Hi guys...

I know this subject has probably been beat to death and I HAVE tried searching, but can't seem to find the answer I need. I have an '86 Iroc with a 355TPI that I just installed. Everything seemed fine with the 305 (until it froze and busted) but now it runs really warm around town but does fine at highway speeds. It has a new radiator, new water pump, new hoses, new 180* thermostat and new fan motor that is straight wired to run all of the time. The motor does have some mods and headers, estimated 300 HP and 375 TQ. Anyone have any suggestions? I think the radiator is full of JUST antifreeze, would that matter? Thanks for your ideas on this. Oh, and the water pump is a high flow Flow Kooler and the radiator is an aluminum 2 row with plastic tanks from Advanced Auto (I know... I did NOT buy it the guy before me did...). Oh and there is no trash between the AC condensor and the rad. Thanks guys!!!!

 

sounds to me like you need a bigger fan or a bigger 3 or 4 core radiotor, good luck

 

When you say a "bigger fan" do you mean more CFM's? Also, if I were to get a "stock" 3-row brass/copper radiator, would this be better then what I have? Thanks!

 

full of JUST antifreeze, thats not really a good idea.

i would do a 50/50 mixuter of coolant and water,also what radiator cap u using? 16 psi.

i run the 16 psi stant and modine advance auto parts stock replacement radiator and it does pretty good in traffic.

make sure to get all the air out also. try that coolant mixture first.

 

Thanks guys! I'll try those suggestions.

Another question.... I have heard that removing the weatherstripping on the back of the hood will act as a "poor man's cowl". Would this help keep the engine cooler and are there any negatives in doing this?

 

If the radiator is full of only antifreeze(wow, that would be expencive), this is a problem for any vehicle. Antifreeze does not transfer heat well, 100% water will result in maximum cooling, however antifreeze adds added protection from freezing and has additives that help keep everything in the system alive.

The recommended mixture level is 50/50 which with a 16lb cap will give you a boing point of ~260*F. If your looking for maximum freeze protection a mixture of ~66% antifreeze and 33% water will protect to ~ -90*F, any more than 66% and the protection level gets worse, but who needs protection to -90*F anyways.

get it to a 50/50 mixture before you do anything else

 

A couple more ?'s...

Would it help if I changed to a dual fan setup or a single fan with more CFM's??

Second, how would I find out if I have air in the system? Tank has fluid and also the rad seems full when the car isn't running. Oh, and it has a 16lb cap too.

I talked to the guy that filled the radiator up (he did it one night after I went home) and he said it is not full of just antifreeze, he did mix some water with it. Oh, BTW... How much fluid does the cooling system hold anyway???

THANKS GUYS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

I may have missed this but, how hot is it getting? 200, 220? 260?

You should also get your antifreeze tested to see what level of protection you have(which will give you an idea of your mixture)

Since it is a new motor, was the block thuroughly checked for cracks? or possible head gasket problems, is the oil milky??

I found this site for you on how to get the air out of the system. (click here)

We'll keep trying, lol.

EDIT: fixed the link, my bad

 

Thanks for the site!

The engine (according to the stock guage) is getting over 1/2 way mark which is 220 and sometimes approaches the 3/4 mark when I am driving around town. Stays around 180-190 on the highway (180* thermostat). The oil looks just fine and isn't milky and I don't seem to be losing any coolant. Do you have any idea how much coolant a 350 should hold?

Thanks again!!

 

Dunno if this helps but my 350 runs about 220 around town, when I first had it out I could feel the heat thru the firewall thought she was burning up.. but no... she loves the heat. Got a single fan too, should probably beef her up with another fan, guess ill see how she runs, bought a $50 temp gage so I could really see the temp, much happier now....
my $0.02