The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Engine Shop Overheating, replaced it all, what now

I have a 52 3100 with a 235, the radiator is from ???. I had the radiator cleaned and rodded, the radiator shop said it was good. I installed a new water pump, 180* thermostat, six blade flex fan, and all new hoses. I took it for a drive and it runs right at 210*. When I turn it off there is no steam or sounds of being hot though. My gauge is new, I bought it from The Truck Shop in Orange, Ca. It is one of those bulb type. I have also installed and AC condensor in front of the radiator.

I don't know what else to do???

I'm running basically the same setup in my 54 truck with a 1960 235 engine, same temp thermostat and a/c and my truck rarely goes over the 180 mark.

A couple things come to mind:

1. I'd check with an infrared hand-held thermometer to verify that it is actually overheating.

2. Are you sure you got the cooling system topped off. "Burping" the system and getting it full to just over the top of the radiator core is critical to keeping her running cool.

3. A couple factors will make a difference. If your running a stock driveline and running at higher speeds you might be overspeeding your waterpump and cavitating. Also, if your engine is a later model 235 with a "short" pump you may have some issues.

A little more info on your setup would help sort things out.

Dave

I believe your gauge is wrong. If you have a lasor thermometer point it at it right around the therm. & see what it shows. Or take off the cap & put a cooking or A/C therm. in it. If it warms right up to that temp & stays there, there probably is nothing wrong with the system. If it goes to about 180 & rises under hard pulling, long idle or real hot weather, then you probably have a cooling problem. You might try another therm. A lot of new vones are not good.

Use a cooking thermometer (needle type) to check both thermostat and temp gauge with boiling water.
A good 180 stat begins to open at 160 and is fully open at 180.

Depending on your altitude, you can calibrate the cooking thermometer right at the boiling point of water - 212* by twisting the dial face against the shaft.

Also make sure your timing and rocker arms are adjusted right.

TooMany, because of the funky setup the previous owner did with the radiator, my condensor is a little more than an inch away.

FLA54, I did burp the system, well it burped itself and the radiator overflowed when the thermostat opened but I was right there and topped it off. It is full. I do not know if I am running a short water pump, how do I tell, what is the measurement for a long water pump?

Wrenchbender, I do have an AC gauge somewhere, I will measure the temp through the radiator opening.

On the road, How does the rocker arm adjustment affect the cooling system?

Was wondering the specific year of the 235 and if the radiator was mounted in the original stock position on the engine bay side of the core support or if it was rigged up inside the core support? If you've done steps #1 and #2, the block and engine are topped off, the thermostat is fully open at 180, the gauge is reading correctly, the new bottom hose is not sucking closed at speed, the timing is in the ballpark, you might start thinking about pump overspeed.

On newer 235's that are used to replace the older engines the water pumps mount differently in the engine block. A "short" waterpump is offered that is supposed to give you additional fan clearance with the radiator mounted in it's original stock position on the core support. I went with a "short" pump which cured one of the clearance issue problems but left me limited on the fan choices. To get proper centering of the fan on the radiator; essentially raising it up until it was about 1/2" under the thermostat housing on the head, I used an "adaptor" plate which cured the low fan position, allowed me to use an early (41-53) waterpump with the correct diameter pulley and gave me adequate clearance to run a 6 blade fan and still clear my harmonic balancer, alternator and a/c compressor pulley. But you're already running a six blade and didn't mention any clearance problems. With your truck moving at a speed above idle with a clean full radiator you normally wouldn't have any air flow problems even with the a/c condensor out in front.

Was wondering if it was overheating at idle as well as at speed and if you are feeling air being drawn in through the radiator to the engine compartment? A little more info please.

Dave

OK, I let the truck idle for an hour with my AC gauge in the radiator. I had a medium size fan blowing on the front of the truck, I don't know how much that helped? The truck temp stayed at 192* for the entire hour just idleing. It appears my gauge is off. Is there any way to adjust the gauge?

I appreciate everyones suggestions.

R

That's great news!!! I love it when it's a simple problem. An hour at 192 at idle is reasonable especially with the condensor up front. I added a pusher fan for extended periods of idling with the a/c cranking but rarely have to use it.

One thing I did do was to use closed foam strips to seal around the top of the radiator so I wouldn't loose air flow through the radiator. There's absolutely no reason for a healthy 235 to run hot!

Dave

Im kinda having the same problem,but my radiator is the old honeycomb type. Its in my recently acquired 52 suburban with newer model 235. So, im gonna recore the radiator first. But ive been following the threads on pulley sizes and I'm now wondering the same thing,,,,is my pump spinning too fast?
Even starting out from cold in the driveway,and going only a mile or so up the road,at 25-30 m.p.h.,Ive already reached thermostat temp.(180)
Suggestions before i recore?
Thanx.........

My radiator is the honey comb style as well. The radiator shop put the radiator in the vat and tried to eat off all the paint the last owner sprayed all over the core. Paint on radiator core equals low heat transfer.

Try a shroud, they can make all the difference.