i am going on a road trip tomorrow and my car runs at 230 on the interstate...if I am driving for 3 hours tomorow will this be ok? BTW i have a new stat, pump, and radiator all installed yesterday....

 

230* is hot especially at Interstate speeds. Is your coolant mix 70% water and 30% coolant? Did you install a 180* thermostat and is your rubber air dam in place? Even if the outside temperature is 100*, on the Interstate your engine temp should be below 220*. As long as your car is moving it'll be alright but, if you get stuck in traffic your engines going to get real hot and you'll have to turn the heater on to help cool it back down.

 

ummm actually its all radiator fluid.....no water..... i have no air dam.....the stat is just a stat from auto zone so.....

 

dude you need the air dam and you need a proper mix.

 

Water Absorbs Heat a lot better than Antifreeze. Drain the whole cooling system and save a gallon of the antifreeze. Pour back in the gallon of antifreeze and fill the rest of the cooling system with Water. That should give you the proper 70% water and 30% coolant mix. Make sure when filling the system that your heater is on and wait until your thermostat opens up (about ten minutes of idleing) so the entire cooling system gets filled.

 

Yes..the air dam....actually called an 'air deflector' or 'radiator baffle' is an absolute must. Without it you WILL overheat on the open road. How is your temp just driving around town? Did you get aluminum radiator and pump, or the stock GM part?

 

stock replacement pump......aluminum radiator......

 

Man...if your radiator is aluminum and your coolant/h2o ratio is good. The only thing holding you back is that stinking air deflector. Hey...btw...for aluminum radiators/ pumps is there a different spec on how much water should be in the sys [to avoid rust]?

At any rate. If you overheat on the highway, its gotta be your air deflector. You can get a used one (or new) for decent price at thirdgenresource.com.

 

yea doesnt antifreeze just prevent rusting and corrosion? as far as i know water is the better cooler of the 2 so change that and definately get the air dam

 

Coolant raises the boiling point of the water roughly 8-10 degrees with a 15psi system. It also acts as a wetting agent to provide better thermal transfer for the water. And of course it does contain the rust/corrosion inhibitors.

 

Mine stays below 200 on the interstate even going 75, but the IROC grille with no fogs shoots air right through the radiator. Not to mention shoots bugs right into it. Mine didn't have an air dam when I bought it, and still dosen't, but since a T/A doesn't really have a grill I guess it'd need one a lot more too. I'll bet there are a couple down at Darst we could snag sometime. BTW where you guys all been lately?

 

I've been working on the Pontiac all week. What else would I be doing??

 

Hey...wanted to ask you, I've got fog lights on mine and was considering removing them for better air flow, but am wondering if it makes a difference because the a/c condensor sits in between the two.