temp gauge spike
 

so i was crusing down the interstate, at 85 like usual, and I noticed that my temp gauge was rising past it's normal. not in the red, but higher then normal. I checked the resovoir and it was almost empty. I don't know where the coolent is going, I just did a HG on the SOB maybe 2 months ago. so what is the likely cause of the lost coolent? what should I check first?

Re: temp gauge spike
 

you might wanna check the blinker fluid.. and if is low put water in it, has long has is not goin in the motor you'll be fine :P

Re: temp gauge spike
 

bleed yo ----

Re: temp gauge spike
 

yeah let the fucker run at idle for like 1/2 hour without the radiator cap on and keep filling it up, you probably got air in the system, or your new HG is bad..

Re: temp gauge spike
 

it ONLY gets hot on the interstate. and I changed the HG like 2 months ago, so I would think that it would have had problems before this? I will try to bleed it out and see how that goes. then do an interstate run.

Re: temp gauge spike
 

well i bleed it, same results on the interstate. maybe I will try a low temp thermo....still doesn't explain WHERE the coolent went.........

Re: temp gauge spike
 

Installing a lower temp thermostat will just cover up the real cause of the problem.

Re: temp gauge spike
 

did you check the head for straightness? the block?

Re: temp gauge spike OVERHEAT
 

the head and the block should be flat.

is there something more basic(like not a tear down) that i should check?

the symptoms:

hot only on the interstate, while in town, it has zero problems.
missing a small amount of coolent(1/2 the res. bottle) don't know where it is going, cant identify a leak, theres no oil in the coolent, or coolent in the oil.
has new HG, water pump, timing belt.
I DID reuse the headbolts.....
I am not experiencing a loss of engine power.

the thing is, it doesn't actually overheat, it is just above the normal operational temp. it only makes it to the top of the symbol on the gauge, and in normally hangs out at the bottom edge of that.

I will be really pissed off if I need to change the HG again. fo reel.

Re: temp gauge spike
 

one other thing, if I turn the heat on it goes back down to normal operation temp.........

Re: temp gauge spike
 

is your radiator fan working? i guess that wouldn't matter on the interstate so much, but its something simple to check i guess. what mixture of coolant are you using? 50/50? because you could try like 30/80 coolant/water with some redline water wetter and see if it helps any??

Re: temp gauge spike
 

is the rad in ok condition or are half the fins missing from a 10+year old rad? Sounds like the heat is not being exchanged to air (because it goes down w/ the heat on).

Re: temp gauge spike
 

has anyone experinced this after installing an intercooler? cause it does block the airflow a little. but it flows through....i don't know.

Re: temp gauge spike
 

any other thoughts?

Re: temp gauge spike
 

well i never had any problems but if its only running a little hotter, that could be the case. what size rad do you have on what engine? and what size intercooler?

Re: temp gauge spike
 

half size single core, D16Z6, and the johnny racer 5"

Re: temp gauge spike
 

how about using 5W20.......ever heard of adverse effects of using a lighter wieght oil?