fictionwriter Posted October 24, 2008 Report Share Posted October 24, 2008 A lot of people with these cars (like me) report stubborn over-heating problems. I was just wondering what you guys have tried and how it's worked out. I've tried: Leaving the AC on so the fan always runs 180* thermo higher CFM cooling fan. New coolant temp sensor New coolant temp switch None of that shit worked out very well Further plans: New water pump 160* thermo Hypertech Thermomaster chip (turns the fan on at 180 instead of GM's retarded programming of 230) Bigger Radiator. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SinisterSS Posted October 24, 2008 Report Share Posted October 24, 2008 head gaskets? warp cylinder heads? intake gasket leaking? on my 87 Iroc I had to replace the heater core because it had a small leak Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fictionwriter Posted October 24, 2008 Author Report Share Posted October 24, 2008 I'm not loosing any coolant at all. The car stays at about 185 as long as I leave the AC on and hence the fan always on. But I don't want to be one of those guys with the fan rigged to always on. Us thirdgen guys are stereotyped enough. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slow1647545513 Posted October 24, 2008 Report Share Posted October 24, 2008 My buddy had that problem. We replaced his fans with 2 hayden 14" fans and that fixed the problem. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fictionwriter Posted October 24, 2008 Author Report Share Posted October 24, 2008 I'll look into the 2 hayden fans. Thanks for the tip. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cordell Posted October 24, 2008 Report Share Posted October 24, 2008 You need to make sure the lower intake isn't leaking, and I know you said the car wasn't leaking you still need to check it. If you have replaced the t-stat and made sure there is no air in the system, the intake and heads need to be checked carefully as they are a problem on any 60*V6. Kind of sounds like your radiator is partially blocked, it's not all that uncommon on a car that hasn't had much use and is older. Easily check with an infared thermometer to see the temp difference in, out, and around the radiator. Throwing aftermarket parts at it isn't going to fix it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave1647545494 Posted October 24, 2008 Report Share Posted October 24, 2008 make sure the plastic shit under the nose that ducts air onto the radiator is all intact... the fan should kick on around 220 in your car you can buy an aftermarket switch that turns it on around 190 from jegs if the fan will not run without the ac on the temp switch that controls the fan is bad Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TurboRust Posted October 24, 2008 Report Share Posted October 24, 2008 you should change your sig.. i doubt your car has 140whp when they came with 140 crank hp stock. 140 whp=168 crank hp not bashing, I had a twin to yours in high school and it was dog slow. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mattsv8 Posted October 24, 2008 Report Share Posted October 24, 2008 how much water is in the rad? are your running 70% water and 30% antifreeze? you should deff be doing this in the summer hotter months. water is your coolant. the antifreeze is only their to keep it from boling or freezing. 50 50 is not a good summer mis for these cars. or put a v8 in it. and use a universal alum rad two row. jegs 31x19 fits perfect use two fans. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mattsv8 Posted October 24, 2008 Report Share Posted October 24, 2008 i dont know about the v6s but older gm v8s dont work well with a 160 stat. causes a open loop durring summer months. once the thermostat opens it never shuts because the coolant is constantly above 160. 180 woks great. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chadz89GTA Posted October 24, 2008 Report Share Posted October 24, 2008 Get a toggle switch and run it into the car, it's what I did and is far cheaper then buying new fans etc.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest James62888 Posted October 26, 2008 Report Share Posted October 26, 2008 Get a toggle switch and run it into the car, it's what I did and is far cheaper then buying new fans etc.. agreed with him My buddy has a 355 5speed 91 and no problems at all on summer months Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Browning Posted October 26, 2008 Report Share Posted October 26, 2008 why are people so quick to throw a lower thermostat in their car when it's overheating? You're just masking the problem and usually doesn't help anyways Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2 Sweet Posted October 26, 2008 Report Share Posted October 26, 2008 My fan stopped working years ago, so I replaced the relay and it fixed it for like two days, so I just ended up doing the manual switch thing Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Removed Posted October 26, 2008 Report Share Posted October 26, 2008 make sure the plastic shit under the nose that ducts air onto the radiator is all intact... the fan should kick on around 220 in your car you can buy an aftermarket switch that turns it on around 190 from jegs if the fan will not run without the ac on the temp switch that controls the fan is bad plus 1... gm kicked the fan on in the 2.8/3.1's so they could meet emission standards. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TA In Progress Posted October 28, 2008 Report Share Posted October 28, 2008 Like Dave already said, MAKE sure the air dam and air deflectors are all installed. I was out driving mine after I painted it without the air dam installed (too impatient I guess) and it ran almost 40 degrees hotter than normal. I reinstalled the air dam and problem was gone. It's very important on a car like ours with no grille, as the majority of the cooling air is directed to the radiator from below the bumper. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AJ Posted October 28, 2008 Report Share Posted October 28, 2008 i had a problem with my 92' running hot. a radiator flush took care of all my problems. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fictionwriter Posted October 28, 2008 Author Report Share Posted October 28, 2008 make sure the plastic shit under the nose that ducts air onto the radiator is all intact... the fan should kick on around 220 in your car you can buy an aftermarket switch that turns it on around 190 from jegs if the fan will not run without the ac on the temp switch that controls the fan is bad Thanks, but on the 90-92 the fan is ecm controlled. I actually have the switch, there's just nowhere to put it on my car lol. It's normally in the passenger side head. The fan comes on at 220-230 but by then it's too late. With the ac on the fan is on if I run under 40mph. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fictionwriter Posted October 28, 2008 Author Report Share Posted October 28, 2008 how much water is in the rad? are your running 70% water and 30% antifreeze? you should deff be doing this in the summer hotter months. water is your coolant. the antifreeze is only their to keep it from boling or freezing. 50 50 is not a good summer mis for these cars. or put a v8 in it. and use a universal alum rad two row. jegs 31x19 fits perfect use two fans. Thanks for the tip, that's probably gonna be cheaper than the griffen radiators people buy on thirdgen, and a two-row radiator would be better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ziggy1647545504 Posted October 28, 2008 Report Share Posted October 28, 2008 Like Dave already said, MAKE sure the air dam and air deflectors are all installed. I was out driving mine after I painted it without the air dam installed (too impatient I guess) and it ran almost 40 degrees hotter than normal. I reinstalled the air dam and problem was gone. It's very important on a car like ours with no grille, as the majority of the cooling air is directed to the radiator from below the bumper. My '86 Firebird nearly overheated on me when I curbed the air dam underneath and ripped it off. I pulled what was left off and didn't think much of it until 20 minutes later my temp gauge was climbing and that was the only thing that changed. I went to Dave Gill and bought a new one, and that fixed the issue. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fictionwriter Posted October 28, 2008 Author Report Share Posted October 28, 2008 Like Dave already said, MAKE sure the air dam and air deflectors are all installed. I was out driving mine after I painted it without the air dam installed (too impatient I guess) and it ran almost 40 degrees hotter than normal. I reinstalled the air dam and problem was gone. It's very important on a car like ours with no grille, as the majority of the cooling air is directed to the radiator from below the bumper. All air dams are in place. I think the partially blocked radiator is the likely culprit of my running slightly hot on the highway, but the in-town driving without the ac on over-heating is definatly GM's fault. When the fan comes on with the ac everything is peachy, when it comes on at 230 it's not enough to get the car cool again, P.S. - Jack - 180* thermo wasn't for the over-heating problem, though it did help slightly. I was just hoping to make my engine last longer with that one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave1647545494 Posted October 29, 2008 Report Share Posted October 29, 2008 car should cool fine if the fan works even if it comes on at 230 it should cool down I would try a good chemical coolant flush first and then a new radiator if the problem is not improved Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stimmel1647545512 Posted October 29, 2008 Report Share Posted October 29, 2008 car should cool fine if the fan works even if it comes on at 230 it should cool down I would try a good chemical coolant flush first and then a new radiator if the problem is not improved +1 a 5.0 that my buddy and I had had a similar problem and we did the good flush then a good new radiator that fixed the problem had same problem on a taurus same method fixed it OR....take those hot rims off your car I could see those adding to underhood temps Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Removed Posted October 29, 2008 Report Share Posted October 29, 2008 All air dams are in place. I think the partially blocked radiator is the likely culprit of my running slightly hot on the highway, but the in-town driving without the ac on over-heating is definatly GM's fault. When the fan comes on with the ac everything is peachy, when it comes on at 230 it's not enough to get the car cool again, then why did you come and ask for advise? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fictionwriter Posted October 29, 2008 Author Report Share Posted October 29, 2008 then why did you come and ask for advise? I was curious what other people have done to solve this - for instance, I learned that the air dams are indeed needed - I was wondering about that - also I hadn't thought of the dual fan thing. Another good idea I didn't know about. Additionally, I was hoping to start a thread that would help others who were having this prob. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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