Lambo Run, Overheating, Electric Fan?

Hello Friends, I took my Lambo out with 55 other Lambo Owners to Trump National Golf Course near Los Angeles, What a blast. mostly Gallardo and Murcielago as expected. I was the only Countach, there was 3 Espadas, and no Muiras. Anyways, my Countach ran flawlessly since it came out of Boblieffs. EXCEPT it was overheating while in traffic. I suspect the electric fan was not on. could be fuse? relay?. 2 questions, does anyone know where the fuse or relay is on the Countach so I can check it? also any great Lambo mechanic in my area, I am in Los Angeles area, North Orange County. I like Gary but he is too far! My Old Timer Ferrari mechanic is too busy on restorations and working on the older Ferrari. front suspension still sucks and bottom out . Working on that matter as well.

Not very uncommon for these to get hot in traffic. This thread should give you some more info and hopefully profide a solution. All credit here should go to Mike, he has been posting some great upgrades lately.

 

http://www.lambopower.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=47578

sorry to hear that......here is the diagram and since we both have DD's

i included a picture of mine. It is located in the trunk on the drivers side. I just finished pulling it out, media blasting

and refinishing the chassis, replacing the relays (worked but who knows how old they were), cleaning all the connections

and adding a tiny amount of dielectric grease to each one. You can do this easy in one afternoon. NAPA has the Taiwan knock off

relays or you can look on around on the net for Bosch replacements. Personally, i would guess it might be time for new fans though. The new Spals cool better and use less amps.

I recently installed the newer SPAL fans (front & rear). No worries in traffic except my sorry ass altenator cant handle it with A/C on (but that is the next issue I will tackle). Big difference with the new fans though !!!!!!! Thanks for the lead on those units Mike

I recently installed the newer SPAL fans (front & rear). No worries in traffic except my sorry ass altenator cant handle it with A/C on (but that is the next issue I will tackle). Big difference with the new fans though !!!!!!! Thanks for the lead on those units Mike

 

I hear ya' there! Same with me! When I first start my Countach, the volt gauge is right where it should be at (just about the top of the white range, 14 volts). But, as I drive and the engine warms up, the puller fans kick on and the needle drops a bit, then as it gets warmer, the pushers kick on, then it drops even more. If I try to turn on the A/C fan, the needle is almost down to the low area of the white (12 volts) and almost into the red.

 

I want to replace my alternator since I have no idea how old it is. It doesn't really appear to be charging properly and I did put in a new Interstate battery 2 weeks ago. I know for a fact that my current alternator is not a BOSCH unit. Any recommendations on what I should replace it with? I see the std. 85 amp units on eBay, but am thinking I should get the 115 amp version. I see they also make a 180 amp version, but I think that would be overkill.

 

Mike

 

I got a 115 amp unit from NAPA (still in box) I wanted to do some voltage drop tests first to verify junk Alt. Where can I find the 180 amp unit? I think that would be great! Four fans and a/c your at 75-80 amps, plus amps to run engine & lights?????I thought the 115 was barely enough. Bigger is better Thanks again for another lead. Because of you I still have a full head of hair

Com'on I have a 85 Amp alternator installed two 25th fans and with A/C on it still works.

 

Mike remove your pushers this is a unneeded overkill which harms only your electric system.

 

Before you put any huger alternator in the car check all the ground connections, specially those of the dashboard and forget about the 3 or even 4 fan setup, that was the time when the QV puller fan made only 1800m3/h unlike the actual one which makes 2800m3/h with the same current consumption!

Here is a link to the 180 amp alternator:

 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Lamborghini-Altern...=item415e08c568

 

Mike

 

Com'on I have a 85 Amp alternator installed two 25th fans and with A/C on it still works.

 

Mike remove your pushers this is a unneeded overkill which harms only your electric system.

 

Before you put any huger alternator in the car check all the ground connections, specially those of the dashboard and forget about the 3 or even 4 fan setup, that was the time when the QV puller fan made only 1800m3/h unlike the actual one which makes 2800m3/h with the same current consumption!

 

If I unplug the pushers the car will overheat. I've tried running the car with the pushers disconnected and the engine temperature continues to build and build. I think with the '87 and later Countach's (with the better vents in the engine bonnet lid), it lets more of the heat out. The 25th cars are even better. For those of us with the '85 and '86 5000QV's we have these engine lids. It gets VERY hot back there.

 

I have also removed and cleaned every ground wire connection on the car and reinstalled with star washers per Chad's suggestion.

Mike is 100% correct. The Anniversary cars actually can get the hot air out of the radiator area. On the QV cars (even the ones with the vented engine lids) the air simply cant get out like it needs to. The design is so bad, my fans cycle even when I am driving 60-70 mph. As for the dash ground, I installed a secondary ground for the gauges. The only thing that fixes is all the gauges dropping when the A/C is turned on. I was hoping 2 fans would do the trick after I installed the new fans with the upgraded alluminium radiators, but the pushers do come on occasionally. When they do come on it pulls the temp down from 93c to 83c (on the gauge) within 1-2 minutes (depending on driving conditions)

Here is a link to the 180 amp alternator:

 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Lamborghini-Altern...=item415e08c568

 

Mike

 

 

Thanks Mike

I got a 115 amp unit from NAPA (still in box) I wanted to do some voltage drop tests first to verify junk Alt. Where can I find the 180 amp unit?

 

What is the NAPA part # on the 115a? I can probably get you a part # for the same thing in a higher amp for under $500

Hello Friends, I took my Lambo out with 55 other Lambo Owners to Trump National Golf Course near Los Angeles, What a blast. mostly Gallardo and Murcielago as expected. I was the only Countach, there was 3 Espadas, and no Muiras. Anyways, my Countach ran flawlessly since it came out of Boblieffs. EXCEPT it was overheating while in traffic. I suspect the electric fan was not on. could be fuse? relay?. 2 questions, does anyone know where the fuse or relay is on the Countach so I can check it? also any great Lambo mechanic in my area, I am in Los Angeles area, North Orange County. I like Gary but he is too far! My Old Timer Ferrari mechanic is too busy on restorations and working on the older Ferrari. front suspension still sucks and bottom out . Working on that matter as well.

 

What year Countach?

What is the NAPA part # on the 115a? I can probably get you a part # for the same thing in a higher amp for under $500

 

 

NAPA 213-9406 Thanks for any potenial leads. I went to a local rebuilder to see if he could get more out of my unit, but he really did not know much

 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Porsche-Alternator...184644093758922

 

Try searching under Porsche and not Lamborghini, and it is half price from the same place

 

Can't find anything in local stores ie NAPA, so it needs to come from a re build place that changes that casing to a higher amp. Someone locally should be able to do it, but just not the guy that doesn't know what he is doing.

 

It is a Bosch AL170X or the AL29X is the 95a version, just search for a higher amp of these versions.

 

Is the alternator casing the same in all years?

That is funny!! Put the word Lambo near it and double the $$$$ Thanks for your efforts

I was looking through my photo's last night when I had the engine out of the car, and saw one with a good shot of my Alternator. Stamped on the back of it was "DELCO-REMY". Now I just need to find a part number on it so I can trace it back and see what sort of Amperage it was rated at.

 

Mike

Why replace an alternator when most local shops can rebuild existing unit for little money. So easy to do, not much involved.

Why replace an alternator when most local shops can rebuild existing unit for little money. So easy to do, not much involved.

 

 

Normally I would do exactly like you suggested Peter. I just think that with this Delco unit being sealed, all the components that need cooling are behind that metal plate, baking away and its probably hotter than a 2-peckered frog in there (and that's pretty hot!!! LOL!).

 

I'd like to put a BOSCH unit back in it, and then just rebuild that one down the road if/when it would ever need it.

 

Mike

 

If I unplug the pushers the car will overheat. I've tried running the car with the pushers disconnected and the engine temperature continues to build and build. I think with the '87 and later Countach's (with the better vents in the engine bonnet lid), it lets more of the heat out.

I think your problem is the engine lid, the 4 fans are fighting against symptoms but not the root cause.

 

If you could get rid of the original airboxes then the hot air can exit through the louvres like originally designed, or you organize a better engine lid which is open.

 

 

Mike is 100% correct. The Anniversary cars actually can get the hot air out of the radiator area. On the QV cars (even the ones with the vented engine lids) the air simply cant get out like it needs to. The design is so bad, my fans cycle even when I am driving 60-70 mph. As for the dash ground, I installed a secondary ground for the gauges. The only thing that fixes is all the gauges dropping when the A/C is turned on. I was hoping 2 fans would do the trick after I installed the new fans with the upgraded alluminium radiators, but the pushers do come on occasionally. When they do come on it pulls the temp down from 93c to 83c (on the gauge) within 1-2 minutes (depending on driving conditions)

Don't forget an important thing, the gauge shows the water temperature at the thermostat housing, the switch for the fans is placed on the right radiator and is 2 step. When you have the newest fans installed like Alberto suggested the pushers are useless since the push less air through the radiator than the pullers suck through them...

 

 

Why replace an alternator when most local shops can rebuild existing unit for little money. So easy to do, not much involved.

Correct, every Bosch service shop can overhoul the alternator and also change the internals to get more amps out of it.

 

 

 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Porsche-Alternator...184644093758922

 

Try searching under Porsche and not Lamborghini, and it is half price from the same place

Even better, search for a Lamborghini tractor alternator and you will find exactly the alternator with the specific top plate to install them in the CT, the only difference is the Amps they provide, the tractor unit is rated with 45 amps. I recently bought an original CT alternator for $150.

 

Tractor unit (not the correct example but just to show where it originally comes from): http://www.ebay.com/itm/280606524831?item=...59f&vxp=mtr

85amps Countach alternator: http://www.ebay.com/itm/350414472945?item=...6f1&vxp=mtr

The pushers are very effective. I have the new updated fans(all 4). When the pullers are on they for the most part maintain temp and in hotter temps the pullers cant maintain. I have a very slow creeping up of the temp. The 2nd stage will eventually turn on the pushers. BIG difference in cooling once the pushers turn on. It pulls the temp down 10C within 1-2 minutes. They then turn off @ about 83C. I do agree with you on the air boxes. They definetely block the hot air exit. I often thought about re-engineering it but...........

Even better, search for a Lamborghini tractor alternator and you will find exactly the alternator with the specific top plate to install them in the CT, the only difference is the Amps they provide, the tractor unit is rated with 45 amps. I recently bought an original CT alternator for $150.

 

Tractor unit (not the correct example but just to show where it originally comes from): http://www.ebay.com/itm/280606524831?item=...59f&vxp=mtr

85amps Countach alternator: http://www.ebay.com/itm/350414472945?item=...6f1&vxp=mtr

The ALT you are linking too is much different that the one Daytona has, the mounting tabs are in totally different locations and the size of the alternator is actually smaller. He was looking for a already re built higher amp option so thats what I was trying to help him with. I think there are different alts used in different cars, but I do not know the differences, maybe someone else could educate us.

 

Mike, there should be a stamping into the side of the alternator casing somewhere that has the amperage on it. It is not usually very defined especially if it is already rebuilt/repainted. Would just say 95A (or 85A or whatever) and there are usually a few other digits/numbers near that. If you can get a model number I would be glad to try and check for a easy to find upgrade for that unit too (should be stamped on as well). The Delco just looks like a typical old Chevy alt.

 

I agree it is probably easiest to have it rebuilt, but I can see some people wanting an extra higher amp version and keeping their original or just a spare. Glad to help if I can.

The ALT you are linking too is much different that the one Daytona has, the mounting tabs are in totally different locations and the size of the alternator is actually smaller.

As I wrote it's not the correct one, that auction was only linked to show all the CT owners where many of the parts come from...

 

As I wrote it's not the correct one, that auction was only linked to show all the CT owners where many of the parts come from...

Sorry man, not trying to go after you. I just don't understand. Agricultural use alternators are going to be different than automotive. You do not need nearly as many amps to run the electricals on equipment, hence the much smaller 35A you linked. They could share a top plate, but most everything else would still be different.

 

 

I don't understand the reasoning with a pusher fan being useless if the puller pulls more air either. You will still get more airflow with both. You may not get the full potential of the pusher in addition to the puller, but you will still get an exponential increase in airflow of a puller with the addition of a pusher.

Just ordered the 200 amp PORSCHE Altenator. I will let you know how it works once installed. Thanks for the EBAY search GRNGRY!