How long can you run a Diesel without coolant ?

[blacknome]

How long do you suppose you can you run a well worn ( 400 thousand kms ) diesel engine without coolant ?

Here's the backstory ; I have recently purchased an old 1989 International Truck ( 5tonne straight truck, single axle with a 26' box a one time Ryder Rental judging by the yellow paint ) that I bought to use for outdoor storage for the tidy sum of $500. When the time comes I know I can sell the box for $ 500 and the working tail-lift for another $500 then scrap the rest for scrap money.

As it is the truck starts and runs but there is a known HG issue resulting in coolant in the oil. The guy I bought it from said it would drink 2 litres of water per day over the course of 8hrs run-time and 200 or so kms ( he drove it this way for the last 3 months while looking for a replacement truck ). I would like to keep the truck running well enough just to start, build air pressure ( needed to release the brakes ) and the ability to back it into the dock and have access the the freight on-board ( meaning a runtime of 10-15 mins at a time 4-6 times a year ).

So after the backstory here's my thought. Because of the leaking HG I was thinking of draining the old milkshake oil and remaining coolant ( which I did today ). My thought is to replace the oil with new (er) oil in order to remove the water from the crankcase but not to replace the coolant.

Thoughts ? The truck will never be roadworthy again so that's not an issue

How long do you think I could let this old motor run before it overheats ? I am concerned that with the colder weather coming in the next month or so that the oil and water will seperate and the ice formed in the crankcase may possibly damage the fuel pump. I really want to put $0.00 and as little effort/money into this as possible

Any thoughts are welcome

[arlon]

Probably take it 10 minutes just to warm up. Imagine it would burn out the water pump seal really quickly though. Put some sealer in there and run for awhile. Might do the trick.

[Kidhauler]

You will cook the head in short order with no water. Diesels run hot.

[1Gary]

I tried Moroso ceramic sealer on a want-to-be Olds diesel.Thing is these things are very high compression and it makes it hard to work.

[blacknome]

well I came to work this morning armed with 6 jugs of my old used 10w-30 motor oil to use as a flush. Last night before leaving I ran an extension cord accross the lot to the truck to plug it in but someone unplugged it . Finally got down to business about an hour ago and pulled the plug on the oilpan. LOL the first 3-4 litres that came out were all water then milkshake sludge. This should be fun. Hopefully tomorrow I will ahve it flushed the 2nd time and see if I can figure what I am going to do.

[doyoulikeithere]

I suspect that without coolant, you would not want to run it for more than a few, maybe 5 minutes, or so, before the head got REALLY hot and begged to crack and/or warp.

Short Answer, not very long at all.

[blacknome]

the old truck is still chugging along. I have pics but the cable for the camera doesn't want to co-operate!! Unfortunately somebody had been pinching the fuel out of it too !! Twice now I get in to start the truck and it dies within 30 seconds. The pickup in the tank is about 2" or so from the bottom and although they left some fuel in the the tanks the fuel lines keep pulling air. Not willing to be taken for fuel again I rigged up some fuel line with a marine bulb primer to a 1 gallon jerry can I put between the seats. When I want to move it, I grab the jerry can and take it out to the truck. Couple of squeezes on the primer bulb and we are in business.

I tried adding water and discovered a split lower rad hose. Replaced that and now there is a leak behind the water pump somewhere so it's dedicated as an air-cooled motor unless I get the ambition and excess funds to swap out the pump. Temp guage never even moves when shuffling to and from the dock so I am not really concerned at this point.

[markmitchinnh]

Personally I would fill it with antifreeze , even if the antifreeze leaks into the oil it won't freeze. Also there are tons of sealers available go to your local parts store and read some till you find one that you feel might work -try it. Heck it might even seal the leak in the pump. As you said its not going on the road - so cheap band aid fixes are the way to go.