What's causing my Rover 75 to overheat when towing?

My 2002 Rover 75 CDT has been a good car for me over the past eight years but is now suffering from an overheating problem when towing my caravan. It was fine when I towed to Norfolk in April, but I had to be 'rescued' and towed home by the RAC two weeks ago. My own independent garage could not make it overheat and neither can I when running solo, but as soon as the 'van is attached, it overheats. The water pump was replaced in November 2010. The RAC patrol checked for hydrocarbons in the coolant - negative. The car was looked at by another two local independent garages yesterday, neither of which could offer any suggestions. Do you have any ideas, please?

Asked on 14 September 2013 by DB, Woodbridge

Answered by Honest John
If there are no faults, then the overheating is caused either by the turbo working harder (they are not watercooled on these diesel engines) or by the engine not cooling sufficiently because the fans aren't switching on early enough. Might be an idea to replace the engine temp sensor/sender fan switch.
Similar questions
Thank you for recommending the Mondeo 1.6 EcoBoost. Your review advises "1.6 EcoBoosts need idling from hot before switching off otherwise oil in the turbo bearing and oil feed to the bearing can carbonise....
The last two years have seen us drive to our holidays in Southern France and Spain in our 2004 SEAT Alhambra TDI 130. The journeys have been uneventful, apart from a particular section of the Massif central...
My car is a 2007 Volvo V70 diesel automatic with 54,000 miles. It is serviced by the Volvo dealer as required. When towing a caravan (but only then) I get a warning saying 'Transmission service required'...
 

Value my car

Save £75 on Warranty using code HJ75

with MotorEasy

Get a warranty quote

Save 12% on GAP Insurance

Use HJ21 to save on an ALA policy

See offer