gm air dam, do i ned it?

M

Merlon

Registered User
so i have heard that yes i should have an air dam. but my car doesnt overheat unless im going 100+

drove 50 miles freeway yesterday didnt overheat until i started to hit triple digits. even then took it off the highway and it cooled down in minutes to normal operating temps.

other than that im good in traffic and around town driving. its like $27 here, but if i really dont need it, because mostly i wont be getting 100mph time in with my car, should i spend the cash?

could buy a pizza, some zaino...something, a fan for the intercooler. dont even remeber having ti, maybe once, then i went on 101 and that freeway tore it off?
 
My old car didn't have one cause I hit a bump too hard. Current one has it. It cools itself off driving into 2nd gear. I was recently stuck in standstill traffic for 30 mintues plus. Having just put it back together I was watching all the guages. As soon as it the traffic broke, and I was on my way, the guage immediately started reading cooler. The less time you spend with a hot engine the longer it will last.
 
I ran with no airdam for awhile and on the highway anything past 60mph it would be slightly past the M on the gauge. I just put in a stock airdam today and in 80degree weather highway temps are between the N and O
 
Are you guys running one or two air dams (front bumper cover sandwiched in between them) as alluded to in some older posts? I just went out and picked one up at the Chevy dealer for $19.50. Just curious if the one lower air dam is sufficient or if two is that much better.
 
Anyone Have The P/n For The Air Dam That Works? For Some Reason My Computer Wont Let Me Search ( I Hate These Darn Things Sometimes)...
Thanks
 
so a chevy dealer would have it>

would it be cheaper? pontiac seems to this its worth $27 bucks!!! ill try a chevy dealer, see if they are more reasonable.
 
found a courtesy chevrolet that sells it for

$19 bucks...to bad it wont be here till monday. if i ordered it yesterday, id have it today.
 
Merlon said:
would it be cheaper? pontiac seems to this its worth $27 bucks!!! ill try a chevy dealer, see if they are more reasonable.
Click to expand...

Even at $27 it is much cheaper than about any other cooling modification that you can make. In the big picture it's really not that much at all. Not any different than an oil change, etc. It's something small that can be done that will make a big difference in the cooling capability of your SC.

I spend more than that on my oil changes and I change the oil myself...
 
yeah i spend $15 on an oil change

from a mechanic i know. does it at price of materials

id rather a mechanic touch it down there, rather than a jiffy lube novice.
 
yeah its seems worth it

my cars not a hot car, it usually runs cool. but it will stumble in boost when warm....think thats a seperate issue, maybe clogoed injectors, or pplugs...

so hard to change em though
 
You probably do need new plugs and wires. They aren't that bad to do once you get used to the physical and emotional scarring that the process leaves on you.
 
??factory air dam?

i only know of one under the front bumper. and no its gone.
what other one is there?

physical and emotinal scarring...damn funny, becasue from what ive read...its 100% true.

ive read all the ways to do em, im just not really inclined to get in there and tear some skin.

bust some knuckles....
find where the bandages are hiding.
 
I picked up a used air dam off of a mid 90's Taurus. Was exactly the right length and made a big difference in keeping the car cool at highway speeds. I got it at a salvage yard for free. Even if I would have paid for it, it would have been cheap. Very easy to install and well worth it.
 
When I installed mine, I took the factory one and flipped it upside down and mounted them both on there. The GM one on the bottom of the bumper cover, and the factory one on top. This made for a solid air dam all the way to the bottom of the radiator so all the air was getting pushed up through the AC condensor and radiator.

Thomas
 
Hmm, my factory air dam was MIA. I'll try putting the GM one on there and see how it goes (if I can ever get it started). If it doesn't work well enought I'll go with the double setup.
 
Merlon
you can look at mine any time to see how simple the job is... maybe the next car show at apex in 2 weeks. "Ramone just called me and said i better show up!!!!

The job of installing a GM air damm is simple if you have ramps to drive up on, if not get some. ramps make all future work easy under a SC.

Just so you know how hot your engine is running, i will give you a referance chart for the factory gauge .The figures are pretty acurate .

Also what ford programed into your computer for the cooling fans "older SC's have a 2 speed single fan & newer SC's have 2 seprate fans one low speed puller & one high speed pusher fan"

The low speed fan is factory set to start at 220 degrees and the high speed fan at 228 or higher. Thats awful hot !

GAUGE reading BLUE = 100* N = 190* O = 210* R = 220* M = 240* RED = 260*



SC cooling mods :

1) Putting a GM air dam will help deliver more air to your radiator at speeds above 30 mph and will allow your fans to rest at highway speeds.

2) installing a 180 thermostat in place of the 195 will allow the coolant to flow sooner But the cooling fans are still factory set to turn on WAY TOO HIGH. You can override the fans by turning on the AC, splicing into the ECM, or EEC Tuner/Chip. EEC Tuner/Chip is the best way !

3) Installing front mounted engine oil and trans coolers will reduce the amount of heat that is delivered to your small SC radiator allowing the radiator to cool only the water in the block & heads This mod will show the greatest improvment in keeping it cool even in summer time heat.

3) Most Important ....Running your SC At 180-190 degrees it will have more power & Last much longer.

EddiE
 
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