IMPORTANT: the Tiger photos are courtesy of Musée des blindés at Saumur, copy or publication are prohibited whitout the authorization of the museum.

THE COOLING CIRCUIT

One of the weaknesses of the heavy German tanks was their engine cooling systems. Panthers and Tigers were well-known for overheating and frequent engine fires. As a matter of fact the engine compartments were very small, which made it difficult to achieve good ventilation. The proximity of the fuel circuit made the things worse.

Click to enlarge

Description

Overview drawing of the cooling circuit: the hot water comes out from the engine at the rear (red spots) and then goes into the right-hand radiator for its first cooling. Then the water goes to the 2nd radiator on the left side (pink spots) for a second cooling. The "cooled" water then passes through the oil radiator (blue spots). There the water is used to cool the engine oil before returning into the engine once more. To complete the main circuit, there was a pressure balance pipe between the radiators and another 2 balance pipes on the front cylinder heads.

In case of engine overheat or fire, a red warning light was fitted in front of the driver. You can see here the support for this warning light. The engraving on the disk reads "Feuer im Motorraum, Sofort auf Leerlauf gehen!" which means: "Fire in the engine compartment, go to neutral gear immediately!"

Views of the right balance pipe with the front cylinder head. On the left photo, one can see the tube for the oil level.

Views of the rear part of the cooling circuit. In this version of Tiger the front balance pipes are connected to the main cooling circuit and not anymore to the balance pipe between the radiators (see drawing above).

The same area. The circuit is filled through the left radiator; the right radiator is fitted with an overpressure valve. This allows the water to reach 105°C without boiling. The normal working temperature is 80°C.

Still in the same areas. The small funnels are for filling the oil in the transmission boxes between the engine and the fans. These boxes are specific to Tigers with HL 230 engines, they didn't exist on the earliest versions (e.g. the Bovington Tiger).

BACK

IMPORTANT: the Tiger photos are courtesy of Musée des blindés at Saumur, copy or publication are prohibited whitout the authorization of the museum.

Click to enlarge	Description
	Overview drawing of the cooling circuit: the hot water comes out from the engine at the rear (red spots) and then goes into the right-hand radiator for its first cooling. Then the water goes to the 2nd radiator on the left side (pink spots) for a second cooling. The "cooled" water then passes through the oil radiator (blue spots). There the water is used to cool the engine oil before returning into the engine once more. To complete the main circuit, there was a pressure balance pipe between the radiators and another 2 balance pipes on the front cylinder heads.
	In case of engine overheat or fire, a red warning light was fitted in front of the driver. You can see here the support for this warning light. The engraving on the disk reads "Feuer im Motorraum, Sofort auf Leerlauf gehen!" which means: "Fire in the engine compartment, go to neutral gear immediately!"
		Views of the right balance pipe with the front cylinder head. On the left photo, one can see the tube for the oil level.
		Views of the rear part of the cooling circuit. In this version of Tiger the front balance pipes are connected to the main cooling circuit and not anymore to the balance pipe between the radiators (see drawing above).
		The same area. The circuit is filled through the left radiator; the right radiator is fitted with an overpressure valve. This allows the water to reach 105°C without boiling. The normal working temperature is 80°C.
		Still in the same areas. The small funnels are for filling the oil in the transmission boxes between the engine and the fans. These boxes are specific to Tigers with HL 230 engines, they didn't exist on the earliest versions (e.g. the Bovington Tiger).