My 82 does fine on the straightaways but if I start going uphill for a few miles the coolant temp begins to rise. I'm talking highway speeds (65-70MPH) on hard packed roads for about ten minutes before the temp starts to rise. How far on the temp gauge should the arrow go before I start worrying? How hot do all your trucks run when climbing?
Thanks,
Manuk

 

once warmed up, your guage should not move from "operating temp" . I would suggest you either have rad issues , or possably water pump

google rad barn , seems to be the "superstore" every one buys from


.

 

or thermostat sticking closed. it's a cheap part that's easy to replace.

 

Thermostat works fine, just replaced the fan clutch, I had the radiator pores cleaned a few years ago. So, I'm thinking I'll replace the water pump and see what happens? My last option would be to replace the radiator but I'm kind of keeping that as a last resort.

 

Whats the temp rating on the t-stat? I run a 160 and my engine temp is perfect

 

Don't know what the exact number is but I do remember telling the guy that I wanted one with the factory rating.

 

Mine used to get hot up hills until I upgraded to a three core rad. Problem solved!

 

I agree your radiator is probably on it's last legs and running a cooler thermostat than OE is a good idea, especially on an older mill. Some will say 160 is too cool and the engine won't reach max efficiency but I've never seen that to be true. It may be open at 160, but the engine will still drive up the temp in the sleeves to where it needs to be, but overall the system is cooler. You can sometimes find a new radiator from salvage yards and they are cheap there if you find one.

 

I don't know when the water pump was changed last either. Should I start with the radiator or water pump?

 

If you don't when water pump was last changed, I'd replace both for peace of mind and t-stat. Just my opinion. Good luck

 

Have you been losing any coolant? If yes and your hoses are good, then your pump is going bad. If not it might be good for another 50,000mi or it could die tomorrow. You can listen to hear if it is making too much noise (bearings) and you can grab the pulley and see if there is significant play (should be almost none) either yes and it's going bad.

It isn't very expensive or hard to replace and it is like insurance for your H2O cooled motor. New rad and pump and I'd bet you run 15-20 degrees cooler going up those hills. It also wouldn't hurt to flush out the system really good.

 

Thanks for the advice. Just a couple more questions.. Should I go for an aluminum radiator or a three core? Also, slacker said that once warmed up, the gauge shouldn't move from "operating temp." Is this the case for most of your trucks too?

 

That is the case for all vehicles. Anything in the operating temp range is fine to run in, although if you're constantly running close to the red then you probably have a cooling issue.

 

So where is "operating temp" on the gauge? Is it anything below the red? I thought operating temp was just about half way up since that's where my temp is 90% of the time. The other 10% when I'm climbing hills it goes past that but not far enough to be in the red.

 

As long as it's not in the red you're alright. If it does get in the red you should probably let it cool down a bit.

 

Operating temp should be halfway or less...

 

stop guessing and get a real water temp gauge. One with numbers on it so you actually know how hot it is. And not a cheap p.o.s. either. They probally arn't accurate.

Everyone should have one of those.

 

^What he said. The factory gauge is vauge and often incorrect until its too late.

 

def the rad and i dont believe that, replaced the thermo on my cummins from a 180 to 160 and my mpg went from 16 to 19, still ran fine

 

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