PewterZ28

iTrader: (1)

It's a long story that I'll try to explain as shortly as possible. I think a sequence of events would work best.

-Stock motor w/ bolt ons, car runs 185 to 195 range
-Stock motor w/ LG cam only, car runs 185 to 195 range
-Switched to Evans coolant, car runs 185 to 195 range
-Car sits all winter
-End of winter we install ETP heads (Cometic gaskets) and FTI cam, now car overheats to nearly 230
-Discovered ETP put solid roller springs on my heads by mistake, collapses all of my Morel lifters, take motor apart and discover I have a cracked piston also, time for a rebuild
-Weber 383 stroker w/ same ETP heads (GM MLS gaskets) and FTI cam, car overheats to infinity (250+)
-Tried 3 different thermostats, still overheats to infinity
-Tried 2 different water pumps, still overheats to infinity
-Boiled out the radiator and switched back to regular coolant, much better now but still overheats to 220
-Installed Be Cool radiator, no change, still overheats to 220

I'm out of ideas. The coolant is flowing just fine, there are no leaks, I'm not losing any coolant, hoses are connected right, engine is not running lean, etc. etc.

What the hell else could it be?

ItsNotStock

iTrader: (24)

Check your head gaskets

PewterZ28

iTrader: (1)

I doubt both my local mechanic, who installed the Cometic gaskets, and Weber Racing, who installed the GM MLS gaskets, would BOTH install the gaskets wrong. That would mean that two different reputable mechanics would have installed two different gaskets upside down.

Brad Hutchcraft

iTrader: (8)

water pump? Coolant lines? Guage? Pretty much your whole cooling system needs to be troubleshooted..... It could be anything until you find the problem... Im no guru but good luck!

PewterZ28

iTrader: (1)

Man did you even read my post? I already DID troubleshoot all of those things. Two water pumps were tried, three thermostats were tried, two radiators have been used, coolant is flowing through all hoses like normal. My entire cooling system HAS been gone through.

connexion2005

iTrader: (49)

Are you autotapping this or just looking at a stock gauge...I would no doubt get the 2nd opinion from a different thermo device...This sounds really wierd and makes no sense that it would overheat like that...

Josh

PewterZ28

iTrader: (1)

This is with a laptop using HP Tuners. My stock gauge also reads very high and surprisingly agrees with what the laptop is saying. Finally, I have a 2nd sensor that is at the water pump itself. It sets a warning light when temps reach 230. Well, when the car was running 250+ guess what? The light came on.

So the stock gauge, the laptop and the warning light ALL say I am overheating. Like I said, it used to be 250+ until we boiled out the radiator. Then it was just under 220. Last night I installed the $500 Be Cool radiator and the temps are still getting above 210 and it was only 69* outside.

Oh yeah, and it does this whether I'm just sitting at idle, driving through the subdivision or driving on the highway. No matter what I'm doing, in about 5 to 10 minutes the temps will peak around 217* and stay there.

MM98

iTrader: (13)

Do you still have your stock cooling fans, if so are you looking to see if they are kicking on???

-Mike

lt1formula2000

iTrader: (10)

you still have the stock aluminum block right? if not and you have an iron block rust possibly. not only does ot inhibit flow but it also acts as a sort of thermal barrier. other then that you've already done everything I would have. some motors just seem cursed. maybe try to flush out the block, with some pressure behind the water. Maybe use one of the ols water pumps and drill a hole in it tap it for a fitting you can get some preesurized water to, rig to up to pressure washer maybe(it will have the pressure not sure about the volume though). Thats all I can think of

bczee

iTrader: (12)

I know it seem that you have done almost anything, but i have not heard anyone question if there are air pockets being in the cooling system ?.. Did you fill the system from the top radiator hose and the reconnect to the radiator before filling the rest of the system ? And take steps to purge any air out of the system ? I know that air pocket in the sytem will cause a system to over heat. !

Have you also tried removing the T-stat and see if that help? as well as having the fan coming on sooner.

Good luck...

oneBADDz

iTrader: (26)

Like one other guy said, you HAVE made sure the fans are working?

BLKWS6

check the hoses at the neck of the radiator for the overflow and the head crossover tube. if you put those hoses on the wrong nipple off the neck.....it will cause you to overheat. and normally your overflow bottle will be boiling and gushing fluid.

lostsurferguy

hmm yea what he said

99FormulaM6

iTrader: (21)

when i did my head swap, we forgot to bolt down the 2 back bolts on the coolant crossover pipe, so i would let air in the system and it would overheat no matter what. just a thought...

robertbartsch

DON'T RUN THE CAR WITH HIGH TEMPS!


You probably have air trapped in your cooling system.

...idle the car with the radiator cap off for 1/2 hour - keep the radiator and overflow reservior full of coolant during this time. ...then put the cap on and see if this helps.

Did you check the simple stuff - (i) bad cap, (ii) hoses, (iii) belt tension, (iv) fans, (v) remove the lower radiator hose and run water from a garden hose into the top to see if the raditor is plugged, (vi) same deal with the garden hose but run the H2O through the block to see if it is plugged?


Last resort: Jiffy Boob pressure flush????

heavy6.0

iTrader: (69)

the best way to keep air out of the system when refilling is to do it slowly and let the bubbles come out of the bypass hose that is below the cap. also it helps to have the front of car jacked up. we do this almost every week and never have to top off the system . Fill it slowly!! That it will fix your problem. other than that it is the sending unit.

bwana

I assume you have no oil in the water & vice-versa? I'd say it's time to check for combustion in the water or better yet take them back off & pressure check the heads. They're new I know. ETP are awsome I know. But it ain't impossible that the CNC program got off a bit, or the head was setup misalinged on the mill, or had some core-shift from the get go. At this point what else is there to check.

I have seen a cylinder bore be tighter at the btm than at top, or in other words, it had too much taper. But you said it would ovht before you replaced the short-block. One other often overlooked case is the lwr rad hose sucking closed at moderate+ rpm because the spring in it is collapsed or missing...but again you said it was all the time.

If you haven't yet, I'd sure be looking for compression in the radiator.

Lastly, the trapped air seems like a stretch, but it's for real, a real bitch sometimes.

How long does it run before gets hot? If it's pretty quick 5 min or so, it's combustion in the water, whether cracked block, head or head gasket.

Also, you'll likely never get to the bottom of it unless you get into it yourself. Relying on another, no matter how good or sincere they are, always gets you less than the total picture. Most mechanics bail out when the going gets rough, time is money, and you've used up your money's worth at some point.

PewterZ28

iTrader: (1)

Fans are working just fine. No air in the system. Brand new radiator so the radiator is not clogged. Brand new cap, did not help at all. Hoses are not new but they are not clogged so there is no reason to replace them. Coolant is flowing just fine. We have flushed the whole system three times, including once with some kind of Napa flushing solution.

I'm not sure about this. I will have to check with my mechanic that installed my engine. I do some of the work on my car myself but I have a couple different mechanics I use for things that require a lift or if I'm just too busy or don't have the patience for. But they both do a really good job of keeping me in the loop and letting me make the call on a lot of things.

Da Swami

iTrader: (6)

Yeah, it seems like the only things that've stayed constant are those heads.

Maybe something's f'd up in the water jacket?

PewterZ28

iTrader: (1)

I agree with a lot you have said but trust me, I've been hands deep in all of this. I just put the new radiator in last night! I changed the water pump myself. Etc. Etc.

I am probably going to take the heads off and make sure the coolant passages on the heads line up with the coolant passages on the block. My stock motor NEVER overheated until we installed the heads. I was hoping my new motor would not have the same overheating problem but it does. The heads are the common denominator. I REALLY hope that isn't the problem because I never want to deal with ETP again. Yeah yeah, they make an awesome product but I have first hand experience that they are dreadful to deal with. I'd be too afraid that I would never get my heads back from them, EVER! They still have not got my Morel lifters back to me that I sent them 17 weeks ago!