jmrec100

HELP !!
Problem started this morning. Driving and then see steam from under hood. Pulled over immediately. Found top hose blown off at the engine. Saw the hose clamp off to the side by the battery and the hose lifted off. And it is a fairly new hose, 7 months. Hose was fine. Tried to tighten the clamp back on. Hose clamp screw was stripped. Never saw such a thing, cheap metal &*^%$. Jeep engine Cooled down, then added water. Tightened the clamp and Got it to 'stay' for the short drive to get a new hose clamp. Water was seeping out under that hose when I parked. New clamp, put All together. No leak at that hose. Drove 100 miles with several errand stops, no issue. Make a short run for Jack in the Box, and wham, Park it, pours out from under the cap, it floods out like the cap wasn't closed. I'm thinking could something be causing really high pressure , caps no good any more or what!!
Possible Water Pump? When engine stops, get the flood

My cap reads pressure 13psi. It's a pressure lever release cap. It looks rather ragged. But the spring action still moves.
The fact it blew off the top hose and now the flooding out the cap, Is there another problem going on?
Its weird I drove it around several hours today. no problem then tonight it hits.
I parked it for the night at work. And will deal with it in the morning.
WTH, and I'm spending the night at work too. Dang, no tv!

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Napa says my 4.0L is the 13 psi cap

the 2.5L, 4 cyl takes the 16 psi cap.
So do I use the 13 psi?

Oswalla

Sure sounds like a sticky thermostat, should be getting hot though ?

13 psi cap.

jmrec100

Gauge not showing hot. And did not hear steam , bubbles, gurgling in the engine at all today after the new hose clamp. I think both top and bottom hoses were hot. I'll check again tomorrow.
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I did notice it was easy to put the cap on crooked, leaving it partly open. Then instead of flowing into the overflow, it just poured out the cap if it was on crooked. I'm thinking that may have happened when checking the radiator fluid.
I checked the overflow tube by blowing into it . Bubbles up the overflow tank.
Put a wire thru the stem on the the neck on the radiator-clear.

fijicorey25

Order an OEM cap, it's 16 PSI for the 4.0L (MOPAR 52079880AA). I bought mine from a Jeep dealer, but RockAuto has them. I had to bend the metal tabs on the cap downward to get a snug fit but you may not have to.

jmrec100

Thanks
It is confusing the specs on the radiator cap pressure, even at this forum. Dealer said its 16 psi for my 4.0L
Rock Auto says 13psi,
I'm going with the dealer.

While dealing with the cooling system, I may change the Tstat. Should I go lower to 180° or stay with the 195°

fijicorey25

195. It's also a good idea to have the mopar t-stat and gasket seal. They are more expensive but not by much.

T-Stat: MOPAR 52028186AC
Gasket: MOPAR 53020547AC

Other things to note: Make sure the housing and mounting surfaces are clean before putting the new t-stat in. Use some RTV to help hold the gasket while you bolt the hosing back on. Don't over tighten the bolts (I think torque spec is 20 ft/lbs, please verify).

From what I read around here, it's best to keep your cooling system as OEM as possible. I recently changed a bunch of cooling system parts with Mopar OEM and am very pleased with the results.

jmrec100

Thanks. Good advice.
Before I put in new parts on anything, clean.