The other night i noticed on the freeway that my temp guage was almost in the red(little past the notch right before the red), but when i slowed down o like 40mph it would come down a little(about 30'). I dont think this is normal since i would think i would run cooler on the freeway then the street in stop and go traffic so was hoping you could give me an idea of whats wrong. I was thinking maybe the thermastate or water pump.
Thanks
Justin
P.S.- this is on a 96 trans am.

 

thermostat

 

If that doesn't solve the problem, check to make sure your front air dam is still on (you don't realize how well it works till it breaks) and not broken off and your radiator is clear of debris.
Bill

 

yea almost forgot got about the air dam, i'll check that, the radiator cap and then the thermastate.
Thanks a lot, i'll keep you guys posted.
Justin

 

Just today I was reading the latest Chevy Hi-Perf and it had an article on cooling. One of the pics was of a third gen air dam and the caption described overheating at highway speeds if it's damaged/gone.

 

Mine broke off, and even in city driving the temp would sky rocket. Now I have a extra long one on with about 1 inch of ground clearance, but it works great.
Bill

 

Good to know symptoms to watch for since the end of my driveway keeps trying to tear the air dam and ORP/cutout off my car

 

When mine finally broke...i took what was left of it and bolted it to another one that i got from a junk yard to make it hang down longer than normal. The area where they are bolted together gives it some extra give so that it bends every 5 seconds when I scrape instead of breaking.
Bill