hrcslam

I'd keep an eye on it. It's working better, but should be cooler than that. You should run cooler on the highway than city driving. If it's hotter on the highway, it points to another problem, usually a water flow issue.

Need4Camaro

iTrader: (1)

I see. Do you believe the Water Pump is the cause? I got it from Autozone brand new. The first new pump I got from them had a bad bearing... This is what I found brand new out of the box:

I replaced it under warranty and have been using it for aproximately 5 months ish... Should I just get a Delco Brand or something from Napa?

hrcslam

It's a possibility. I would steer clear of the none name brand stuff for sure. But it could be another issue. The thermostat being replaced and helping shows the issue was water flow related. Does the flow still surge at idle with the cap off?

FWIW, when my LT1 had the coolant surging thing I hydrolocked my engine a couple months later, turned out to be a blown head gasket. I doubt that's your issue though as you'd have a consistent flow of air bubbles with it usually. My bubbles showed up about 6 weeks later. But I still ran cooler on the highway vs stop and go driving.

Basically what I think is going on, and I could be wrong, is that your impeller is loose. So at low rpms like idle, it'll spin/slip/spin/slip causing the surging. Then at highway speed with increased rpms it'll slip more, thus moving less coolant. Only one way to find out though.

LS6427

iTrader: (2)

My first post......sounds like your tstat isn't opening all the way and is about to fail completely. You should have seen flow or a drop in the level way before your gauge hit 210*F.

One way to rule it out.....take the t-stat out and go for a mellow highway cruise. Turn on the A?C and see what happens. If it stays cool while cruising....but a new tstat.

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LS6427

iTrader: (2)

NO...water pumps ALWAYS pump coolant no matter what.......they just leak when they go bad.

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hrcslam

Unless the impeller is loose.......

hrcslam

He already replaced the thermostat. It helped, but is still running hotter on the highway than in stop and go.

Read the thread bro.

LS6427

iTrader: (2)

Hmmm.....sounds crazy, but try another tstat. Try running without a tstat in the housing.

The water pump is pumping coolant
The fans are working....according to the OP
The ram air is obviously working at hwy speeds
There's no bag or obstruction blocking the ram air flow to the condensor

Unless the exterior front surface of the condensor is blocked and air cannot flow through it.....only other thing I can think of is a coolant flow issue......

*******UNLESS the coolant/engine is really NOT getting hot and all you need is a new Coolant Temp sensor........if you CAN STILL keep your hand on intake after the temps reach 220-230*F....you are not really getting hot.


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Need4Camaro

iTrader: (1)

Well the only problem with running without the T-Stat is my housing comes integrated with the thermostat as one entire unit. When I replaced the stock one I went to with the integrated housing. Bad idea? I don't have the stock housing any longer so basically the T-Stat can't be seperated from the housing without breaking the unit.

As for touching the intake. I was under the impression that our Nylon intakes didn't heat soak so I didn't think they would ever get hotter than a hand could touch.

I'm now getting almost entirely different results. It seems as though my car is running the same temperature regardless if the A/C is on or not on the highway. But it's still over 210..although not overheating either. Here's a photo:


Ideas?

wssix99

iTrader: (5)

GM has changed the design of the original pump and the thermostat. The new design has the thermostat and housing all in one unit. Absolutely no worries.


1) This is normal for summer - no worries. You are far far far from the redline.

2) The gauge on the dash means nothing. It's just and idiot light with numbers and dashes on it. (See my post above.) The electronics in the dash hide the true temperature of the coolant from you. If the needle is between 11 o'clock and 1 o'clock, the idiot light function is telling you that you are fine. If you want a more accurate reading, you'd need to either do:
- The gauge cluster mod
- Wire up a real temp gauge
- Measure the temps with an infrared thermometer when not moving

LS6427

iTrader: (2)

No.....if your engine gets to 220-230*F you will pretty much NOT be able to keep your hand on the intake. If you get to 240*F or more......no way you can touch it for more than 2-3 seconds without burning your skin. If you ever truly overheat into the RED ZONE you will get a 2nd degree burn if you push your hand onto the intake. Trust me...I know.

SO.....go for a drive......when you see 210*F or more on the temp gauge, pull over and put your entire hand on the intake. If you can keep it there NO PROBLEM at all, like its just warm......then you are NOT getting hot.

Lets see if you just need a new Coolant Temp Sensor.

****I bought a $40.00 laser temp gauge to hit the intake, head near the temp sensor, shock towers, etc......to know what the real temps are.

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Firebrian

Good to know. I've always wondered about the huge surface temp difference between the radiator hoses and the air intake. I can always put my hand on the intake no matter what the conditions. But the cooling system? Forget it.

Need4Camaro

iTrader: (1)

I didn't get a chance to touch the intake but I will do that next time to see what happens. I am beginning to wonder about the coolant sensor. I completely forgot about this but about two months ago it did completely stop working for about 1 hour... it's done that twice since then, as in it goes completely below the 100* mark like its not even working and the fans kick on high for the entire time to car is running.

Here are my results for today. Today was much hotter. About 96 degrees. I had the AC on MAX full fans the entire drive once again still testing. About 30 minutes into my drive it did this:



Then afterward it kind of cooled down and stayed here:



It's like its "trying" to overheat but can't quite get there... but maybe this is still the margin of error for our dummy gauge?

hrcslam

I wouldn't worry too much with those temps. They are a little high but not high enough to break anything. You should hook up a scanner though to verify the coolant temp gauge is accurate.

I'd be more concerned if your highway temps are higher then city driving.

spawne32

iTrader: (2)

If your in an area that doesnt see sub zero temps in the winter, try running a 70/30 mix of water/antifreeze with a bottle of water wetter. The water pump squeal is the bearings inside the pump, while the impellers might spin fine with the engine running, you don't have much life left on those water pump bearings I can tell you that now. I have an LS4 car, modified, loose converter, dex 6 etc. Im running CAT ELC 50/50 coolant with the stock thermostat, it was 93* today outside and I had to do an hour and a half highway ride. Never got below 210* the entire time, and would bounce between 210 to 217, when coming to a stop my IAT's would hit 170+. My radiator core thickness is only 7/8" and that plays a huge factor in cooling, not to mention being able to properly vent heat out from under the hood. Alot of these car's I tune im seeing the fans not kicking on until mid 220s and GM doesnt consider the engine to be in a "HOT" mode until about 248. So your still in a normal range but lets just say for the rest of us, its not ideal. I hate seeing my car over 200* honestly.

wssix99

iTrader: (5)

This means nothing. I think that point is getting missed here. Your temperature could be 190 and the gauge will still say 210!!!

The gauges are engineered specifically NOT to show the true temperature. Even if they were, all it takes is an assembler coming off an all night bender and your friction-fit gauge needle is slightly off and reading 10 degrees from what it should.

The gauge is not true. It's not calibrated. It's only purpose in the world is to keep the previous owner from going to the dealer to complain about a warranty repair.

^ That being said, we should probably bring back the gauge mod thread and get it back in to circulation. There's no reason why we should continue to be under the watch of GM's nanny here...

Need4Camaro

iTrader: (1)

Okay so here's what I did...



Drove it between 75 - 80 MPH for approximately 1 hour with the A/C on MAX... about 50 minutes into it, it finally got to the 3/4ths mark according to the temperature gauge. It seems like its taking longer now to reach these temperatures. Now after about 10 minutes of keeping it there I went and did what your previous post said. I got off at an exit and pulled over as quick as possible, turned off the engine and popped the hood.

When I popped the hood, while the car was off, the fans were still on. I proceeded to put my hand on the intake manifold anyway, and while it was "hot" ..it was not hot enough to burn me, scald me, or cause me to retract my hand.. I was able to keep my hand on there at will without needing to ever take it off. Now I do take very hot showers... but I should have lost some skin at this temperature if it was really this hot am I wrong?

Now the odd thing is, street driving, it never leaves 210... so there is a difference in temps, but MAYBE the temp gauge is exaggerating it a bit? maybe I need a new coolant sensor?

hrcslam

I'd verify the gauge is correct before going any further. If the temps are higher on the highway than in stop and go, I'd figure out why. In any case, your temps are no threat to your engine, but could be an early warning sign of future failure.

Need4Camaro

iTrader: (1)

I saw the sending unit at rock auto for about $15 so I guess I should start with that first?

If that doesn't fix it.. should I begin to be worried about impending head gasket failure? Odd thing is this. This car did the same thing last summer on the FACTORY water pump / FACTORY thermostat / FACTORY radiator (before I replaced all three of these.) I havent yet cleaned my condensor..but I heard if it was dirty it should overheat in stop and go... so Im really baffled.

Edit: Another question - May be a dumb one but is it possible to rent a heat gun? It cools down way to fast for me to get it to a shop at those temperatures, literally 1 minute of street driving and its back to normal temperatures regardless of how hot it gets.

hrcslam

I'm assuming you have a mechanical water pump. If you do and the temperatures really do increase at highway speeds you have a coolant flow problem (unless your lower air dam is not installed). It could be a partially plugged radiator, or other coolant passages, or a slipping impeller/water pump.

It is not an air flow problem. That would show at idle/city driving not highway driving (unless your lower air dam is not installed).