SOOO...how hot can the RB get and still be ok?

[robbie2883]

soo....as some of you might remember i was completely overhauling a few aspects of my motor. the original thread can be found here.

zerothread?id=458420

well....as the story goes i finally got some decent weather and was able to go out today and fix a few loose ends and start her up. runs great...only problem is while the PFC was doing the learn routine i was running around cleaning up tools and double checking for leaks and such....about 25 minutes into it i noticed the fans weren't coming on....about that time she started overheating and blowing coolant out of the overflow. i IMMEDIATELY shut it down. fixed the fans and am just waiting for it to cool down to refill some coolant. sorry for the newb topic but do i need to worry about the head gasket or anything? or is the RB motor pretty resilient? it got to about 125 Celsius.

btw,,,,here's the finished product

[USMCgetsome]

you should be ok currently just look around for anything leaking around the hg

[robbie2883]

yeah...i figured it should be ok...but all the work put into it just makes me nervous! LOL

for the record it has a cometic HG and arp headstuds

[USMCgetsome]

ahh then your gonna be ok just watch those damn fans!

[Joe]

125?! thats pretty f***ing hot man. thats 257f.

at the very least id put a new thermostat in and cross your fingers.

I had my Rb up into the 230's a couple times but thats a REAL push for safety.

[ST240]

I boiled the coolant on my rb20 two or three times... seems to be ok still. lol.

[Cjmartz2k]

Problem is you hit a certain temp and the temp gauge is no longer accurate. You boil off coolant, the sensor is high and dry, and it doesn't read as hot of the rest of the motor is. I boiled over 115*c a couple of times. My head was cracked when I took it off. It ran for like 2 years like that though. Do a compression check if you get a chance and check your oil/coolant often for the first bit. No symptoms=no problem in my book. Might be cracked, might not. Depends on where the possible crack might be.

[240z4u]

I had a similar scenario unfold and I can tell you that I got hotter than that with no damage to the motor.

I actually blew the top off of the radiator.

[robbie2883]

Problem is you hit a certain temp and the temp gauge is no longer accurate. You boil off coolant, the sensor is high and dry, and it doesn't read as hot of the rest of the motor is. I boiled over 115*c a couple of times. My head was cracked when I took it off. It ran for like 2 years like that though. Do a compression check if you get a chance and check your oil/coolant often for the first bit. No symptoms=no problem in my book. Might be cracked, might not. Depends on where the possible crack might be.

yeah...normally i'd be with you on the sensor not reading accurate but the coolant had literally JUST STARTED boiling off when i shut it off and looked at the temps. not to mention i have a swirlpot above the temp sensor. most of the water that overflowed out of the system did so AFTER i shut the car off. guess all i can do is cross my fingers and wait and see! LOL

[spolitte]

I am not going to say wether your engine/head is fine or not, but I will say thank you lucky stars that RB's are iron and not alluminum (they can withstand a whole lot more temp before they will warp/crack). But do as the others have mentioned, check for any coolant leaks especially near the HG, constantly check the oil and coolant when its back up and running, and if it is running weak then do a compression test. GL and hope its alright

[boosted98gst]

Damn thats pretty hot, either way if your really worried to a compression or leak down test. If everything checks out ok and you're still worried take your oil in to be tested. Depending on what types of shops are near you places can have results of whats in your oil within 48 hours. This is a great way to see how your motor is really doing. The place here around here charges 60 bucks which I think is well worth it, Ive taken several samples to him from my evo, and my dads semi. Hope it works out for ya!

[eh?]

If you want to be sure, do a coolant system pressure test. That will help find if any cracks developed. 125C is pretty damn hot.

[burninskulls0911]

If you want to be sure, do a coolant system pressure test. That will help find if any cracks developed. 125C is pretty damn hot.

i maxed out my 250 degree gauge probably near 10 times on my old rb20..i did a leak down test and it was perfect..the rb's are pretty strong motors