I'm so sick about this that I'm about ready to cry.

This past winter we rebuilt a 5.7 LO5. After it was put in we got it to fire up, my uncle (first start mind you) didn't have his hearing aids in (they had to be sent back to the VA to get repaired) and he just totally floored it and I thought it was going to blow up. He revved it so high and so loud, I jumped back away from the car because it scared the snot out of me.

Got through winter no problem, but a couple weeks ago when the weather started getting warm, I noticed a slight knock. Especially with no load on the car, at idle and when letting up on the gas.

It's getting a lot louder and I'm about ready to go into a panic attack because it's all I have right now. I can't afford another vehicle and I'm not (until I die) getting rid of it.

What I am wondering is if it is possible to drop the pan with the engine still in the car and if so, what is required? If a bearing spun, I want it replaced NOW, or rather tomorrow since the weather is going to be halfway decent.

Do I need to unhook the radiator and anything else?

OIL PUMP! It will be changed.

Also, the oil pressure is fluctuating at times, which it's never done before. And it is now going to ZERO at idle.

At this point I'm not sure what else to do.

Thanks for any advice you can give.

 

If it is a spun bearing, you will have to pull the motor out to replace it and fix whatever damage it has done. You might as well go through the whole thing while its apart and do a full rebuild.

 

X2

 

I'm broke and can not rebuild it. I thought I heard somewhere that you can drop the pan with the engine still in the car. I was wanting to do that just to inspect and then see about going from there. Or even replacing with an aluminum bearing just to limp around for awhile.

 

If it were me, I would not even entertain the thought of doing that. Even if you managed to replace the bearing that is spinning it would probably just spin again in short order without fixing the issue that caused this problem in the first place. Cheapest / fastest option would probably be to get a motor from a yard and swap it in.

 

+1

You're likely going to need to do a full rebuild. Generally a spun bearing means rebuild time. You'd at least have to pull it apart and clean it all out and probably get the crank journals ground .010 under and get new oversized bearings. If you just replace the bearing and leave it alone, you're gonna spin more bearings pretty soon anyway. It'll get worse and worse very quickly regardless of how you try to fix it from here unless you tear it down and rebuild it.

Find a donor engine.

 

It actually sounds worse in person.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HB57v9NbKAk

I'm going to have to sell my soul and get another engine somehow.

Anyone familiar with Strauss Automotive in West Alexander, PA? I'm told I can get an engine with only 33,000 miles for about $500. I didn't ask what year it was, but I think I can go up to a 95 with TBI?

Another local yard has one for $550, but didn't say how many miles.

I need to come up with the money somehow because I can't be without a car. Too many medical problems and doctor visits.

 

calm down and do basic research, have you even gone to the effort to pull the valve covers and LOOK! it might be just a busted rocker, theres a dozen tests you need to do!

 

Might be someone on here willing to give you a 305 to drop in it. I just offered mine for trade on some parts I need. If he doesnt take it, you can have the 305 for free.

 

Spun bearings are rarely an inexpensive repair. The heat created from spun bearing can transfer to the block or rods. If it's main bearing, the block should be line honed and the bearing cap usually needs to be replaced. If it's a rod bearing the rod usually need to be replaced. If the crank has been scored it needs to be machine or replaced. Get it magnafluxed for cracks before aany machine work.

In most cases, simple damage like a spun bearing is cheaper to buy a short block and just replace it. Unless you have a lot of exotic parts such as aftermarket steel crank, forged pistons, H beam rods etc, it's not worth all the machine work to try to fix it unless you have the ability to do all that work yourself or know someone who can do it cheaply.

 

i say if your willing to buy a used engin for 500 i would just put that into your block and have the pice of mind of knowing it has new parts...500 will go a long way in a smallblock..look at craigslist and talk to your local speed shop..and just pulling and rebuilding should only take a few days more

 

Here's a little more info: (6 months after rebuild)

The first thing we did was pull the valve covers and make sure the lifters/valves were adjusted and working correctly.

While still using 10w30, the oil pressure (around 45-50 at cold start) was dropping to zero at idle after the engine warmed up, so I put in 20w50 and it doesn't quite go all the way down now, but close. It did in fact help a little with the knocking, but is still very loud after warm-up.

It's really bad when you are driving and let up on the gas slightly. It's a pretty deep knock, but then sounds more like a loud rattle-knock during slight deceleration. Very embarrassing driving because everyone is turning their heads to see what the noise is going down the road. One neighbor commented on how well she can hear it inside her house.

The knocking gets extremely bad after the engine is hot, but no "ear detectable" knocking when cold.

Removing plug wires while running doesn't change anything. Main bearing?

The oil had a metal flake in it that stuck to a magnet, but the oil as a whole had a dark (very dark) grey eerie metallic tinge. Really strange and the oil was only about three weeks old with less than 250 miles.

One of my uncles knows someone who owes him, but has no idea if he can get an engine from him; he said he'll try.

He asked me what year engine I needed and my quick response was: RUNNING! lol

I told him if it is an older carb engine, the four middle intake holes will need drilled slightly with my TBI intake because of the different angles.

Would scare the snot out of me, but I would still do it. I just hope it’s reliable and does not leak. I'm hoping for the best, which is all I can really do right now.

 

Short oil life doesn't mean much. A metal flake could have been trapped somewhere if the block wasn't thoroughly cleaned during the last rebuild. Sacrifice an oil filter. Buy a new one and put it on. Cut open the old filter. Take a chunk of the media and squish it in a vise to get the oil out then open it up and look inside. If you see a lot of metal, you can assume you have internal damage such as a bad bearing.

Bad rod bearings will knock. Bad main bearings or cam bearings won't make any noise until the seize up.

 

let's not forget the wrist pin on the piston that will give a deep knock..and unlikely as it is if that lets lose you can kiss your engin goodbye for sure.....and as silly a question as this is..did you check the flexplate? them bolts can back off and knock like hell

 

Although bad wrist pins could be the result of a lack of oil, they won't be the cause of low oil pressure.

 

my bad i missed that info

 

I have another update!

Was able to get another engine!!! A family member bought it with their Visa from a full service junkyard and I'll never hear the end of it until I get it paid off, but am very grateful and will take the "nag" abuse with a smile!

It came out of a 92 4x4. They started it up to verify it ran good before yanking it, but it was wrecked and stands to reason it was running; it has a 100 day warranty.

The spark plugs and oil look good and I bought some of that Rislone zinc/phosphorus treatment to put in for the flat tappets.

I still need to get oil and since I'm fairly broke, I’m wondering if Advance Auto generic oil is safe? It has the API ratings. I would assume it is safe or you would be hearing about engine failure all over the place. I just wonder who makes it for them?

It took them over an hour past closing time to yank it, so they gave me the engine with ALL accessories since it would take too long to strip and I now have my 350 injectors and ESCM that I've been wanting!!! I already have an ECM from a Caprice with a 350. The ESC Module is actually engine mounted on the trucks, as is the MAP sensor. Since it is a complete 350 now, I guess I'll have around 210 HP?

I also need to change the oil filter adapter because it had an oil cooler and also has the oil filter sticking out sideways toward the front. I WISH I had an oil cooler, but perhaps some day. I also want a separate transmission cooler, but that will be on down the road somewhere as well. Someone said you can use your condenser, but is bad for it in the winter because it runs too cold.

Know anyone needing the aluminum accessories mounts for a 92 truck?

Did look to see if the alternator is the same, but my existing one has a lifetime on it anyway. I wish the compressor would work, but they appear different.

My uncle is going to keep the old 93-350 block and I'll buy a part for it every now and then until I have everything needed for a full rebuild, which will include a new crankshaft, rods, pistons and will have the block bored 30 over and I'm going to ditch the 305 heads.

The 93 has threads for the spider thingy, so I'll be able to put a roller cam in when the time comes.

But this is going to take a few years to complete and will be done correctly with the use of a micrometer and plastigauge for each bearing. One of my uncles is trying to talk me into making it into a 383, but I told him I think the block has to be machined for the 400 counterbalances to work? I really don’t need to go that far anyway and would just be an unwanted expense.

I have no idea how many miles are on this engine because I forgot to ask, but it does not appear to be the original. It has a C stamped before the other numbers on the left rear block ID slab thingy, which I'm told indicates it is a crate engine and you can tell the front and rear intake has been resealed/changed. It has a 5.7L casting number, but I need to check the other numbers on the front to determine if it is an original. Since it could be a crate, I'm going to get the casting numbers from the heads as well and see if only the block was replaced.

Going to try and put it in tomorrow.

 

you'll make the same horsepower with a 383 as you will a 350... The 383 just does it at lower RPMs. If you can throw an extra $500 at making the bottom end work out do it, but if money is tight you'll be better off putting that money into better cylinder heads... AFR's or the like plus a decent roller cam will get you 400hp to the wheels if you build it right.

As far as a 383 goes... You'll need to get a special crank and you'll need to get the rotating assembly and flywheel balanced. Tell them not to modify the flywheel(or flexplate) when they balance it! Then you'll need to get the block machined to fit the longer stroke, as the rod ends stick out farther from the crank centerline, and certain places will hit the side of the block as it rotates. So you'll need to get your block clearanced. Its not a LOT of extra cost, but it's enough of an extra cost that if money is tight I think you're better off putting it into heads/cam etc. Bottom end doesnt make power, the top end does. A 383 will make more power if you're approaching 100 percent volumetric efficiency on a 350, but if you cant afford heads capable of that on a 383, youre better off putting heads capable of that on a 350... make sense? That's just my opinion, though. Theres a gray area where you have heads "good enough" that are cheap and you can get a decent power boost from putting them on a 383 compared to on a 350, but I think in the majority of cases the improvement is pretty negligible. The catch about making power with a 383 is you dont have to spin the engine as fast to do it.

Since it came out a 4x4 truck AND has the machining for the roller spider - it's most likely not stock to the truck. The stock truck engines of that era didnt get roller cam hardware nor the machinework to install it. See what the heads are, they may be better than the stock swirlports on those trucks.

 

Well here's the strange thing.

The engine I'm removing came from a truck and it has the spider threads.

The temp replacement engine I'm getting ready to put in came from a 4x4 and it also has the threads for the spider.

I just found out today when I changed the intake gaskets due to the front and rear seal job leaking from a previous reinstallation.

I am going to check the rest of the casting numbers here in a bit. I did not get the casting numbers from the heads yet, but can do that tomorrow.

I need to change the timing chain as well because it has 4 degrees of play!

 

Its possible that GM just used the same blocks for both the engines with and without rollers. Does it actually HAVE the threads? Or is it just the area in the casting where the threads would be? I suspect theyre just the same blocks, but with different machining in the timing set area for the older style timing sets.

 

http://www.bobistheoilguy.com/forums...Number=2025870

Theres some pics of a TBI truck block. Has the raised portion for the spider, and deep lifter bores, but is still machined like a regular flat tappet block.

 

These are actually threaded. I should have taken pics, but they were tapped on both blocks.

The casting numbers on the temp engine are 14093638. This seems to be a common casting.

It also has CP1206055 stamped on another location. The 93 block has a similar number that traced it to being a crate replacement engine, but I can not trace this one.

 

It did not have a spun bearing, but they were all tore up on the crank side. The main bearings were particularly toasted and the oil looked like a nice metallic or pearl type paint.

The car had been running hot and I'm not sure why. It was on it's third thermostat, everything was circulating right and it's a reverse water pump, but ran hot.

It went to 260 and just stayed pegged the day I parked it for the engine swap and it had not been low on coolant, but it definitely boiling over.

I think one head cracked (#5 plug looked new) I HAVE NO IDEA how the car kept running, (over 30 miles that day) although it stalled 5 times after coming to a stop even though I tried to keep it going. I also had to keep it floored to start back up. I think the knock sensor may have been retarding it too much or something and it was surging. The dang thing became so loud from the bearing knock that people everywhere were turning their heads to look; it was embarrassing.

Besides the horrible knocking, it started making diesel sounds, which was probably from being overheated.

What the hell kept this thing from throwing a rod or breaking the crank?

Also, it had aluminum main bearings. This new motor also has aluminum mains, which I thought was odd. The bearings were stamped 93 on the new engine and it's suppose to be from a a 92, but the old engine was suppose to be a 93 and had 92 bearings. Warranty engine on the new one?

The mains on the new engine are non standard. .001 on the rear main and .0006 (yep, three zeros and a six) on the rest; rods are standard. Luckily the new engine's mains are acceptable. Didn't know they were using aluminum mains for those years. The old engine also mostly had .0006 mains with exception of the rear main, which was standard. Strange sizes.

Should fire the new one up tomorrow. It's in place and the motor mounts are bolted are in, so it's all about bolting the transmission and connecting everything else up now.

I'm not keeping the old engine to rebuild.

Wish me luck.

 

New engine is in and I've been running it for a couple days. This engine runs much better than the last two 350's with the 305 heads. The throttle seems a little smoother from the start because the 350 with the 305 heads would jump when I stepped on the gas, but this one takes off fairly smooth. I actually like it and I've not pushed the pedal down very much when taking off because I'm being gentle on the new rod bearings.


No knocking, which sounds great and the oil pressure stays above 30 when driving (almost 60 when cold) and once the car is hot it will usually idle around 30 and sometimes just touching the lower part of the 30 at idle when it's really hot.


Car is either running hot or the gauge and sensor are screwed up. It's running at the first notch before the red while driving around in town with the fan on. I should have left the truck sensor in, but didn't know if they were in the same resistance range. I'll have to check and maybe put it back in because I'm still using the Advance Auto replacement sensor.


I'm beginning to wonder if they gave me the wrong water pump or something because the last engine ran warm and I'm using the same (new) pump. Would a high volume pump solve this? I'm going to try and sweet talk my friend with the IR temp gun into checking it soon because it's worrying me. It's hard getting him to do anything that doesn't consist of being in front of his computer.


When the outside temp is cool, such as later at night, it's running just below 220. I once again put in a brand new 180 and it's still going to the first notch before red and then dropping to just below 220 when the stat opens and then climbs from there. If I'm on flat road, it runs just above 220 and it started touching the red today when going up a hill. Outside temp was around 80-83. This stat has 3 bleed holes, so it shouldn't be going up and then dropping.


Is there any way to tell if they gave me the wrong water pump? The belt is running it correctly in reverse (counterclockwise).


The top heater hose is squirting coolant out, so I'm assuming it's working in the right direction; I'm using a 50/50 mix.


I'm beginning to think it's the replacement plastic/aluminum radiator. I never had this problem with the 3 core brass/copper rad, but then that was with a different sensor. I wish I could have continued using it, but it was getting too rotted to fix anymore.


The fan motor is new and I leave it run all the time in town.


When it's registering the first notch before red and I turn the fan off, it goes off and I have a new thermal radiator switch in the head, but I'm afraid to let it run long enough to see if it comes on because of what the gauge is reading. It scares me because of what the last engine did.

After the car is idle for 5-10 minutes, it cools back down to just above 220, which is where it's at while cruising on flat roads.


Okay, before I begin panicking, I'll get my friend to use his temp gun on it and see what it shows in relation to the gauge and then go from there I guess.

 

does the car have the air dam? is it damaged?

 

The air dam seems to be good to go.

It cools slightly out on the highway on level roads.

It heats up pretty high in slow city driving even with the fan running constant. It's a new fan motor and is running very well. The old original motor still worked, but was starting to wobble and make noise because of the bearings and I'm keeping it in the trunk as an emergency backup.

If I'm in the city driving 20-25mph and the temp is the first notch before the red, it will drop down a little to just above 220 (or in between 220 and the first notch before red) once on the highway until I come to a hill, then it really heats up past the first notch before the red.

Slow speed hills also cause it to heat it up pretty good.

Driving in town and up hills is killing me. It's not as bad later at night.

 

Overheated pretty bad today all the way to 260 and the car was making diesel like sounds. Once I got out of town and back on the freeway, it came down to just above 220.

I'll be going over everything tomorrow to see if anything is out of place or even if for some crazy reason the fan is running backwards, but as far as I can tell everything is correct. Unless it's that dang new plastic/aluminum radiator; my old 3 core brass never did this. To help with the problem, I even took out the condenser to let more air in, but it didn't change. The bottom radiator hose is still very stiff (when hot) and is not collapsing under any throttle condition. That is one of the first things I checked because it was going to be replaced immediately if it showed even the slightest sign of collapse.

I'm SO hoping I find something significant and easy to fix tomorrow.

This engine has a miss with load. I'm going to change the plugs and wires to see if that helps. I have 3 coils and and an extra distributor I can swap around if things don't straighten out, but it cruises fine, it's just when there is a little load on the engine, like when you are starting out or going up a hill is when it starts intermittently missing really bad; it's much worse after the engine is hot.

I like the fact that there are less fumes with this engine, although I'm not sure why unless it had something to do with the 305 heads on the previous 350 engines? The exhaust fumes were unbearable with both previous engines using the same 89 305 heads.

I'm also now using the 55lb 350 injectors compared to the old 305 40's or whatever they were. The fumes could be extremely unbearable on the old engines, but this engine is very clean running. The ESCM was also changed and the ECM is from an 89 Caprice with a 350. The check engine light only comes on under certain conditions like when the EGR valve should be opening, but will go back off. I'm not used to it going back off. Will be hooking the EGR system back up to see if it works correctly. The EGR valve was bad on the last two engines, but I haven't tested this one yet.

The oil pressure is still above 30 when driving, but has been dropping close to the first line when idling. It could be due to the extreme temps the engine is running and thinning the oil way out I guess?

The old engine had problems with oil pressure, but this one seems to be fairly normal. Using 10w30 with the zinc phosphorus additive for the flat tappet cam. Since this engine has the threads for the spider, I may somewhere down the line put a roller system in. The additive costs $10, but that is for a quart mixed with oil. Not sure if you can just get the additive itself cheaper.

It's amazing being able to start this engine and not hear any knocking. I love it, but if I don't get this overheating problem fixed pretty soon, things will probably turn bad quick and I don't have that kind of money.

 

Sounds like it was getting pretty toasty if it was going into detonation under light load. How much timing are you running? If you have too much base timing, that will dump A LOT of heat into the engine.

I know there are two versions of the water pump for both CW and CCW operation. I suppose its possible to get the wrong one and still have some cooling at high RPMs/speeds. Even when my engine was new, it never ran hotter than 220 with the fan going and the single core radiator. Is the rad clean inside? It could be blocked with crap, which would cause cooling issues. But, since its new, I assume its clean. FWIW, the single core rads actually work pretty well when they have good airflow. Also, hows the thermostat?

It def. shouldnt get that hot with a working fan and a good radiator. Either its a circulation issue, or something is excessively tight in the engine.

 

New plugs and wires today and the miss is gone!

I bought the CR43TS plugs that the truck engine called for, gapped them at .035, put new 8mm Silicone enhanced whatever wires on and set the timing. I did unplug the wire and reset the computer when done. I've learned a lot from you guys!

The timing was all out of whack. It was way up to the top of the scale (almost not touching) and I adjusted it at 2º before and will see how it does tomorrow in 90 degree weather.

I held off on putting the high volume pump on since the timing was so far advanced.

The radiator looks clean inside and I just changed the coolant with this engine swap.

I just put a brand new (180) Superstat in with the swap, but the previous one was just put in this spring. The Superstat has three tiny bleed holes designed into it.

This uncle is 15 miles from home and I took back roads. Temp went to almost the first line before the red after going up a couple hills, but then returned to just above 220 after that, although it took awhile.

Still can't get my friend off his rear with the IR gun, but at least it didn't go to the red.

2º before won't be too much, will it? I can always try zero if I still have problems. I need to get another breather or modify this one, but for now I'm running with the lid upside down because of the restriction from the standard 305 breather. My uncle has some snipping and cutting tools along with a welder, so we may try to rig two of them into a single breather with two inlets. I can not afford one of those HO Camaro breathers.

This thing runs so much better than my last two engines, but they were using the same 305 heads. Speaking from experience, I do not recommend doing that.

 

Another possibility is that the gauge in the dash isnt accurate. Mine says its "260+" when in fact the engine is still less than 225. IR gauge pointed at the upper rad hose can tell you what the actual temp is.

 

take it back to the person that rebuilt the engine and have warrantee cover it.

 

I finally got my friend with the IR temp gun to check it!!!

When I reached his location, the dash gauge was showing the first line before the red and his gun pointed at the thermostat housing showed 183 with slight fluctuations.

I'm not sure what the actual temp is when it goes in the red and was not able to stay and let the engine heat up with the fan off because he was in a cemetery ghost hunting that does not allow cars after dark and I didn't want fined.

Does the mark between 220 and 260 represent 240? If that's the case, it means the gauge is off by 57 degrees and when it's at 260, my temp would really be 203. Then why was it boiling over when the last engine was at 260 with the same sender?

I am relieved and will probably take the high volume pump back tomorrow... Or I could sell it for $20 and make a $4 profit. lol. After my discount, I only paid $16.23 and it's the GMB high volume pump that Summit sells for $80! I'll take it back and exchange for another sender or something.

I almost put it on today because by the time I got to my uncle's house who lives on a hill, it was in the red.

Is there anything I can do to get an accurate reading by changing the sensor or getting some kind of axillary gauge to mount somewhere? I'm assuming this sensor works by decreasing resistance with heat, so trying to put some sort of variable resister inline won't work.

Why would normal temp read as just above 220? It stays just below 220 for some time and then settles just above. It stays just below 220 when it's cold out. Faulty sender??? I don't know what else it could be.

 

Go to Autozone and get the right temp sender for your car, not for the truck engine.

According to the website, for a 89 TBI Camaro, the switch you need is SU109.
Using http://www.wellsve.com/ecatalog.html, gives GM part num 25037182.

Pick either one. My Autozone works fine and it's probably the cheaper option.

If the size isn't the same, as was in my case, go to Home Depot and get a WATTS adapter. On the 350, it took a bigger sender. I had to use the WATTS adapter for the smaller sender.

 

The current sensor was actually bought for the 89 from Advance Auto. I think it's still under warranty, so I can try to exchange it.

 

Still running good and I've put about 400 miles on it. It's getting around 20mpg with mixed driving. I may be driving it 250 miles round trip one day next week and can see how the highway mileage is.

The exhaust sometimes smells like it has a little oil in it after going down a hill and I resume throttle, but it does not smoke when first started or after it's running.

I'm going to take my temp sender in for exchange tomorrow. If the new one works correctly and I'm confident my car isn't badly overheating, I'll let it run with the fan off and see when the in head switch closes or I can try to persuade my friend to monitor it with his IR gun just to be sure because I don't want to take any chances.

I want to thank everyone for all your advice! I'm tickled pink that it's finally running good!

 

Just when I thought I was done. My car stalled tonight for no apparent reason after driving slow looking for a house address. I'm hoping it does not continue to do this, but it did happen after letting up on the gas and stepping on the brake. I was only going about 10-15 mph, let up on the gas, stepped on the brake and it died. Started right back up and was ok the rest of the night.

I removed the sender and took it back to Advance Auto for exchange and the guy there gave me a nasty hard time about it. The sender is lifetime guaranteed, but for some reason it was listed as only having a year with the online order receipt and because it didn't show the purchase date on my printer receipt, he wouldn't do it.

He acted like I was lying. Even if it did only have a year on it, it's been less than that since I bought it. He was NOT very helpful at all and for the first time, I got a little ticked at them.

I bought it at another local Advance Auto and that gave them another reason not to exchange it. He said their computers aren't linked. Call the other store then, dang it!

I took it back to the other store and the guy gave me no trouble whatsoever. He looked at my online printed order/receipt and went by that. He verified what it was for, I told him it was for an 89 Camaro, Vin E 305 and his computer showed lifetime, so he simply exchanged it. It's only a $13 sender anyway.

When I put the truck sender back in, I thought I would plug it in just to see what it did; it has a different terminal. It is a round brass terminal whereas the one from Advance is sticking straight out. The connector goes on sideways, but it went right on. What's even more interesting is that it appears to be giving me the CORRECT reading!

Is that crazy or what? Here is a camera phone pic. This is what appears to be it's normal running temp when on the highway or idling with the fan on for awhile. It has been going to just barely above 220 when driving around town in frequent stop and go traffic. I'm not sure I want to put the Advance sender in now. When this was taken, it was starting to get dark, but still about 85 out.



This is the Advance sender.

http://shop.advanceautoparts.com/web...1650030019____

 

might wanna stop for gas lol

 

That's another thing that needs fixed. The in tank sender is not working correctly and the gauge is all over the place at times.

I did put gas in right after this pic was taken though.

After I saw the picture, I wondered if anyone would comment on the gas gauge.

But I'm assuming that is normal temp? IIRC, this seems to be around what it ran before the first sender was partially destroyed.

I guess I have no reason to put the Advance sender on now and will just keep it as a spare.

The orange wire is for the VATS. I need to wire in a switch or something for extra security. I have a resister on it because I swapped steering columns and my old cylinder lock had been making intermittent contact and sometimes the car wouldn't turn over, so I used my multimeter to find it's resistance and bypassed it.

 

If you can verify that the gauge is correct with the temp gun again, it should be good. From what I can tell, the gauage says it's 190*+. That is the right temp.

 

If the gauge is reasonably correct now, then yes, that is a good temp. It may go as high as the 220 or thereabouts, at least it does on mine when it's hot.

 

The baseline was running at just above the first line last night, but it was a little chilly out

And then of course going through another town with lots of little hills, the temp went to just above 220. I still have that high volume pump... Seems to be giving me more trouble at lower speeds in town, (even with fan running) but then the hills around here are killers.

BTW, this is nuts... A local scrap yard gave $50 for the blown engine and some other metal pieces with it such as the truck manifolds, pressure plate and flywheel. I was amazed because I thought it would only be up to about $35.

 

It's been going 220 + while driving around town with hills.

Perhaps with all the frequent slow driving I to do and elevated temps at the lower speeds, using the high volume pump would benefit?

I guess I'm just looking for an excuse to put it on instead of taking it back to Advance after the hard time they gave me over a $13 sender.

 

Advance Auto manager called me to talk about my negative experience. I don't wand to talk to him, I'm just getting my parts from another local franchise owner from now on.

My uncle was at a yard sale today and came across two variable temp fan controllers for only a few bucks. He's giving me one, so I'm tickled pink! I'm going to wire it in parallel to the in head switch for added protection.

This is the model. They are sold at Jegs and Amazon as well.

http://www.summitracing.com/parts/FLX-31147

Should be interesting figuring out the best place to put the sensor. I'd rather it go on the engine than the radiator hose or wherever it goes.