Hey, quick question here.
Back in the beginning of July, I found a cool 86 Z28 with a 4BBL 350 in it for $900. It had a great stereo system, a DVD player, and a headliner mounted flip-down LCD Screen. The car itself has a 350 with a mild cam, an Edelbrock performer intake, and a flowmaster ( ). Its a cool car, and fun to drive around (Dropped on a Harwood 3" Cowl hood because the stock hood was rusted pretty badly, and was missing both louvers).
When i start the car up, it runs great. after about 5 minutes (when it would normally be nice and warmed up) the guage is sitting around 200. It worries me, im not sure if the temperature sensor is shot, or what. Prior to this, before it was legal and registered, it had a decrepit carb, and the timing was shot all to hell. after getting a Qjet rebuilt from the ground up, and the timing going strong, i was driving it.
Could this be an issue with the timing?
As a side note, i put in a brand new aluminum radiator, brand new water pump, new hoses, and new thermostat.

What do you think guys? I will be happy to post any additional details you may need. Thanks in advance,
Rob.

-edit-
After driving (highway or city, Esp. City) the guage is 1/2 way +, sometimes teasing at the red.

 

1. Make sure the air dam is in place and in good condition. It's a plastic piece, about 4" tall, and hangs down from the lower radiator support.

2. What fan do you have? The stock single electric fan? If so it's not enough. Upgrade to a dual electric or aftermarket fan. A clutch fan could also be used, but fan clearance and shrouding is critical.

 

Thanks for the input!

I have no idea if the fan is stock or aftermarket, however, the switching mechanism is. I have a toggle on my dash. The airflow is excellent, im trying to understand what you mean by airdam.. I'll re-read your post before i head over to the shop to take a look-see. Im having _silly_ electrical problems also, which would lead me to believe that the sensor could be off, this is my 3rd alternator in a month. So, I have it at a shop, seeing how i am a full time college student, i have _no_ time to do it myself.
Also, what fan would you reccomend? I can take some pics of the inside of the compartment to ensure there is enough clearance.
Keep them coming, i cant wait to be back on the road.
Thanks again.

 

what temp. thermostat did u put in it? if u put in a stock temp. one,its 195 so 200 is fine.

i would put in a 180,should help it stay a little cooler sitting in traffic.

what he means my air dam is if ur looking under the car from the front,there should be a black plastic "air dam" that forces air upwards to the radiator...probably about 4" tall and 24" or so wide. if u dont see it there,u need to get one.

edit - what amp alternator are u running? i would put a high amp alternator in it seeing as how u have the dvd player and tv in it.

 

OK! Got some pictures of the lack! of airdam
Im using i tihnk a 93 amp alt, not that it matters, the AV has been removed and is in storage till i get these logistics figured out, im going to go photoshop the pics and post them.

I can only take pictures from below the car, as my keys are in the shop and they are closed.

BRB

 

Pics are here,
Well, have a look, i think that i am seeing a distinct lack of air dam
thought i had one, but i ebayed air dam and it looks nothing similar

Maro Pics

Thanks *yet* again.

 

Yea, no air dam there.....

 

This might sound crazy, but let me ask you this:

Are you having trouble with steering? (ex. loud, nasty noises when you turn left and right?)

Does yer car have power steering?

Is there steam coming out from under the hood when you jump up to a high RPM?

It sounds like a set of odd questions, less the last one, but My buddy and I worked on his ex-girlfriends' 88 trans am, and it was overheating nasty like that. It ended up being a power steering fluid leak.

Now, if she hadnt cheated on him, we mighta replaced the power steering fluid pump. But, we never got around to it, then he dumped her, now she drives without power steering...sucker!

 

Well, shoot!
I never really noticed it (no steam, I have a leaking head cover gasket, so i burn a wee bit of oil) but as far as power steering goes, pump sounds fine, i DO need to check the fluid though, I have a little bit of play in the wheel when i turn either direction (say 5 degrees each way)
I'll check on that, thanks alot.
Where can i get an air dam, and what does it look like?
Thanks folks.

 

No air dam there. That's the first thing I would do. Install one. Then if you still have cooling issues, post again. But I'm fairly sure that is the root cause. The air dam is vital to the cooling system performance of these cars. What does the air dam look like? Air dam pic Should be available at any junkyard, or you could try the www.thirdgen.org classifieds section. Your local GM dealer can get them.

And to AutoNewb, a power steering fluid leak will not cause an overheating issue.

 

Ok! ordered an air dam from GM parts. How hard is that to install? couldnt be too trivial i would think.
Which aftermarket fan would you reccomend? Im looking into Flex-a-Lite, which model? Its hot here, and there is _silly_ stop/go traffic on the freeway.

 

It's held on by 5? 10mm bolts. Simple bolton, no other parts need to be removed. It doesn't look like your bolts are there, so you'll have to come up with the hardware.

I run Flex-A-Lite's Black Magic 150 fan. It's rated to 250HP, but I'm making quite a bit more than that with no cooling issues at all. You don't need an intall kit for this fan either. It comes with its own adjustable temperature switch, module, all necessary wiring, brackets, etc.

 

coolies. I'll look into that. The car is running again, my charging system was f'ed in the A