Fail Safe Cooling System????

zlcrazy · 01-09-2006, 10:06 PM

Hi All,

A friend of mine plans to travel around Australia in his AU Fairmont in pretty remote type areas. So I thought i would ask if anyone has actually "tested" this system (Fail Safe). In other words does it actually work and to what extent. Ive heard alot about it and done some research but never heard of any actual events/experiences with it. So anyway if anyone has had any experiences or knows of anyone who has please share these as any info would be much appreciated.

JC · 01-09-2006, 11:34 PM

Yes, it works. Towing my old 1.7 tonne boat up the Clyde in mid-summer (prior to auto trans cooler being fitted), we hit the red - at this point the car basically lost all power, and started misfiring badly. As we were near the top, we kept going, and as temperature came down, power was restored. Haven't tried it on a holed radiator, and wouldn't want to, but it does work. I think max range with no coolant is only about 50kms though, before the engine shuts down totally - you will actually damage the transmission before the engine.

It is only on AU I6s, not V8s. It is on all BAs.

private9 · 01-09-2006, 11:47 PM

I can testify to it working too! Just after we bought the AU, had the top radiator hose blow and as it was in the middle of the night, in the middle of nowhere (and knowing about the failsafe system) I decided to keep on driving to the next servo (a good 20-30 kays). Just took it easy and all was good!

MoreHPformyXR6 · 01-09-2006, 11:55 PM

So I fail safe cooling system as AU I6 & all BA's does that mean if you blow a radiator house etc you have a range of apprx to travel for repair before any serious harm? I wish they had these on my old VH SLE V8 had a slpit radiator house finally go (need to say I didnt know it was split to it was too late) I did a fair bit of damage all that heat about $700 bucks worth from memory. I had left work on my way to a 36 ers match to meet freinds who had free tickets. Missed the match & I rode home in a towtruck with my car. This 50km thing would have got me to the game & the garage the next day.

blownba · 02-09-2006, 12:04 AM

yeah its a pretty awesome system. Using airflow to cool the head, Brilliant. I love it. Have seen jap motors sieze in the space of 1km on the freeway after a hose burst. The owner saw the steam expload from the bonnet (obviously top hose breaking off the top fitting of the rad) and he didn't wan't to get stuck at that spot of the s/e freeway so he decided to keep drivin to the next exit. I didn't believe it was 1km but the towie backed him up. the car nissan exa ca16 eng siezed so solid i couldnt spin it with a breaker bar. 1km? You decide.

GK · 02-09-2006, 08:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JC

Yes, it works. Towing my old 1.7 tonne boat up the Clyde in mid-summer (prior to auto trans cooler being fitted), we hit the red - at this point the car basically lost all power, and started misfiring badly. As we were near the top, we kept going, and as temperature came down, power was restored. Haven't tried it on a holed radiator, and wouldn't want to, but it does work. I think max range with no coolant is only about 50kms though, before the engine shuts down totally - you will actually damage the transmission before the engine.

Which car were you towing with JC? The wagon I assume? The system isn't compatible with gas though, which stuffs me up with both my AU's!

In any case, Ford were way ahead of holden on this one, just another awesome standard feature of the AU!

GK

janek · 02-09-2006, 08:52 AM

my bro's au3.

cracked a welsh plug, was losing coolant. went through the progressive -1cyl, then 2, 3, 4... by the time the 4th went (after 4th, the car stops, we were home.... This was about 60km down the freeway. Cant speak highly enough of it... My car, on the other hand.. never... i take such good care of it

smally289 · 02-09-2006, 10:07 AM

Even if it stops altogether, if you turn the ignition off and start it again, you get another 20 seconds of driving before it shuts down again. This is to get you out of a dangerous spot (like in the middle of an intersection).

**Mechan1k** · 02-09-2006, 10:23 AM

I just had mine pressure tested the other day ... it cam back with a minor leak ... and was also leaking in the oil cooler section.

Damn alloy tanks on the AU radiators are crap ... I now have a copper core radiator ... was looking at upgrading at a V8 radiator ... but for another $250 more than standard .... nope ... radiator guy said if i have an external trans cooler that it will make the radiators job easier.

So I just put in a standard AU I6 radiator (all copper now ... less chance of corrosion compared to standard alloy) ... now that should last me for a while (and save my transmission a bit more).

NeishaXR8_347 · 02-09-2006, 03:11 PM

With this fail safe thing and not compatable with gas, my question is if you loose all the water from the car and its on gas wouldnt it stop anyways but the gas convertor freezing up?

Shaun.

LUXO_8 · 02-09-2006, 03:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by neishaxr8

With this fail safe thing and not compatable with gas, my question is if you loose all the water from the car and its on gas wouldnt it stop anyways but the gas convertor freezing up?

Shaun.

that is the reason its not compatible on gas cars...........

:

**Mechan1k** · 02-09-2006, 03:15 PM

Sounds about right to me ... that's why I wanted to make sure my radiator and cooling system was in good condition before Summer really hits .. hence getting a new radiator put in.

mik · 03-09-2006, 01:36 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by neishaxr8

With this fail safe thing and not compatable with gas, my question is if you loose all the water from the car and its on gas wouldnt it stop anyways but the gas convertor freezing up?

Shaun.

i wouldnt like to bank on that if the outside ambient temp is high enough it might go a while before stopping the motor

smally289 · 03-09-2006, 01:49 AM

The reason its not used on LPG vehicles is because it cuts the injectors, not the spark

NeishaXR8_347 · 03-09-2006, 10:21 AM

Thanks for the info i wish they went the whole hog and put it in the AU xr8's aswell.

Shaun.

bodes-sh · 03-09-2006, 10:36 AM

that would be good, but can you imagine cylinder shut down in an 8? it would be wobbling and shaking all over the place wouldn't it?

zippy450 · 03-09-2006, 02:03 PM

i blew the powersteering pump on my au and had to drive it 20km with no belt on so it seemed too work ok.

jonbays · 03-09-2006, 02:22 PM

yes it all seems to work quite well. I intercepted my temp sensor and set it low and high looking for performance gains and sent it high into limphome and it all ran quite well cycling through the cylinders. Of course how long you could do this with a real problem is a moot point. It will reduce the temp system load but I doubt you could drive far before suffering permanent damage.