442 What dumb s**t did I do to my car today?? Running hot??

[Jims442]

I think you gauge is good, if you took the temp from your top hose near the housing for the thermostat you should add about 10° degrees for the insulation the hose provides. And it looks like your rad is working with the drop in temperature. At what temperature does your fan kick in?

It's toggled I have to turn it on and off. I usually just leave it on.

 

[pontiacgp]

It's toggled I have to turn it on and off. I usually just leave it on.

that is 1/2 the job, you have the bypass and now you need to wire in a switch so it comes on when a certain temperature is reached.....

 

[Jims442]

Bruce's rec's are spot on. There is an excellent chance that you wrecked the t-stat or the water pump.

No damage is going to occur at 240. Repeated 260+ is the problem.

Make sure the rad cap is good. 16 is good, an 18-20psi cap is better. And definitely confirm that your timing and carb on working as they should - delayed ignition timing or an excessively lean condition will cause silly coolant temps. Of course a heat gun is a needed item.

Please don't take this the wrong way - why the hell do you have the fan on a manual switch and not a thermostatic switch or both????
I've never seen pics of this before - does that fit under a stock hood?

No offense taken, I'm just happy for all the help. I picked up the car the way it is on a trade. I'm just now trying to fix all the bugs and make it how I want it. The hood is an after market fiberglass hood.

 

[Jims442]

that is 1/2 the job, you have the bypass and now you need to wire in a switch so it comes on when a certain temperature is reached.....

So what is it I actually need to buy?

 

[fleming442]

Painless 30111 Thermostatic Switch, 185 Degrees On, 175 Degrees Off

This thermostat from Painless Performance allows your electric fan to turn off and on at your desired temperature you want. Recommended for all electric fan installations, these thermostat switches are sure to keep your engine cool and running. 185 Degrees ON, 175 Degrees OFF Thermostatic switch...

www.speedwaymotors.com

 

[Jims442]

Painless 30111 Thermostatic Switch, 185 Degrees On, 175 Degrees Off

This thermostat from Painless Performance allows your electric fan to turn off and on at your desired temperature you want. Recommended for all electric fan installations, these thermostat switches are sure to keep your engine cool and running. 185 Degrees ON, 175 Degrees OFF Thermostatic switch...

www.speedwaymotors.com

Ty

 

[pontiacgp]

the switches come in different on/off degrees or you can get an adjustable switch. I have my efi system turning on the main puller fan at 200° and off at 195°. My secondary pusher fan kicks in at 215° and off at 205°. Both fans are Perma Cool and the adjustable switch is a Flex-a-Lite

 

[fleming442]

I'll bet your electric fan is probably junk, too. Get some OEM duals off of almost anything in the junkyard. I have 90s v6 Grand Am fans on the 67 and 4th gen F body fans on the 85 Bonneville. It takes some fabrication, but they're cheap and move a ton of air.

 

[Jims442]

The one thing I have to say is . Who ever built this motor, looks like they didn't skimp on the motor. But why skimp on the basic safety issues for keeping the motor running to it's optimum performance? Cheap braided hoses and a half *ss set up for cooling. Makes no sense to me.

 

[64nailhead]

The one thing I have to say is . Who ever built this motor, looks like they didn't skimp on the motor. But why skimp on the basic safety issues for keeping the motor running to it's optimum performance? Cheap braided hoses and a half *ss set up for cooling. Makes no sense to me.

Never can tell how that occurred or the thought process behind it. I build all of my own crap and every time I find a cheesy deal (that I setup) out it goes. Try to save a buck, have a better idea, or just a flat out overlooked or under estimated something - doesn't matter - fix them all as yo find them.

My most recent escapade of money wasted was trying to save a buck on a transmission program - saved me about $700 and now I'm spending $1300 to save that $700. In case you couldn't tell, that is some bad math. HEHE. The worst part is that I'm at 3 weeks of not running and still counting.