how do you know when your over-heating?

My engine seems to be running hot. Or at least hotter than it did with my old engine, but not a lot more.

The temp gauge will climb all the way up to the M in norM. I would assume this means its over heating? Am I correct or not?

The old motor would go up to about the O and sometimes the M. This just doesnt seem right considering I have a 180 degree Robertshaw T-stat now and its running hotter.

It still runs hot even with the Max A/C on all the time. It just takes it longer to get all the way to the M but it ALWAYS does. Especially when I get on the freeway. It climbs fast even though the engine RPM's are about the same. It seems if I go over 45 MPH or into O/D, it gets hot fast. Then when I get off of the freeway, it cools down usually. If I just drive in the city and keep the Max A/C on, the needle stays below the below the N in Norm for a long time. It will idle there for a very long time too.

I just got done boiling my 180 degree thermostat(was currently in the car) and a 197(brand new never used) from Ford. They both open and the 180 definately allows for more water to pass through where the 197 as a much smaller water passage way. I also thought my Thermostat was in backwards, it was not.

Since my thermostat is good, what else could be causing the thing to get so hot? I have a new motor, new water pump, new radiator and also the new t-stat.

I took off the exhaust and checked the cats to see if they were clogged. As far as I could tell, they are not. I blew some air through them and felt it on the other side pretty well.

Any suggestions? I dont want to blow my new motor up like the last one. I am pretty sure the original motor spun the main berings because it ran too hot consistantly. Thanks for any help.

M in norm is right about where the puller fan kicks in which is 220 degrees in the stock PCM calibration so your not running hot according to the stock calibration. But, 220 degrees is to hot in my book as well as many others on these boards. What you need is a way to turn your cooling fans on at a lower temp like an eec tuner or a chip (not just any chip). My SC's (94 and 95) would do pretty much the same thing you described with the 180 and stock fan settings in hot weather. Come to think of it, they also did it with the stock 197 degree stats and hot weather. I've since added a chip to my 94 which among other things turns the puller fan at 193 degrees and the pusher fan on at 200 degrees. I've added an EEC tuner to my 95 and set the puller fan to come on at 194 degrees and the pusher fan at 200 degrees. Now the temp gauge needle never goes past the n in norm on both cars. However you do it, turning you fans on at a lower temp is a damm good idea.

Thanks Jimmy. I just bought 2 adjustable fan thermostats and I am going to use one for the low speed fan and one for the high speed fan. Going to set it up tomorrow at work. Maybe later on I'll upgrade to a custom chip or something. Where can I get one of those chips by the way? Thanks.

bigcletus94, I got the chip for my 94 SC last spring when Jerry W was burning chips but I believe he is no longer burning them. When I was considering a chip for my 95 SC I spoke to Jerry on the phone and he recommended/directed me to Performance Specialties. I ended up getting an eec tuner instead but heres a link to the web site Jerry gave me for chip. They do advertise chips for SC's with pretty much the same thing Jerry was doing with his chips.


http://iwantperformance.net/


Well it looks like they no longer list chips but there are other chip makers out there. Ask around.

If your temp climbs rapidly, like within 2 minutes you are low on coolant. These cars are notorious for having air trapped in the cooling system.

Next time your stuck on the side of the road with the hood up staring at your car take a look at where the rad cap sits. Anything higher than that has air in it. What happens is that air trapped behind the thermostat insulates it from the hot water. This causes erratic temp swings. Changing the RPM of the engine (driving) only makes it worse.

Check for things like a bad rad cap., crack in the overflow or any other leak.

When I first got my car I thought it was normal and didn't pay it much attn. but after a while of seeing a couple of other SC's that barely moved from the cold side I thought this might not be right.

It took me 4 months to get the overflow and rad caped fixed, because I thought "that couldn't be it". Well I was wrong.

Jeff

hmmm. my car tends to get warm quick. It gets to dead in the middle of O and R within about 5-6 minutes of driving even if i drive like an old woman. It pretty much stays there for the whole drive. sometimes if i get on it enough i will get to a little bit past the R. It keeps coolant, radiator looks full and i made it so my low speed fan runs all the time. Any ideas?

So how do you purge the cooling system??????

Hey guys, I'm having similair problems with my SC. I just bought it a couple months ago, and right away I changed the a/c compressor. Ever since I got it back, my temp guage had been running right between the R and the M on NORM. I know this is too hot, but I'm not sure how to fix it, or what to look for. My coolant tank is full, and the radiator isn't leaking. If you guys think messing with the fan would help, how would I go about doing that?

Purging the system:

Allow the car to cool.
Remove the bolt with the plastic washer that says "install before starting car" Use a backup wrench on the bottom so you don't twist the tube.
Remove the rad cap and fill it slowly until water comes out of the bolt you removed.
Replace the rad cap (might as well buy a new one).

Replace the bolt and run the engine with the fans off.


You want to heat up the engine so that any air trapped will excape through the overflow. Refill the overflow as needed. It might take several heating and cooling cycles before all the air is gone.

Jeff

It should take 10 minutes or more to get the needle to move, remember you have to heat the engine and any water in the engine. All the water is circulated through the engine until it reaches the opening point of the thermostat, then it moves to the rad. the cool water in the rad moves into the engine and the thermostat closes. When ALL the water temp is past the opening point of the thermostat, then the fan comes on to cool the water in the Rad. when the cooler water enters the block the thermostat starts to close and the cycle repeats itself.

Jeff