IH 574 Overheats

[jpbmass]

I have an IH 574 gas tractor that runs well but overheats when working in air temperatures over 70 deg. I've recently replaced points & rotor, set the timing to 20 deg and blown the exterior crud out of the radiator fins and engine air filter. Coolant is 50/50 mix Prestone & water. Also, have recently acquired a new Tebben 60" rotary mower to replace an ancient JD mower of the same size. At full throttle, tractor runs at about 2100 rpm when driving the mower (but not cutting), and 2300 rpm when not loaded. Any suggestions on how I might get this old girl to get a little less hot under the hood?

 

[old]

Bad thermostat can cause that as well as a cooling system being clogged up. If ti was me I would drain the antifreeze then fill it with vinegar and run it till good and warm let cool and back flush the system by way of the block drain. Then for good measure I would change the thermostat

 

[jpbmass]

That sounds like a plan -- do the diesel and gas engines use the same part? I find Thermostat - Case IH, 3059676R1 listed as the 180 deg part but not sure if this is gas or diesel or both. Also, there appear to be lower temperature parts (found one at 160 deg); because tractor has been running so hot, would it hurt to to use a lower temp part?

 

[MARK ROBKE]

Is it just reading hot on the gauge, or, actually blowing coolant out of the radiator overflow? Is the cap good-if it is blowing out of the overflow? Mark.

 

[JimB2]

I agree with Old.

 

[old]

Cannot tell you if there the same part number. If you don't use it much in the winter the lower one maybe ok

 

[jpbmass]

(quoted from post at 10:39:59 08/28/19) Is it just reading hot on the gauge, or, actually blowing coolant out of the radiator overflow? Is the cap good-if it is blowing out of the overflow? Mark.

Radiator cap replaced a few years ago -- when temp gauge peaks, a small amount of coolant leaks out the cap after engine is stopped. Once, when I wasn't paying attention, engine actually seized/stopped at idle; fortunately, it didn't appear to do any permanent damage but I'm pretty sure this isn't a gauge problem.

 

[Timmyih]

I?ll get used to it because the radiator is not big enough and
the fan in the water but it happens to all those gas tractors
574 674 they overheated a lot

 

[RBoots]

Never had a problem with either of our
674 gas tractors overheating when it is
hot out. We used to use them to plow back
in the day, never had a problem. Like the
others said, check your water pump, flush
your radiator, check your thermostat, and
make sure your hoses aren't collapsed.

 

[Mike Van]

Really? I've had mine 45 years, never overheated once. You need to do a little maintenance once & awhile.

 

[caterpillar guy]

Blow rad out, check belt, tension, flush rad check
Thermostat in a pan of water and a thermometer see when it opens and if at the temp of stat.

 

[MARK ROBKE]

From this additional description, I'd replace the thermostat, and also flush the entire cooling system. Also after you blow out the radiator, the fan should draw a rag up to the grill at medium idle speed. Mark.

 

[jpbmass]

I flushed the radiator, did a better job of cleaning exterior radiator fins, and then mowed a hilly, second-year-growth weed/brush field for a couple of hours in 65 deg morning air temperature. I didn't have ready access to new thermostat, but thermostat seemed to be OK -- it held the gauge at mid range for the first hour or so. Tractor is definitely better than before, but as the air temp warmed up, so did the engine - especially when under load. Belts are tight, water pump seems OK (it doesn't leak and coolant does circulate - do water pumps deteriorate over time or are they OK if no leaks and still circulate water?). I think I'm functional now (thanks to all for the insights and suggestions), but would still like to be able to work the tractor in warm weather.

 

[jpbmass]

(quoted from post at 17:50:25 08/28/19) Never had a problem with either of our
674 gas tractors overheating when it is
hot out. We used to use them to plow back
in the day, never had a problem. Like the
others said, check your water pump, flush
your radiator, check your thermostat, and
make sure your hoses aren't collapsed.

OBSERVATION & QUESTION: The cooling core for the hydraulics on my 574 is mounted about 1" in front of my engine-radiator and right across the middle -- the hydraulic cooling core obstructs air flow to at least a third of the engine radiator. Is this typical or unique to the 574?

 

[MARK ROBKE]

My experience on these is mostly diesel. But all of the series have the hydraulic cooler in front of the radiator. It's fins can clog up too. It should have a wing nut to loosen and swivel the core foreword to allow cleaning. The rag in front of the grill test I mentioned earlier is critical to determining air flow thru it and the radiator. I once worked on a semi truck, that was overheating, that you actually could see light easily thru the fins, but it was so restricted that air would not flow thru it-the rag test proved/diagnosed it! Another thing that is important-if it was built with a fan shroud, but it is now missing, that would cause poor air flow thru the radiator. Mark.

 

[jpbmass]

(quoted from post at 08:22:46 08/30/19) My experience on these is mostly diesel. But all of the series have the hydraulic cooler in front of the radiator. It's fins can clog up too. It should have a wing nut to loosen and swivel the core foreword to allow cleaning. The rag in front of the grill test I mentioned earlier is critical to determining air flow thru it and the radiator. I once worked on a semi truck, that was overheating, that you actually could see light easily thru the fins, but it was so restricted that air would not flow thru it-the rag test proved/diagnosed it! Another thing that is important-if it was built with a fan shroud, but it is now missing, that would cause poor air flow thru the radiator. Mark.

I did the "sock test" and the fan pulled the sock tight against the radiator so apparently the flow is good. [b:8c2c70cd12]There is no fan shroud -- Does anyone know if the gas 574 with the 4-blade fan had one originally??[/b:8c2c70cd12]

 

[old]

What did the vinegar look like when you drained it?? Some times it takes a couple of flushes to get it all

 

[jpbmass]

Somewhat rusty but not terrible. Weather is cool now so am able to finish current job, but I'm going to pick up new hoses and a new 180 deg thermostat -- will give it another vinegar flush when I replace all the old equipment. I'd like to turn this old girl into an all-weather (at least an all-summer) machine if possible.

 

[old]

I have an Oliver 77 that took 3 times to flush it out and keep it running cool

 

[RBoots]

Yes, it should be a plastic fan shroud
around the fan

 

[jpbmass]

(quoted from post at 18:58:50 08/31/19) Yes, it should be a plastic fan shroud
around the fan

I have no Fan Shroud -- after some searching, it appears the missing item is "402200R1 Housing" --I will contact my local Case dealer when they get back from the long Labor Day weekend to see if they can get the part. Possibly this missing shroud is the underlying cause to my problem!! [b:37c084d902]BTW, my tractor has a 4 blade fan & I see that 5 blade fans are available for the 574 -- does anybody know if more blades means better cooling??[/b:37c084d902]

 

[MARK ROBKE]

I would think 5 blades are better than 4. I doubt a dealer would have parts, but it can't hurt to ask. Augusta Farm Supply(606 756 3905) has lots of old stock ih parts- you could call and ask. I think your best bet would a tractor scrap yard. Also you need to start anew thread as this one is getting a few pages behind now. Let us know what fixes this! Mark.

 

[jpbmass]

Thanks to everyone who has provided their experience and ideas. Tractor is running cooler since cleaning the radiator (flushed with vinegar and carefully cleaned the outside fins) but still overheats when working hard at air temperatures above 70 deg.
I've completed the job of mowing my 8 acre overgrown field so will not have an opportunity to check out more solutions until next year. My plan is to (a) purchase and install fan shroud (which is missing), (b) give the radiator/engine another good vinegar flush and (c) replace hoses and thermostat (probably not the problem, but hoses are starting to look a bit ragged). I'll post results next summer.