This thing is really starting to pi$$ me off. i just replaced my head gaskets thinking that it was the problem, which was blown, but it is still not cooling right. it idles at about 185 and that is normal but when i take it down the road it goes up to about 210 or a little over. this is what i have done to try and fix it, flushed the radiator, new thermistat and bleed the system numurous times. the water pump is only a year old and it isn't losing coolant. some one please help me out i don't know what to do next. any suggestions would be helpful.

Thanks in advance,
dustin

 

Are you sure that your thermostat is not stuck closed, I know it is new, but that is a possibily. The only other thing I can think of is bleeding the system, but you said you have done that a million times.

 

Is the air dam on?

 

I do not think that would have much to do with that right, he says it is idling at 185 degrees, I know your the man and you know a heck of a lot more than me, but could this be possible?

 

My cars the other way, idle it gets hot, driving it cools down. But the stock temp gauges are off by a lot. I know mines is like a mad pirate.

 

make sure the front of the radiator is not blocked by leaves and other crap. It's incredibly hard to see if that is the case but try that as well. "high" speed cooling problems usually relate to blocked radiator or cracked air dam.

 

It has everything to do with it. He said it idled at 185, which is fine, but it heated up on the highway. That would seem to indicate an airflow or coolant flow problem.

 

idle your at 500-600 RPMs sitting there

interstate you are doing 2000-3000 in OD and w/o the air damn, the heat is still under the hood.

so like 4 times as much heat than idle. I know air still gets in there but not near as much as one with an air dam.

would the water/antifreeze % matter? (20%water/80%antifreeze vs 80%water/20%antifreeze)

j/w ???

 

The antifreeze has a lower heat capacity than water, so if he has too much antifreeze in the system, it could impact the cooling capacity of the system. However, that would not change from idling to driving. It sounds more like a flow problem (air or coolant)

Sam

 

thanks for the suggestions i will check the air dam. i also know its not blocked by leaves because i had the radiator out when i was doing the head gaskets.

thanks for the help.
dustin

 

I have a question...
Are you reading the 210 while your driving or when you come up to a light and your idling? Read your temp guage when you are traveling atleast 35mph and have traveled more than 200feet. You will notice that your guage will drop from 210 to 185. 185 is around the normal operating temp. Always warm your car up a lil past 160 from a cold start. If your worried about the high temps..look into a manual fan switch. I got one and its good to have. I got one from SLP.

Remember that these cars run hot! Im in sunny California and If Ive been driving allday, already warmed-up...I will be around 185. If Im at a light, I will hit 200-210. When I start driving it will shoot back to 185. I wouldnt worry about your temp unless it stuck at 200-210 or higher. Take her on the freeway and your temp should go down to 185. Thats how you know your airdam is working to cool it off. At an Idle...If your car stays at 200-210 and doesnt get any higher, you know your thermostat is working. You have a 185 stat I beleive. Ive never seen temps over 210. If so....your stat is sticking and should be replaced. Dont worry about your temp is basically what Im saying.....unless you see leaks or it smells....

 

FWIW, when my car had the stock 180 thermostat the dash guage would read pretty near the 210 mark while on the freeway. I just recently changed to a 160 thermostat and now in the same conditions my temp guage reads about 175 during highway driving. You really don't need to be too concerned unless the temp gauge hits or exceeds the 230 range, because with stock PCM programming the fans will come on around that point and begin to bring the temps back down to the 200-210 range. In stock form, and due to emissions, our cars are meant to run warm.

 

thanks for the info, my temps run at 210 while i am driving and stay about the same when i stop, it dosen't go down it doesn't go up. but when i start my car up in the morning i can let it idle for ever and it doesn't go over 185. is this an air dam prob or none at all.

thanks.
D

 

Not only is the air dam important, but make sure you have the three bolts that hold the front fascia down too. Mine would get hot on the highways only, and I racked my little brain for about a month. pulled the radiator, had it flow checked, bought like three thermostats, and a radiator cap. replaced a fan, all kinds of ****(never changed the headgasket though.
Anyway, I was lying under my car trying tofigure out what it could be, and after about an hour down there, I noticed the front plastic was loose. I pulled on it, and deduced that at speed, it could flatten out, and block off the air box going to the radiator. P bolted it down, and never had a heating problem since then. I idle now in the city at 200-210, but at highway speeds, the needle is damn neart to 160.

 

i never thought of that either. that is a good idea i will check that when i check the air dam.

thanks,
D