheel. Maybe I should try it again... Thank you for your advice!
traveling alone towing a caravan takes lots of couriage. looking for more videos from you.
Hi from France.
When you engine is too hot, try this trick:
Put the heater cursor in the car to the hottest position ( like in the sauna ! ) and set the fan speed ( interior heater ) on max, some time it's helpfull to shift down the gearbox; the engine turn faster and also the water pump ! but i think its a automatic gearbox on your car.
Becarefull you can damaged the cylinder head gasket if you let run too hot.
Be kindly with the power pedal, more you crush it and more gazoline or diesel come in the engine and become hot energy.
When i was a teenager this is arrived to my fahter in mountain, and we must stop the car not to damaged the engine.
Don't follow the other vehicle too closed to provide the wind refresh the radiator.
Now you are in winter, becarfull when the summer come, perhaps you have a cooling mistake on your car.
you are very courageous, have always some water for the radiator in the car and the assistance phone number in you pocket !
Having good trip isn't easy when you have some contrariety in the head.
Now stop calling car , you are in from of the pacific ocean, on the horizon thousands and thousands kilometer of see ( the end of the world !!! )
When you climb on the leveling ramp, use a piece of wood or a stone to stop the caravan wheel and engage the park brake a little bit heighter than you need, so when it's brake the weel your caravan reverse a little and will be at the correct position.
Can you tell us if you have a heater in your caravan ( i can't see it on the video ! ) ( like TRUMA ) and if you have a TRUMA VENT ?
See you later.
You have some great tips. I've had the car checked with my mechanic and hopefully no more steam in the future! He also suggested having the fan running. Interesting point about not being too close to the car in front.
Yes, the heater is Truma. I'm not sure what the vent.
I find winter the best time to travel, as you say, a lot less people around, which makes it much more enjoyable.
Yes, so peaceful and no worries that campgrounds will be fully booked
Always good to drive a Manual geared vehical when towing a caravan espeicaly on steep hill climbs here in NZ...All the best!
Yes, a manual would work well for that situation!
Have used leveling ramps before and had same issues, bought a set of chocks and a rubber pad for the jockey wheel to sit in, the rubber pad holds the jockey wheel and prevents it from sinking into the ground or rolling, there is a special fluid that is non water use that can be added to ur cars coolant system that prevents overheating, that's another option, there will always be hiccups but they just add to the memories
Good tip about the fluid to stop overheating! Had it happen again recently. I ended up getting a chock and that made a huge difference.
You made sunrise! It is the perfect camping spot. It would not have taken much to convince me to stay an extra night or two.
Well worth staying longer :)
You are so brave! I would have been freaking out especially being alone. Glad you kept it under control and handled it well.
That day I really wanted someone with me to just help decide where to stay that night! Got there in the end :)
Hi K Looks fantastic
You need wheel chocks on your ramps, to stop the ‘van rolling off the ramps. Also you might want to get the hand brake mechanism checked not sure if should roll that far without engaging. Finally, if the caravan doesn’t seem to want to disconnect from the car, when winding the jockey wheel down, and having towed forward on to the ramps, tip is to let the car roll back 1/2 an inch before winding jockey wheel down, to let the hitch relax (contract) slightly.
Great advice, thank you! And I'll get the brake checked too.
The brake does not work in reverse until it has rolled some way. this is due to the reversing mechanism so that you can drive backwards with the caravan while on the car. You can see the hand brake lever go back while it is rolling backwards. This is all normal. you can either use the ramps the other way round and drive on backwards or use chocks.
Hi K having a look at your blogs and I know I'm pretty late posting but oh well, having been a caravaner for many years I realize your still finding out the way to survive inside the van.
I have a box of absolute essentials so no matter what I can make a hot meal with, these are basic store foods. If you want me to cut and paste them for you.
I think your doing fantastically and I think your getting teething troubles which are basically a learning curve, all sent to try us LOL I'm in the UK and thought we had wet weather, you seem too get as much though 🙄🙄
Hi Alexandra! Yes, I would be curious about your list...
I've had the caravan for a while now and suspect troubles will always pop up - not a dull lifestyle😂😂
Yes, the New Zealand climate is pretty similar to the UK, and just as green from all the rain!!
Hi K I will get sorted and send over the list of goods to keep in your van as back, I know your not a vegetarian so can send the completed list and basic recipe's to make sure you don't Starve LOL
Great! You made it. I got tensed seeing that steam from your engine. I can imagine how hard it'll be being alone with a broken car in the middle of the road - uphill. Whew! That's a really nice beach!
I'm glad I made it too! haha
One climb to 10,000' in the Sierras I had to turn on the heater, it helps cool. I also run a 60/40 antifreeze mix which raises the boiling point.
Yikes!! That sounds like a stressful days drive!
Hi Karen, I do hope the overheating prob is nothing to serious, it might only be a fuse to the fan, love the beach view.
There were some great beaches in the area!
I took the car to the mechanic and he replaced a few parts that were just getting old - hopefully no more steam!
That is good news 😀 be safe
Some great advice, thank you! I'll definitely need to look into chocking the wheel and see how it goes. Good point about the brake... hmmmm
Very often it is a good idea to give engine a little rest. You do a great job taking care of the trailer too. Nice to know that there are many options in terms of different campgrounds in New Zealand. Absolutely love the Cathedral Cove. Would love to explore New Zealand one day.
Cathedral Cove is great! And after taking the car to the mechanic, I'm hoping I'll never have that stress again!
Hi, if you use a wedge to level the van you must chock the other side of the tire to stabilise the van. All the best.
I eventually learned that tip🤣Took me a few goes though!
This seems like a stressful, never-ending day. I would imagine that walk on the beach would help to clear your mind though, hopefully things get better!
The day improved, haha.
THAT is a very BEAUTIFUL spot that you've found yourself at :) :) :)
Safe travels !!!
It's a stunning area! So remote feeling for being close-ish to Auckland.
Loving your videos.. Thanks from across the ditch :)
Hi neighbour 😉That's great to hear! Thank you.
Youre welcome.. I am guilty of binge watching them yesterday :) I got nothing done lol.
Put a piece of flat wood (House Flooring stuff, sorry dont know what you call it) under your jockey wheel, helps with that sinking feeling...dont forget to pick it up...and get some wheel chocks too, we also carried a couple of extra pieces of flat wood also for levelling up the van on unlevelled ground too.. PS We drove that road to the Coromandel oh my god it was scary, but hell worth the drive...Enjoying you journey from OZ
Oh under the wheel? That's a good tip! I'll hand around for some wood :)
haha glad you can sympathise about that hill. But as you say, well worth it for the sights!
I take it you have a caravan?
We have a piece, not sure if original or not, that has an indentation the jockey wheel sits in, about 5 mm deep. We drop our drawbar onto wooden blocks ( is an early 1980's caravan) and put wide flat blocks under the stabilsers at the back.
indentation - that's an interesting idea...
I drive my Artic truck in Scotland with big hills and when I'm fully loaded my temp gauge goes to max but as soon as it levels out it goes back to normal. Not too much to worry about.
Turns out there were a few things wrong with the car that my mechanic ended up fixing and it's been fine since😀😀😂
Oh dear! That doesn't sound great, but your video does make it sound like you handled it like a piece of cake, haha! With every video of yours, my dream to follow the same route as yours in NZ strengthens! :)
Great to hear that you want to explore New Zealand!
Hey Travelling K! It's been a while since we checked in with you, how are you finding solo caravanning? You should montage all of the amazing locations that you've parked up! That beach looks lovely :)
Good idea about the montage! It's getting close to 1 years caravanning and things are good - even with the scary hills :)
Next time it appears to overheat/steam, turn your heater on full temp and power, (open the windows if weather is warm!). This will shift heat out the engine.
Great tip and will definitely remember this one in the future, thank you!
Hiii how much the caravan weighs
Great shot of Cathedral Cove! I'm really interested in your story. My wife and I will probably try caravanning around NZ sometime in the next couple of years. Any advice on where you should look at purchasing or renting one?
New subscriber here 👍
Great to hear! I'd try renting to see if it suits you - altho it's tricky to hire a caravan as motorhomes are more popular in NZ. TradeMe is a good place for secondhand caravans. Then there are a couple of NZ caravan magazines to learn about the popular brands. There are some great Facebook Groups too!
Still catching up on your videos! I'm not sure if it has been said here, there are a lot of comments. You have to chock your wheels when you use your leveling ramps. They work great but you have to chock the wheels!
You will have to head down to Hawkes Bay over the summer. Its beautiful down here. A block of wood about a foot square and an inch or so thick under the jockey wheel will stop it sinking by giving it a bigger footprint on softish ground :)
Hawkes Bay you say... Thank you for the advice!
oh wow loving your videos! thumbs up and sub
Driving around New Zealand looks awesome. With any road trip you will hit some snags. We dealt with similar stuff like arriving at a campground and not liking it. Driving can be exhausting eh?
It can be VERY exhausting on day's like that, haha
Surely a stressful drive when the engine is heat up but it looks like a stunning place. New Zealand is a dream place to visit and hope to land myself here soon :)
It is a stunning place :)
check the front of your radiator sometimes they become clogged with bugs just gently spray water on the radiator fins to wash the bugs off ,,you sounded tired and maybe a bit hangery in the first part of the vlog..once on the leveling ramps try not to shift the van sideways...if you cant get enough height to lift van off tow bar put a wooden block under the jocky wheel to give you extra height
I was definitely hangery, hahaha. Since then, my mechanic has had a good look and fixed a few things. Hopefully no more steam! Wooden block is a good idea...
When you use your levelling ramp you have to chock the rear of the opposite wheel to stop the van running back down the leveller when detach from the car.
I just can't seem to get the levellers working right. Have tried a couple of times now with no success. Will try wedging a chock on the opposite wheel next time.
looks like the handbrake doesn't work on that side of van. leave brake on and drive forward a little and see if any skid marks are left, if only one then need brakes checking out. great vids.
Thank you - I've been testing it a bit and seems ok when I reverse then drive forward a little. Seems to activate the brakes better!
Ahhhh that's my nightmare. I just bought a travel trailer myself. Looking forward to many adventures.
Ohhh, will you video your adventure? Look forward to seeing how you go!
Check ur caravan hand brake. Doesn't seem to lock ur van wheels. That's y it rolled off the levelling wedge.
Yeah, I've tried to google it and the confusing part is it sounds like even with the brake on it can still roll back a little... wondering if it's doing that.
You need to fix the hand brake on the caravan that's why it's rolling back
Great video & beautiful location!
Can you use the shower off grid and what's the water pressure like? Just looking at getting into touring caravans
Thank you! Exciting that you are going touring. What is your plan?
The shower is ok... Currently not set-up for hair washing as I found out in this video: th-cam.com/video/STqdra1Taus/w-d-xo.html
I've heard I could add internal water tanks to increase length of shower and suspect I could get a better shower head. It should be possible!
Cool thank you. It will be next year now as we are just heading towards winter in the UK. I have many great memories of family holidays in the caravan growing up. Now it's my turn to enjoy the same with my 3 year old boy 😀
Would love to visit New Zealand someday too. Looks stunning.
ya, sucks to be stuck behind a slow truck!! enjoyed seeing how the caravan stuff work and the water. So how does the shower work? you just plug in the tank of water into the caravan?
The shower - I currently have a tank that sits next to the caravan and add a clever connection that sucked the water into the caravan. I just turn on the pump and it somehow all works! I can even have hot water heated by gas!
Never concerned me to be acturly level when I parked my caravan or Camper over nights.
Hello there! Try to put the stabilizer at the back of the wheel and reverse on it. It is slipping because the hand brake works just on forward. Take care!
That's a good point! I hadn't thought of that. Thank you.
Great channel.
Just subscribed.
That's great to hear! Welcome and hope you enjoy.
You have to choc the other wheel when using levelling ramps
wedge the other wheel too? Hmmm that's an interesting point.
Looks fun, fancy a lodger?
hahah lots of fun in this video 😜
Hmm, I'm not sure how to explain how those levelers work. But your caravan brakes, if it has any, are suppose to hold your caravan so it doesn't roll off the levelers. At least that is what I have been told, but that is also how it works here in the states. Maybe you aren't suppose to disconnect the car when you use the levelers? 😟 Anyway, since this is almost 2 years old I guess you made it thru it. 😁 I just noticed at the Hahei spot you are setting under a big tree. Did that block the sun from hitting your solar panel? Good luck in the future.
I eventually learnt to use a chock with the leveller 😜
I presume you know the towing capacity of your car and the "fully laden" weight of your van and they are compatible. Sometimes people can overlook the equation.....not saying you have, just pondering as I watch this vlog...which I am enjoying, along with your others...:)
It’s a beast of a car but our hills can sometimes be challenging
@@TravellingK You will always come across a few challenging ones I should imagine.
get the breaks checked one side is not working
Shall do!
Whakatane or Whitianga......You mentioned Whakatane.Never mind,you were tired I guess !
Whoops!
you must use wheel chocks.
I'm definitely looking into it :) Learning all the time!
I would love to learn more about your graphic design job. How do you get the different jobs and on average how long are they. I would love to learn a little about how as a travelling woman how are you able to date and maintain any relationship? I bet that's got to be difficult. What are your likes and dislikes about vlogging. Have a great day and I am telling my friends about your youtube channel hoping you get more subscribers.
This answer could take a while! haha. Graphic Design is a range of ways - through Seek, through recruitment companies and through word of mouth. Dating is easier when you are based more in one place or meet a fellow RVer. I like how I can tell a story with a vlog and enjoy the creative craft. But it does take a long time to edit together. Thank you for telling your friends!!
ah, "hardly anyone around" music to my ears
Yes, it's great that I can find quiet spots in New Zealand.
Tenacity by the truckload! Please take the following as information it is not any criticism of yourself. Fluids that stop overheating🤔; what they do is increase the temperature at which the coolant boils. This may cause the engine to be hotter than its design parameters and cause irreparable damage. The engine boiling is a safety feature saying hey stop what you are doing before you kill me🤦♂️. If I walk slowly up a hill I scarcely raise my heartbeat, I tried to run up the same hill I'd end up in intensive care! We have a reasonable hill near Brisbane called Cunninghams Gap about a 700metre climb over 18kms although the steep section is under half of that. My rig isn't dissimilar to your's petrol, not diesel though. Traveling at 100km/hr on the flat it runs at 2,000 RPM. When climbing I let it rise to 3,000 sometimes 3,500 RPM. It locks itself into a low gear and the coolant temperature scarcely rises. I agree with other comments below and believe going slowly locked in a low gear is the key to success. Turning the heater to the max, as suggested, at the 1st sign of trouble is a great idea.
Hmm that's a really interesting point. I think in this instance I was forced to go too slow, which also seems to be bad?!? ha
@@TravellingK, In general, I believe slow is good. One caveat is at what Temperature does the electric fan kick in. I was raised on a farm & my dad was a truck driver so I have some experience in these matters. In addition, I'm a motorcyclist & on some dirt bikes, people alter the settings so the electric cooling fan kicks in at a lower temperature for slow speed riding with loads. Dealing with the problem before it's a problem. But they are performance engines being used a little outside their design parameters. I don't know your model of SUV, your a smart person have a chat with a few mechanics that know your SUV. You'll work out what works for your vehicle. Using the heater as an extra cooling radiator and switch it on before the problem starts is a bloody good idea & don't rev it too hard. Good Luck & enjoy the UK😎
Next time turn your heater on, fans on high, Windows down. You won't overheat
Good advice. That's exactly what my mechanic told me when I took the car in to be checked!
Woanderful! New Zealand looks like a paradaise from here!
Great to hear! Where are you from?
Travelling K : I’ m from Bucharest/Romania.
honestly, your "vacation" looks pathetic. Tired, hungry, and over-heated car.
Sometimes they don't go smoothly...