I bought a 1981 Camaro Z28 last August. With AC on or off the car runs at normal temp.in town. On the highway during hot summer days it reaches 200-205. Is that normal temp? Some say yes some say no!!! I flushed radiator no rust or anything plugged. 90k miles so they say. Original 350 motor. Other than that it runs great. Could water pump be getting weak not pumping enough water at hide speeds?
Motor temperature
- Thread starter Zoe344
- Start date
As long as the temp stays where it now is, it's perfectly fine. Don't start worrying until it gets closer to 240 degrees F and stays there.
Weak water pump? With metal impellers that don't wear, but bushings and bearings which can, as long as it does not leak, it's fine. No need for a high-flow pump, from my observation. IF the water moves faster than the design-speed-window, then it can cause too much turbulence and such where not enough heat is removed from the casting for transfer to the radiator.
On my '77LT, "middle of the gauge" is where it should run with a 195 degree F thermostat. With a 180 degree F thermostat, one or two needle-widths lower. From my experiences.
IF you get energetic and want to wear a hazmat suit, then put the car on a lift and knockout the freeze plugs on the sides of the block, flushing out any possible accumulation in the water jackets. Most of it should be toward the rear of the motor as that is the lowest part of the system where any sediment will usually accumulate. Flushing via the radiator will NOT get that stuff out. Using a "flush chemical" might cause problems with freeze plugs which had some scale on their backside. When that scale leaves, so does part of the plug, leaving it eroded internally. Not to forget the heater core! Best to just replace the plugs, clean the water jackets, final flush, fill with fresh coolant, and be done with it. THEN consider anything which happens after that, related to cooling system performance, as "normal".
From my experiences,
FS87LT
Weak water pump? With metal impellers that don't wear, but bushings and bearings which can, as long as it does not leak, it's fine. No need for a high-flow pump, from my observation. IF the water moves faster than the design-speed-window, then it can cause too much turbulence and such where not enough heat is removed from the casting for transfer to the radiator.
On my '77LT, "middle of the gauge" is where it should run with a 195 degree F thermostat. With a 180 degree F thermostat, one or two needle-widths lower. From my experiences.
IF you get energetic and want to wear a hazmat suit, then put the car on a lift and knockout the freeze plugs on the sides of the block, flushing out any possible accumulation in the water jackets. Most of it should be toward the rear of the motor as that is the lowest part of the system where any sediment will usually accumulate. Flushing via the radiator will NOT get that stuff out. Using a "flush chemical" might cause problems with freeze plugs which had some scale on their backside. When that scale leaves, so does part of the plug, leaving it eroded internally. Not to forget the heater core! Best to just replace the plugs, clean the water jackets, final flush, fill with fresh coolant, and be done with it. THEN consider anything which happens after that, related to cooling system performance, as "normal".
From my experiences,
FS87LT
cadillac_al
Veteran Member
My 03 Caddy and 04 Jeep runs hotter than that
Thanks
It has 160 stat and the hottest it got in the heat of summer was 20”-205. Should I install a 180?
