PROBLEM SOLVED! Why is my motor running cool? Help!

Haha yea that explains why the Sbc is ignoring the thermostat operating temp

 

Sounds kinda like a "First world Problem".
OMG!! Theyre out of Bacon wrapped Shrimp on the buffet.
Cover some of the radiator and rock on.

 

I have 180 thermostat and it runs 170 on highway.

 

Definately it is. I took off the thermostat housing and I can touch the sending unit. It is mounted right beside the housing in the intake.

 

Lolololol too true.

 

I am going to play with a thermostat change next week. I will get back to you guys after the weekend to tell you how it acted with a 195 stat. Thanks for all the ideas and support guys
Jay

 

Move down to aussie. Bet it will run a bit hotter down here!!

 

Lolololol I bet it would.

So I had sometime tonight and I got an old Steward Warner gauge from a buddy. I tested that gauge in a pot on the stove and it seems to work pretty good. I even used my wife's sweep meat thermometer to be sure that the gauge is accurate and it is . I am thinking that I will change out the gauge that is in my sun pro cluster for the SW gauge to just double check the gauge once more.

Until next week.
Jay

 

This is like a guy complaining that his wife wants to have sex all of the time... WTF? I wish I didn't have to watch my temp gage every time I hit some traffic.

 

I don't think it will hurt the motor to run at 140-150
Inboard boats run a 140 t stat when they use raw water cooling ( lake water,no heat exchanger)and they run day after day
It may use a little gas.

 

They get a little oil sludg build up at lower temp

 

I am a mechanic and work on OT cars for a living. New cars will set a check engine light for coolant temp below operating threshold. In normal terms, the engine running too cold. I have replaced dozens of thermostats and come to my own conclusion. The aftermarket thermostats open much sooner then they should. Only the dealer thermostats corrected the problem and made the car run at the temp it was supposed to. I even had a sbc in my 85 c10 with a huge cam, high compression, stall converter, and it would never get up to temp with a 180* stant thermostat. It always opened at 160* cooled down a bit and kept repeating the cycle. I also had no heater or bypass hoses. The only thing that made it run at a consistant 185* all the time no matter what was a thermostat from chevrolet. Just my experience, and offering my opinion to anyone who cares lol.

 

Yup.

 

Your car is just coooool.........rich

 

Put a rat in place of that mouse, that will warm things up. Nice looking 55!

 

Even the boat engine manufacturers are rethinking that policy. The 142 degree thermostats are now being replaced with 160-170 degree ones. I haven't sold a 142 thermostat in years. Part of the reason they originally went to cooler temperature ones was because when sucking in salt water the salt tended to cake up more at warmer temps but at the cooler temps it didn't do as much damage.

Don

 

Don I did not think of salt. We live on lake Erie.
My dad told me years ago that it was to help on "thermal shock" when you shut it down then fire it right up to move someplace else. sucking cold lake water into a warm motor

 

That doesn't sound like a problem, Enjoy the fact that your ride isn't cooking itself !!!!!

4TTRUK

 

yea, if you can manage to get it to run a little hotter, you might even be able to get some detonation happening. That would be fun...

 

Haha. Hate it when that happens.

Not to Hi jack but I drove mine today 180 miles to the drags. It was 80 degrees outside it never got over 160 on the road. My fastest pass was the first one when the motor was the coolest.

 

Seriously, the OP must not have enough strife in his life, running at 160 is NOT a problem in a well maintained, hot rod type engine, its more like a bonus.

 

My old 289 Ford was so worn out, dad cut two of the four blades off the fan just so we could have enough heat to keep the windows clear!

Anyway, if you block part of the grill opening, will it maintain a constant temperature? It could be just simply the air flow cooling the engine, much like a diesel and the "winter front" radiator covers. The air alone will keep temperatures to cool.

Raise the compression ratio a point or two, you will gain power and make enough heat to overcome all the aluminum!

Joe

 

Ok
So this is what I found out. I took the old gauge out of the car and replaced it with a tested SW gauge. I noticed that the sending unit that goes into the manifold now goes deeper than before! In fact I am pretty sure that the old copper looking sending unit might have only been partly submerged in coolant! The new adapter fitting sits a lot lower in the intake then before which makes the SW gauge sensor sit deeper in the coolant passage in the intake.

Now!
Sitting in the drive way with the electric fan running it sits at 190

Going down the road it runs between 170 and 180 no electric fan running!

I am a lot happier with these results.

Thanks to the fellas that took the time to add something useful and helped me sort this out.
Jay

 

By the way I broke the old sensor wire from the gauge to the temp sensor and it smelled really bad. What the hell is in in that wire?
Jay

 

No it wont! My daily with its tired old inline six runs around 120 on the open road on a cool day... with a 180 thermostat! Makes the heater almost useless.

 

I have said this a number of times. 160 works awesome in every way. My cars 1/4 mile times are the best at 160 and the dyno also proves this!!

 

my gauges have been checked and they are fine


Quote:
Originally Posted by Inked Monkey
Probably a dumb question, but is your temp gauge accurate?


55gasserkid said-
YUP!

Originally Posted by Hellfish
Have you verified that your gauge is accurate?


The gauge is good! Checked that and double checked it.




Sturgis 39

You have not explained how you tested the temperature gauge or the thermostat. This could help some people figure out the problem.



Gotta love this place huh?

 

Sorry. Thought that I had covered that. Might have in another post from before. I boiled the temp gauge and the stat along with my wife's turkey thermometer. That is why I believe that everything is accurate. The two temps increased and matched each other temperature wise. The thermostat opened at 180 too.
Jay

 

Is it a wire....... or a tube with a liquid inside, if so it is mercury, don’t drink it.

 

Typically they are filled with ether gas.

Read the last paragraph http://www.autometer.com/tech_faq_answer.aspx?sid=1&qid=4