Hey all, I'm rather new to the world of LT1's having had LS1's in 3 late 4th gen Camaros and 1 5th gen Corvette. My question is this...do these engines run on the "warmer" side? My coolant guage is the typical 160-260 degrees F, with 210 being the mid-point. I thought these cars had the 210 degree thermostat, but my car tends to run just slightly above the 210 mark. Is this typical...or should I be concerned? A new thermostat is cheap enough...but what do you all think?

 

http://shbox.com/1/4th_gen_tech2.html#cooling

 

Stock LT1 thermostat is 180*F. That means it only STARTS to open at 180*F, and should be fully open at about 200*F.

 

Thanks for the informtion guys! Shoebox...I've bookmarked your site...great source of information and reference material.

Sounds like I don't have to worry...the Z is running pretty much normal!

 

The temp going past the middle mark always bothered me.. When I am stopped or slow traffice I turn on the AC or Defroster that drops the temp in a couple of minutes. I am guessing its turning on the fans..

 

Yes, turning on the a/c turns on the fans. That is stated in the information link I posted.

 

then swap out your t-stat, I've never seen mine above 200

 

I had thought about putting in a 160 but I thought I read you need to get the PCM re-programmed to have it make a difference..

 

This is something I noticed right away when I bought my car a month ago. I was pretty concerned with how warm it got when I wasn't moving! It never actually hit the red line, but it can hit up to maybe 3/4 mark, then the fans come on and it cools down to about 1/2 mark, even if I'm stuck in traffic. I put in a 160* thermostat and it really didn't seem to make a difference. I've heard that our cars just run warm like that?

Make sure you've bled any extra air out after it's at its hottest and the thermostat is open. Just a shot in the dark lol, and I'm certainly no expert, but it's something to try.

 

Sounds normal to me. Heat up while stopped or in slow moving traffic. Cool when cruising down the interstate.

 

The advantage of the 160*F t'stat is only realized if you lower the fan on/off temperature to the 186-196* range, and maybe give it a couple degrees more ignition advance. Otherwise, its going to continue to run at the same temps it always ran at, except maybe a few degrees cooler on the freeway.

 

Every car I've owned has behaved typically like that... heats up when stopped and cools down when moving.... the range of variance just seems extreme to me when compared to my other cars. Still getting comfortable with it lol.

 

I have had my car for about 2 months now and I have never seen my gauge get to 200, it hangs between 180-190. I dont kow that thermostat is in it but i do have a maual fan switch and I keep 1 fan running.

 

Having a fan or fans running all the time is really unnecessary for several reasons. It takes a bit of power to run a fan and the alternator has to make it. The alternator has to get the power from the engine. Excess wear and tear on the fan motor. Unless you are always in stop and go traffic, the engine should run plenty cool. When it is cooler out, a fan running is definitely not needed.

 

So are you saying im losing hp when running the fan? Didnt think it mattered but i do see what your saying about the fan motor. Ill try driving with it off and see how she reacts, im in Florida and its hot as ***** here so she might run on the warm side.