It's get'n hot again...radiator question.

[RETROV]

Okay, I went through this last year. In Texas it gets hot. It's finally gotten up in to the mid 90s a few times so far....and my truck is getting warm again. I have done the viscous and all that crap all the way to a new OEM radiator. The thing still gets hot. It doesn't loose coolant like it used to, before I swapped head gaskets, but it is still getting hot. Has anyone swapped the stock radiator for a higher capacity one? I would like to be able to drive my truck during the day this summer...

 

[eliaschristeas]

in los angeles, it gets hot, i feel ya. . .

hey - so, remind me - complete h/g repair? liners looked flush? t-stat taking a shit? waterpump taking a shit? are you sure you condenser fans are operating?

 

[RETROV]

Yeah, HG job done (liners good), new h20 pump, new thermo, new viscous, new hoses, new radiator. I'm loosing zero coolant. And now the 'awe shit' moment. Before my fuel pump died a few months ago I was going to check the fans because I wasn't sure if they were turning just because of the crank fan pulling air through. Dammit! I'm checking that first thing tonight. If they are working, then I'm lost and I can only see an option of adding more capacity. But really at 95F, I just can't beleive the OE crap won't work. I also need to get an Autometer temp gauge.

I'm looking at one of these as an option: http://www.rondavisradiators.com/offroad.htm

 

[Ed Cheung]

You already have new h20 pump, new thermo, new viscous, new hoses, new radiator and it is still hot? Is the temperature sender working correctly?

Twin electric fans are nice, got my pair from the bone yard. They do move a lot of air, as with 2 fans, I can actually feel the air is much hotter on the size that is closer to the upper hose and the much cooler on the other side.

 

[eliaschristeas]

damn - thems is some fancy radiators!!! check those fans, the fuses, also that temp switch on the tstat housing. i would imagine you know how to get power straight to the fans to see if the problem is elsewhere. either way, i have a set of rrc fans for spare if yours are dead. but then again, if youre ready for one of those radiators, youre probably gonna wanna buy new fans anyway. good luck!

btw - never underestimate new parts going south. pull the tsat for yukks and put your old waterpump back on (assuming the fans are fine).

also - under what conditions does it get warm? a little past center or OVERHEATING? @ idle, up hills, randomly. . .

 

[Jupiter Rover]

If all you said is true and you do not have a leak and you replaced the majority of the cooling parts. And if everything is working properly then I would Flush the radiator and put a combination if 60 water 40 coolant or what not. You can even go to 70 water 30 coolant. You live in Texas so you don't have to worry about freezing.

Water absorbs heat much better than coolant, the coolant is only really in there to prevent freezing, to lube up the internals, and to prevent rust/corrosion. If you live in an area where it is mostly hot and never freezes much less gets cold I would put mostly water. There will be a difference.

 

[Ed Cheung]

X2
I am at 70% water 30% coolant.

 

[stevo]

Graham - is your fan shroud in good shape? I was fighting overtemp issues in my classic after the engine swap last summer - my shroud was not right (serpentine conversion in the 92 - had to butcher a shroud to get it to fit around the tranny cooler lines) - ended up re-routing the lines, put in a correct shroud, new fan clutch, new fan (blade was cracked) and no problems since.

Go ahead and replace the temp sending unit - for some reason I think the gauge reads hot as the resistance goes up, so if you have a bad connection at the sendor, or used teflon tape on the threads it could be reading artifcially high.

Steve

 

[landrovered]

I was having some running hot issues and I flushed my radiator, it was surprising how clogged it had become with scale. It was enough to solve the problem.

 

[RETROV]

I'm gonna mess with it this evening and get some more specs. I'm still a little leary of the fans just because this is where I was before the fuel pump died and I realize now months later that I never got back to checking that. I'll source the connectors and run some power right to them. Fingers crossed...

 

[tightgroup]

Shroud does make a huge difference.

The belt is not loose?

Other causes , can be : ignition, fuel too lean, engine water passages partially clogged. Restriction of water flow at heater matrix.. air flow restricted ( do you have big lights or winch impeding air flow ?)

Is this the 89 or the 90?

Someone has a special pulley for the water pump thus increasing water flow rate, this might help.

Next time its gets hot ( you'll hate so saying this though) turn on your heater fan blast and see if it helps a bit, does not prove alot, but just indicates that maybe the problem is an un healthy cooling system.

Had something similar on my 87, cured it with a temp sensor, relay and a bypass switch in the dash for my condensor fans. Ran super and liked the fact that the condensor fans would run a bit after the engine was shut off.

Do you run on super?

 

[KevinNY]

Check for codes too, running rich will make it run hot but what you describe seems to be outside temp related. Did you or did you not replace the original radiator? If not, pull it and get it boiled out and reinstall with 15% green coolant, Water Wetter and distilled water.

 

[Ron]

I have a new radiator for a RRC without an oil cooler I would let go cheap. I bought it for my 1988 and did not end up using it before I sold the truck.

evilfij at yahoo dot com

 

[tomelroy]

i have seen a/c condensers that were restricted (bent fins and or mud) which in turn restricted flow to the radiator....check it out...