hydrawidow

I just got this car, 92 camaro with 305 motor, replaced the radiator and water pump already (separate issue with leaks) and found the water neck bolts seized to the intake so didn't fiddle with replacing the t-stat.

My problem is that with the a/c off, the car runs perfect, nice and cool. With the a/c on however, it seems to run much hotter, never gets hot but nevertheless runs hotter than normal.

I've never let it get hot but I'm worried that it will keep spiking (always shut the a/c off and roll down the windows if it hits mid line). I'm not sure if this is a known problem or if it's even a problem at all, as I work with mainly newer chrysler's and have never really worked with older vehicles. The car doesn't really move close to the middle mark on the temp gauge when I'm at idle, but as soon as I hit the gas and start moving it starts moving up and up.

I have pictures below and hopefully this is a normal thing, however if there is a place to start I'm open for suggestions.


Like I said I already replaced the radiator, water pump, flushed the coolant system, and pressure tested the system and is holding 16psi pressure all day long and no leaks. E-fan tested good and is kicking on like it should with a/c turned on.



Car running normal with a/c OFF, whether I'm moving or not, stays right there


Car running with a/c ON, sitting in traffic, doesn't move past this point, stays in that general area (sometimes moves colder than this)


Car running with a/c ON, moving (going about 30 mph at this point), gets to this point and I end up shutting the a/c off but not sure if it will move hotter than this point

evilemokid94

iTrader: (6)

That middle line is 220, these cars run there normally. Your fine

GICATA

Is the front spoiler/air dam in place?

hydrawidow

Yes the front air dam is in place. A little cracked but still directing air towards the condenser as it should.

one92rs

iTrader: (5)

is it the stock thermostat or a different temp. from the gauge you have a cooler therm in it. normally these cars run in the 230 range. so if it is running 220 with the a/c on that is doing well. and if it is getting hotter when going faster there is a restriction. 1.) either thermostat or 2.) air from the front. more than likely coolant.

hydrawidow

I'm not sure if it's a stock thermostat or not, seeing as it was running that cool under normal conditions with the a/c off however, I'd guess its a low temp t-stat.

Like I said in the original post, the water outlet neck bolts seem to be pretty tight on there, but for a 20 year old car I would imagine they would be. I am lead to believe there might be a problem with the t-stat and am wondering, is there any trick or tip to getting those bolts that hold the water neck to the intake manifold off?

I've tried blasting those things with PB and waiting a few times and no luck so far. Didn't really want to put too much torque on the bolts for fear they would snap and I'd be looking at a new intake manifold, neck, and t-stat.

hydrawidow

Just an update... I got the water neck off, only to find there was no thermostat installed, the previous owner was running it wide open. I also did some more testing and found that the electric radiator fan was not running when the a/c is not on.

I plan on installing a switch inside that way I can set it to run all the time when the vehicle is on. I will post later once the switch is installed to update, hopefully the car stops getting hot.

Stewie

It will actually run cooler with the proper temperature thermostat installed. Without a thermostat, at higher speeds or with the extra load of the A/C, the coolant gets hot in the engine and may run so fast through the radiator that it does not have a chance to be cooled. Thus, the engine runs hot. Put in a 195 degree stat.

SuperHawk996xx

iTrader: (1)

I agree with Stewie. I know several people that tried to put in a lower degree T-stat and got undesirable results. These cars run normally around 220 hince why so many of them end up in the junk yard due to worn out engines. Atleast thats my opinion.

SuperHawk996xx

iTrader: (1)

Why is your oil pressure so low??? Sorry, I just noticed. When I had my stock 305 in and it would run hot sometimes (due to not enough oil leaked out everywhere).