Question about overheating

[Stormrider65]

Sorry I haven't been aroung much but I just changed jobs and going through a lot of classes for certifications for coal mine safety,  HAZMAT and getting trained for fuel hauling.  I also have to get trained for loading and unloading both gas and diesel.  I'm finally getting settled down some.  Last night I took Lisa to bingo(part of her therapy, believe it or not), and decided to ride back through

[Stormrider65]

Sorry. Hit the wrong key.  I decided to ride back through downtown Ft Worth and got caught in bad traffic.  Mostly stop and hardly any go.  It was 1030 pm and of course it was hot.  I looked down and the idiot light for overtemp was on.  I finally found a place to shut down for a second and let the fan run for a bit.  The light finally went out and I rode home without incident.  I get the feeling that either I'm low on coolant, old coolant( Wall-e has 60000 miles right now), and maybe even an old thermostat.  I want to probably just replace the coolant, thermostat.  Has anyone else had a problem with overheating, either coming back from Inzane, or just riding around the metromess?  Any suggestion, comments ect would be appreciated.

Walt

[hubcapsc]

My buddy Henry's heat light came on at Cheaha a couple of years ago.

We looked in the owner's manual to see about how to gauge whether
or  not he had the right amount of fluid - it amounts to having the motor
at operating temperature and looking in the overflow tank behind the
side cover.

We decided he needed a little fluid, and I don't remember him ever having
the light come on again after that.

It's always a good thing to replace old fluid, if you're a directions-follower like
me that's spelled out in the shop manual - maybe the owner's manual too...

Don't let your cats or dogs get at the radiator fluid, ethylene glycol poisoning
is supposed to be an awful way to go...

-Mike

[Disco]

Hey Walt, it's just too darn hot. 

If you're not sure when the coolant was last changed, do it.  It's cheap and easy (Hi Richard, if you're lurking).  I changed my thermostat a year or so ago, but only because I was having a hard time getting to operating temp (it was before last summer...).  It's not a terribly difficult job, but I doubt that's the source of your problem, if you have one. 

From the service manual:

CAUTION
- - - -
Using coolant with silicate inhibitors may cause premature wear of water pump seals or blockage of radiator passages. Using tap water may cause engine damage.

NOTE
The effectiveness of coolant decreases with the accumulation of rust or if there is a change in the mixing proportion during usage. Therefore, for best performance change the coolant regularly as specified in the maintenance schedule.  Mix only distilled, low mineral water with the antifreeze.

RECOMMENDED ANTIFREEZE:
Pro Honda HP coolant or an equivalent high quality ethylene glycol antifreeze containing corrosion protection inhibitors

RECOMMENDED MIXTURE:
50-50 (Distilled water and recommended antifreeze)

[Admiral]

Honda makes the exact 50 / 50 coolant ready to dump in the radiator.

Likely a little more pricey than other commercial brands, but using their stuff will hopeful avoide the warning mentioned in this thread, and give you the right stuff, the first time.

I recently did a fresh water flush, and refill with Hondaline coolant, and am having zero cooling issues, especially considering the ambient temps we've had over the last couple of months.

As a matter of preventive maintenance, I change coolant in all of my bikes every 12 months.

Two coppers worth.

[Red Diamond]

If it went out and didn't come back on Walt, chances are as was mentioned by Dave, you may not have a problem. The heat in the Metro that I experienced was unbearable, so I expected the fan to come on at every light stop. In heavy stop and go in that area, the light may come on, but if it goes out by sitting a few with the fan running, you're good to go. If it came on while I was moving at speed, I'd start to worry. Ride Safely.

[hubcapsc]

If it went out and didn't come back on Walt, chances are as was mentioned by Dave, you may not have a problem. The heat in the Metro that I experienced was unbearable, so I expected the fan to come on at every light stop. In heavy stop and go in that area, the light may come on, but if it goes out by sitting a few with the fan running, you're good to go. If it came on while I was moving at speed, I'd start to worry. Ride Safely.

I guess it was over 100 degrees when we were in Eureka Springs. Me and Wimp rode the historic loop twice while we were there, narrow
curvy uphill (both ways  ) real slow. Both of our fans came on, and stayed on, all the way through. My light never came on, I don't
guess Wimp's ever did either... when my fan came on and stayed on, I looked for the light and talked to Wimp about it
while we were up in there...

-Mike "just a data point..."