Caveman305

iTrader: (8)

ok, my gauge reads 260+ after a few minutes of driving, it gradually raises to 260 and then the fan will kick on

ive tried changing the fan switch, and the temp sender to no avail, it still goes to 260 before the fan will kick on

does this sound like a bad gauge? or is there something im missing, the only other thing i can think of is i have a clog in my cooling system somewhere, but when i changed the coolant fan switch coolant gushed out(i was stupid and didnt drain anything first) and i just changed the sender this morning and a small amount of antifreeze came out so im not positive its a clog

also is there a difference in the senders? the one that was on my car had a Ball type connector and the one they gave me at the part store was a flat style connector, both used the same wire connector that was already on my car so i didnt think anything of it

EDIT: ive posted the begining to this on someone elses thread, but this is where its lead me and i wanted to start my own thread on it

skirkland1980

iTrader: (2)

if your engine is overheating here is what to do. First make sure the coolant system is full and no more antifreeze than 50%(ethylene glycol) you will need an infrared thermometer (about$90) or borrow one. get the engine up to operating temp. if the car has a 190 degree thermostat the engine needs to be at least 190 degrees. if you have removed the thermostat replace it. get a good quality one. now that the engine is hot turn it off and take the infrared thermometer and scan the entire cooling system from the thermostat housing to the water pump inlet. the thermostat housing and upper radiator hose should be at least 190. if not here is no coolant circulating. check the water pump and thermostat. scan the radiator core at all 4 corners and center. look for a temp drop of 15 degrees or more. if the radiator doesn't have have a consistent temperature replace it. if everything else checks ok it is likely an airflow problem. make sure the radiator is getting fresh air and the fan(s) is working. if you suspect a blown head gasket or cracked head let me know.

DARKmj16

iTrader: (6)

hmm does it have the air dam on it? check the airflow tho the raditor, and its not likely the parts guys gave you the wrong sender, but it wouldnt hurt to double check. if the fan comes on at 260...constantly i would think theres a blown gasket and youd see coolant so is the gauge working right? if so im gona say its gona be the temp switch.

camaronewbie

Have you checked the ACTUAL temp of the coolant when it's hot? Have someone with an infrared tester check the temp when it's hot - most any shop anywhere will have one. Maybe the guage is just off on it's reading - wouldn't be the first one to read wrong.

Caveman305

iTrader: (8)

Sorry i never got updates on replys,

Bought a infered thermometer, gotta check the temps, its got a 160 thermostat but i found a leak up by the thermostat/valve cover/ intake, couldnt pinpoint where it was

its got the airdam on it

not sure its a blown head gasket for the fact it still pulls hard and it doesnt shoot out white smoke when i get on it,

thanks for the replys guys, ill get a better update when i back out tomorrow and i can get on my computer lol

oil pan 4

iTrader: (1)

The fan should come on around 240'F so the gauge might be reading higher than it really is.
A leak will cause you to lose cooling system pressure and run hot, that could be a big part of your problem.
You need to have an air dam or you will have to run your fan all the time, even on the highway.

Caveman305

iTrader: (8)

the air dam will never be an issue lol, i learned the hard way 4 years ago to leave it on the car lol.

im going to try to chase the leak in the morning, and flush my system and run some cleaner through it incase it is blocked, i can see a good amount of build up on the fins of the radiator so im hoping to take care of that with the cleaner

will post again tomorrow

Caveman305

iTrader: (8)

going to back flush my cooling system tomorrow and run some flush through it, then i might run some heavy cleaner through it to get rid of the build up in my radiator, im hoping its a block in my system, will also be checking thermostat(i dont remember if its a 180 or 160) putting on a new gasket and removing hoses to check for any noticeable problems

also will be changing my intake and valve cover gaskets in the near future

skirkland1980

iTrader: (2)

i'm sure this is no secret, but you can flush with automatic dishwashing detergent power. like cascade or similar.

Caveman305

iTrader: (8)

i read that somewhere before but it slipped my mind,

ill run the flush i have then run some soap through it then fill everything back up and see how everything goes, soap i have beats having to run to walmart to buy the Prestone Super cleaner i was going to buy lol

quick question, how much soap do i use

Caveman305

iTrader: (8)

ok guys, im thinking its gotta be my gauge, i backflushed my system today, tested my thermostat(it is a 180 and its good), changed the housing gasket and the waterpump gaskets, then when i ran the cleaner through it i checked the flow and it flows very nice no block that i could conceive because it was flowing so well, topped off the coolant and let it idle, it climed and sat around 220 with full heat on, then when i shut the heat off it climed all the way to 260 again before the fan kicked on.

so i shot my thermometer and the radiator was all within the same temperature range, then i shot the upper radiator hose(first i felt it when the gauge read 215/220 and it was cool to the touch, when it hit around 250 was when the upper got warm/hot to the touch) but its temp when the gauge read 260 was around 225,

so does it sound like the gauge? or what lol

DARKmj16

iTrader: (6)

does that seem kinda like a high jump in the temp to anyone else? hmm youve done repalced everything else so ya i would say the gauge is the only thing left.

also since you flushed the system, with cleaner, keep a very close eye on it now. when i had my 88 the radiotor also had a bunch of build up so i flushed it with cleaner. turns out it was block sealent and when i flushed it, it unsealed the crack in my block. best way to tell if you have a coolant leak is to smell the exhaust as it may not always smoke. if the exhaust smells sweet at all then theres a leak

Caveman305

iTrader: (8)

Yup thats what i said, it was steady at 220 maybe 225 then when i shut the heater off it climed(slowly) all the way to 260 before cutting the fan on, when i shut the motor off i hear no bubbling or boiling like it is overheading,

im going to change the gauge out(does anybody on here have just the temp gauge for sale or a link to buy one? i would rather not buy a whole new cluster as my other gauges are pretty good minus my fuel gauge)

i might change my radiator in the near future just for kicks, but i see no leaks at all from the cooling system after letting it run for 30 minutes

and i think i said in an earlier post my dad and i will be changing the intake gasket and valve cover gaskets in the next few weeks i hope

after all that i will pressure test the system and see if maybe i am loosing pressure due to a cracked head or blown gasket(which i really hope not)

oil pan 4

iTrader: (1)

I was checking my small collection of used thermostats yesterday by making thermostat stew. One of the thermostats only opened about 1/2 way. I replaced it because the cooling system was acting wacky on the high way, it was a 180' unit and it was getting to be winter time ment it was time for it to go. I never bothered to check it till now.

Did you check your coolant mixture? If there is too much water surface boiling can cause you to run hot.

Caveman305

iTrader: (8)

yup checked my thermostat and it opened all the way when it was suppose to, and put all new coolant in yesterday and checked the mixture before putting it in and after

all that checks out as of right now, thanks for the input

Caveman305

iTrader: (8)

i think i got it, i bought a temp gauge from Ted, and when i put it in and started the car it warmed up normally, the first time it took forever to get above 220, then all of a sudden it started climbing higher almost to 260

but since i had my gauge face plate off i decided to touch the needle, where ever i put it, it stayed, so i cut the car off and started it again which resets the gauge, to my surprise it only went to just under 220(which i find odd seeing as it was reading 260 a split second before) once the gauge hit 220 the second time the fan kicked on

i haven't tried it again yet,but will be soon to see if it consistently turns on at the proper reading now

hope i got this figured out, thanks for the help so far guys