Cooling Issues
Thread Starter
Registered User
Joined: Dec 2002
Posts: 413
From: Tucson
Cooling Issues
I've got a 93 Formula. CSI elec WP is on it. Problem is it runs hot while moving. At idle, sitting still it cools down to 170 ish. On the highway it runs right around 220. In town it runs cooler (200-210) in stop/go driving, rather than cooling down when moving like it should. This seems a bit backwards to me... The car has a 160 thermo in it as well and I just flushed the coolant. I also put a new GM radiator cap on it, but to no avail. I have bleed the cooling system countless times, too. Anyone else have/had this sort of problem? Thanks in advance!
Registered User
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 408
From: West Coast
I have a CSI, and the car does seem to run a bit warmer at highway speeds than in town. I have never had it get over about 195 or so, and that was with the outside temps at 119 and the AC running full blast.
How is the pump wired? If you don't have it hooked up with a relay directly to the battery using big enough wiring, you could be getting some voltage drop. That would make the pump turn too slowly or overheat.
Another thing might be the radiator. If the flow is decreased by sediment clogging the tubes, you have this sort of problem.
What is the coolant mix? Too much anitfreeze REDUCES the ability of the coolant to remove heat from the engine. Use a 50/50 mix or less, depending on where you are and the freeze protection you need.
Now I know someone is going to say that this is exactly why they didn't put an electric pump on their car. They say that the mechanical pump can move more coolant. That might be true at high RPM in an ideal world, but not here.
If a mechanical pump had an unlimited supply of coolant to draw from (which it doesn't) and an unlimited place to put it (which it doesn't), then it MIGHT be able to outflow the electric pump. In the real world, you can only get so much water through the coolant passages of the engine and the radiator. At high RPM, all the mechanical pump can do is create more resistance.
Long-term reliability of the electrics is another question. Mine's not a daily driver, so I don't worry about it.
BRAD
How is the pump wired? If you don't have it hooked up with a relay directly to the battery using big enough wiring, you could be getting some voltage drop. That would make the pump turn too slowly or overheat.
Another thing might be the radiator. If the flow is decreased by sediment clogging the tubes, you have this sort of problem.
What is the coolant mix? Too much anitfreeze REDUCES the ability of the coolant to remove heat from the engine. Use a 50/50 mix or less, depending on where you are and the freeze protection you need.
Now I know someone is going to say that this is exactly why they didn't put an electric pump on their car. They say that the mechanical pump can move more coolant. That might be true at high RPM in an ideal world, but not here.
If a mechanical pump had an unlimited supply of coolant to draw from (which it doesn't) and an unlimited place to put it (which it doesn't), then it MIGHT be able to outflow the electric pump. In the real world, you can only get so much water through the coolant passages of the engine and the radiator. At high RPM, all the mechanical pump can do is create more resistance.
Long-term reliability of the electrics is another question. Mine's not a daily driver, so I don't worry about it.
BRAD
Registered User
Joined: Mar 2001
Posts: 2,521
From: Costa Mesa, CA
Check and make sure everything under the nosepiece of your car is in place, air dam, front fascia, everything. Even if it doesn't look dirty, take a vacuum to the front of the AC condensor. Next, take the plastic trim piece off that sits above the radiator. Look down between the condensor and radiator and make sure nothing is stuck in between them.
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