thermostat issue

[makgreens]

Just changed the thermostat in my 64 and now its running warm ccording to the gauge.now the engine is from a 68 ply and ii got a 195 degree therm and thought thatd be fine cause the one in it seemed to be sticking. Now is it possible the engine is cooling fine and the gauge is reading wrong?. The coolant didnt boil and the engine didnt seem like it was hot enough to be in the hot range

I dont wanna chance running it hot so im thinking of hooking up a seperate gauge to it but mopar and gauge makers apparently dont get together on the size of probe needed for la block intakes..anyone know of a decvent priced gauge that will work without having to tap a bigger hole?

[surfnuke9]

just because its new doesnt mean it opens at the advertised temp.

I always heat mine up in a pan with a thermometer and watch to see when it opens, or if it actually WILL open before putting one in.

I have seem a 180 open at 205 and at 150 before. They are not exactly built to tight specs....

[makgreens]

I know they arent exact cause i sell em all day
But ive never run into this problem before..usually they dont open and it over heats or they open to early on me but this one seems to open at the right time but i dunno..im gonna hit it with a infared therm just to see for *#%^& and giggles

Now is 195 to hot for the motor? Cause id rather it run a little cool than warm since im in the south ha

Another thing that throws me off is it is a constant on the gauge it doesnt fluctuate like the old one.

Im also thinking of adding an electric fan with my flex because ive been getting stuck in traffic lately and dont wanna blow it up

[elacruze]

195 isn't even hot enough to boil water in a pan. I don't even begin to sweat until I see 220 and rising.

[makgreens]

Now if thats the case why does the gauge show its almost over heating
Thats why im so confused.

And a completely different question....when im at a stop my truck shkes and the brakes make a god awful noise...but only in drive..if i put it into nuetral its fine...

[elacruze]

The gauge could simply be wrong. You could have a bad sending unit, or bad gauge. You'll have to verify the temp with a second device.

The brake thing there's not enough information to know what you mean. Automatic transmission or Manual?

[makgreens]

auto
Its a 69 318 with a 727 from a plymouth car so its gonna be different i know
Plus the brake booster is from the same car
And they lock up real easy

Im gonna try and find another way to measure the temp cause the aftwrmarket gauge has a probe thats to big for the stock temp gauge probe

[elacruze]

If you have air in the system, it can throw off the temperature sending unit as air passes. Air and coolant have much different properties.
While the engine is cool, try to burp your upper radiator hose by squeezing it and working the air out of the high spots, and see how much is in there. If you find lots, that could be some of your issue. If you have an air pocket inside the motor, you can leave the radiator cap off, and rev the engine a few times for 5-10 seconds. The additional speed of the water pump will help to flush the air out of the pockets.
I always pay attention to automatic transmissions while considering coolant temperature problems, if the trans cooler is inside the radiator. If your transmission runs hot, it will heat the radiator as well, sometimes way over the thermostat temperature.

[makgreens]

replaced the therm and then the switch and now the gauge is acting crazy
instead of staying in one spot like it was doing it saying its running normal....then warm when i restarted the motor which i guess is typical and then it said it was running pretty cool

[MountainMoparRobin]

replaced the therm and then the switch and now the gauge is acting crazy
instead of staying in one spot like it was doing it saying its running normal....then warm when i restarted the motor which i guess is typical and then it said it was running pretty cool

if you turn off the motor their is nothing cooling the radiator, so the water heats up, and you'll see this reflected in the temp gauge when you start it (summertime especially) if its only shut off for 1 hr or less, the temp should go down soon. in the summer time in a humid start (like Ten) summer thermo, 180 degree, the 195 would ensure heat faster in the winter. the Reason the truck temp changes where the new cars don't is because of the difference of material used to cast the engine block, new cars are aluminum and it disapates heat faster. it takes more to cool down a "cast steel block"

[MountainMoparRobin]

Now if thats the case why does the gauge show its almost over heating
Thats why im so confused.

And a completely different question....when im at a stop my truck shkes and the brakes make a god awful noise...but only in drive..if i put it into nuetral its fine...

when your at a stop, and you have your truck in drive with brakes on, you have the torque of the motor being held back with the brakes, then if you shift to nuetral their is no longer that torque trying to move the vehicle forward. that "God awful sound" could be rivets tearing into your drums, I'd check it before you have to buy new drums

[makgreens]

ill have to check the drums
i think my connection was bad i think cause now its not acting as crazy
granted i didnt get far until the plunger in the carb stuck and flooded the carb

[truckluvr]

Wow sounds like you got your work cut out for you. A little late now but a 195 thermostat will read almost hot as those trucks came stock with 180's so all that work for nothing... Oh well. As for the strange "does it in "D" but not in "N" at a stop. You may have a bad torque converter. Finally for the brakes making awful noise when you use them. You really should start pulling drums off and rebuilding your brakes.

[360scamp]

Drill a 1/8" hole in the thermostat, it will help in "burping" the air out of the system.

[makgreens]

changed the therm out to a 180 tonight cause i was tired of the 195...and it wasnt opening i dont think
the 180 seems to be working right now

also keep in mind the motor/trans AND brake booster/reservoir are off a 69 valiant
so im guessing i might need a proportioning valve, especially if i put disc brakes on it

the drum noise has stopped but only sinc ei adjusted the carb up a little bit

[BradyB]

I remember working on my Camaros in high school and boiling the thermostats to make sure they were working. Those 80’s GM thermostats would pop open at temp, you could hear them pop. And so I would install them and watch the fluid in the radiator for movement and as soon as the engine got up to temp, the fluid would immediately start moving quickly through the radiator.

With that basis I originally thought that the 195 degree thermostat I installed in my truck was bad because on warm up the fluid in the radiator would very slowly begin to move and them move at a slower rate then what I remember with my Camaros. I took out the 195 degree thermo stat and put it in 210 degree boiling water, it did not pop open but instead slowly opened up to about a ¼ inch. I thought it was bad and so I went out and got a more expensive chrome plated thermostat that was rated for 180 degrees. I boiled it at 210 degrees as well and it also opened up slowly but opened up to about a ½ inch. I guessed that’s how they worked and so I installed the new one. Again, the water moved very slowly initially but got up to slightly higher rate. I then thought to reach over and push the throttle and to my surprise the fluid in the radiator moved quickly. So I guess these mopar thermostats open up nice and slow and you don’t get much fluid flow at idle (900 RPMS). An easy way to make sure everything is flowing is just to reach over and push the throttle, you should get plenty of fluid moving through