Normal engine temp?
Thread Starter
Staging Lane
Joined: Oct 2014
Posts: 70
Likes: 0
Normal engine temp? I live in sunny hot as hell Miami and i see my car hit 230 very often with the factory thermostat. I dont have much experience with the LS6 but that seems pretty high. should I be concerned?
Teching In
Joined: Jan 2014
Posts: 14
Likes: 0
I do not like mine running that hot. These motors all aluminum. I run a 160* thermostat but that really does not help idle temp. I also had tuner turn fans on earlier. Here in Houston on a 110* day I rarely get to 210*. I also added an Earls oil cooler. My oil was running way up some time to 350*. Mobil one is good for about 1/2 life at those temps. Now my oils runs about the same as water, 165* to 210*. I am happy with that. Oh yea I am on my 3rd set MM's due to heat. The under hood temps are out the roof on these old V's. I just like to run cooler if I can!
Joined: Oct 2011
Posts: 818
Likes: 2
From: heading South East on Bakalakadaka street
My oil temp stated 10 degrees today. I didn't start the car. I took the train to work. LOL
I generally see around 210, 220ish on average. I don't worry much about 230, 240. I've never seen higher than that.
I generally see around 210, 220ish on average. I don't worry much about 230, 240. I've never seen higher than that.
Trending Topics
LS1 Tech Stories
The Best V8 Stories One Small Block at Time
Gas Monkey Built a 6-Wheel Ferrari Testarossa With a Corvette LT4 Engine
Verdad Gallardo
7 Most Reliable High-Performance Engines GM Has Ever Built
Verdad Gallardo
Amazing '71 Camaro Restomod Is Modern Muscle Car Under the Skin
Verdad Gallardo
6 Common C5 Corvette Failures and What's Involved In Repairing Them
Pouria Savadkouei
Retro Modern Bandit Pontiac Trans AM Comes With Burt Reynolds' Autograph
Verdad Gallardo
Top 10 Greatest Cadillac V Series Performance Models Ever, Ranked
Pouria Savadkouei
Top 10 Most Powerful Chevy Trucks Ever Made!
Hennessey's New Supercharged Silverado ZR2 Has 700 HP
Verdad Gallardo
Coachbuilt N2A Anteros Is an LS2-Powered C6 Corvette In Italian Clothes
Verdad Gallardo
I took the weather stripping off the radiator cover and off the top of the cowl-firewall. It seems to have lowered under hood temps significantly and I haven't noticed any side affects from it...
Teching In
Joined: Jan 2014
Posts: 14
Likes: 0
Here is why I made the statement I did regarding aluminum. enjoy the read.......
http://articles.latimes.com/1992-03-...uminum-engines
You also have to take into account I been messing with cars too long. The Aluminum LS motor is head and shoulders above anything we had in the 60's and 70's, but that is because of engineering not materials. Aluminum is light if designed right make for a strong casting, heat kills it strength and stability.
http://articles.latimes.com/1992-03-...uminum-engines
You also have to take into account I been messing with cars too long. The Aluminum LS motor is head and shoulders above anything we had in the 60's and 70's, but that is because of engineering not materials. Aluminum is light if designed right make for a strong casting, heat kills it strength and stability.
TECH Fanatic
Joined: Aug 2012
Posts: 1,334
Likes: 1
From: Wildomar, CA
Lol where did you dig up that old *** article??? 1992??? LA TIMES??? Yea cuz they are a metallurgical authority. Trust me, living in southern California, I see their horse **** articles ALL THE TIME. That rag will print anything to try and prove some obscure point. Not to mention, the aluminum block as a mass produced piece was still relatively young at that point. Aluminum was reserved for race cars and custom one off motors. Vettes were still 5 years away from an all aluminum motor in their base car. Most everything was iron. The viper was an iron block out of a truck. They started going aluminum to save weight and fuel. You probably know better than me that emissions standards in the 80s were horrific.
How bout we do this... Ask what motors are in Prototype Challenge cars in the Tudor endurance races? 6.2L sealed Chevy blocks. 450bhp all the same... Every single one... Daytona, 24hour race, trans failures, suspension failures, crashes, I don't remember one being retired due to an engine failure. The C5r, C6r, C7r, all aluminum blocks. The only blocks that are still cast iron these days are diesels. I really can't think of a new car that has a cast block that isn't a diesel. Its 23 years after that article was written. Trucks are different, but even most of them are getting aluminum blocks now for weight savings. Heck, the deltawing has been experimenting with a carbon fiber block... Carbon fiber with steel sleeves. Aluminum is old news now.
How bout we do this... Ask what motors are in Prototype Challenge cars in the Tudor endurance races? 6.2L sealed Chevy blocks. 450bhp all the same... Every single one... Daytona, 24hour race, trans failures, suspension failures, crashes, I don't remember one being retired due to an engine failure. The C5r, C6r, C7r, all aluminum blocks. The only blocks that are still cast iron these days are diesels. I really can't think of a new car that has a cast block that isn't a diesel. Its 23 years after that article was written. Trucks are different, but even most of them are getting aluminum blocks now for weight savings. Heck, the deltawing has been experimenting with a carbon fiber block... Carbon fiber with steel sleeves. Aluminum is old news now.
Last edited by ryridesmotox; Feb 4, 2015 at 12:55 AM.
Thats a bit high even for me...110c
I would flush your rad out, change your thermostat, use a 180, and dont bother tuning the fans.
use premixed 50/50 from caltex or another decent company, not gm. And then add a bottle of radiator relief from DEI.
I would flush your rad out, change your thermostat, use a 180, and dont bother tuning the fans.
use premixed 50/50 from caltex or another decent company, not gm. And then add a bottle of radiator relief from DEI.
I've read posts on several different car forums about people removing weatherstripping at the firewall to create low pressure and draw hot air from under the hood. It makes sense why it would work. But removing it at the radiator only allows air to bypass the radiator. Sure, it increases airflow under the hood and across the engine, but at what cost? Sealing the radiator against the hood is done to funnel as much air through the radiator as possible, regardless of under hood temperatures. Then there's the affected aerodynamics of the whole process, which is well above my pay grade and understanding.
The base of the windshield is a high pressure area. The low pressure is underneath. If you remove the weatherstripping at the rear of the hood, you'll be drawing air in while you are moving. It may be drawn out and upward when sitting still but who knows by how much.
I think the cost of allowing air to move over the radiator instead of forcing it through is apparent and probably counterproductive. Sure the outside of your engine may be slightly cooler but the inside would be hotter.
I think the cost of allowing air to move over the radiator instead of forcing it through is apparent and probably counterproductive. Sure the outside of your engine may be slightly cooler but the inside would be hotter.
The real cost of this is the 5 minutes (or less) that it would take me to reinstall these pieces should theory turn to reality which I haven't seen as being the case in the 30k miles I've driven the car since trying this freebie.
The cost is reduced airflow through the radiator, the actual quantity is unknown (to me at least) but it wouldn't make sense to me to reduce underhood temps a few degrees at the cost of a less efficient cooling system (higher internal engine heat).
Teching In
Joined: Jan 2014
Posts: 14
Likes: 0
Sorry for the old article. The OP asked about normal engine heat. I posted the an old article, OK I feel is still relevant, maybe it ain't. I also feel it is about as relevant as comparing our cars to multi-million USD operations of pro endurance racing. Most of the article in my link was from GM. IMHO 240* is too hot for a car with an aluminum motor or parts to run on the street and reliably get me back and forth to work. If I was on Team Cadillac the support engineers might make me feel better about that. Wishfully, one will read this thread and put our minds to ease regarding our cars.
I did take note of the weather stripping removal. I might try this and see once summer rolls around.
Definitely going to try something before I go head to head with Johnny O........ha!
I did take note of the weather stripping removal. I might try this and see once summer rolls around.
Definitely going to try something before I go head to head with Johnny O........ha!