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Overheating mystery

pushrod

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I know this subject has been addressed countless times but I have an issue I can't resolve.
44o, .30 over, becool rsdiradi, high volume water pump, 10.3 compression, high flow 190 thermostat with shroud in my 64 belvedere. This is driving me nuts. Will not keep cool at idle more than 10 minutes and overheating while driving.
The radiator is cooling the liquid 90 degrees from top to bottom. I've gone through the normal check list and everything seems fine,. No leaks, no loss of coolant, no steam in exhaust, no water in the oil.
Just looking for an answer. As always any help is appreciated.
Thanks
 
Why do you say its overheating?

I run a 180* super stant. It will open sooner than a 190*. Im useing antifreeze mixed for 10*, more water in the system the better. It never got over 190* sitting in traffic. I had distilled water and Be Kool in it last year and that did real good.
 
I know it sounds redundant, but is the thermostat opening like it should?
 
It runns 220 or higher at idle and will run 230+ on the road. When reving the motor it will start to cool slightly when idling but never gets back to 210. Never cools down while driving.
This is a new build and the block was cleaned and flushed. No trace of rust in the coolant. The thermostat works as it's suppose to. Opens full at 190. Tried a 160 with same results.
 
What high volume water pump are you using? Some are not really high volume.
 
Is it puking coolant? Have you read temps with an infrared gun to check your gauge accuracy?
 
Questions...What temperatures are you seeing? Have you pressure checked the system? Why a 190 thermostat? What kind/type of fan? Why high volume water pump? Are you sure of the temp.? Are you sure thermostat is opening?

Check the temp. sender to make sure its accurate?
Check the cap.
Engine is .030 over, its going to run hotter than stock. I'd drop to a 180, or maybe 160 thermostat.
The fan is important. The stock fans were good enough. I like using clutches so the air movement is better at speed.
Stock water pump should be fine. High volume water pump can move fluid too fast, thus not allowing enough heat exchange.
Check to see if hoses are collapsing.
 
The shroud I'd a curstom 5 inch wide the 6 blade fan is an inch from the radiator. 440 source pump that has plenty of volume it will pump coolant on the fender when the cap (16 lb.) Is removed from the cross flow becool radiator.
 
I had a car that did acted similar to your description. After much investigation, I found that the water pump impeller had broken free of the shaft. It would spin the impeller now and then, giving the appearance that water was moving in the radiator.
 
I have installed 3 different gauges and all read the same as my infrared gun confirms. As I said in the original post the radiator is cooling 80 to 90 degrees from inlet to outlet. I'm bafgled
 
The shroud I'd a curstom 5 inch wide the 6 blade fan is an inch from the radiator. 440 source pump that has plenty of volume it will pump coolant on the fender when the cap (16 lb.) Is removed from the cross flow becool radiator.

When useing a shroud, its not how close to the radiator that matters as much as having about a third of the fan showing out of the shroud. Too much fan inside the shroud causes the wrong turbulence not allowing a good air flow.
 
You could have to much flow. Slowing the flow increases dwell time making the cooling system more efficient.
 
overheating in 10 minutes is not good.

1. Is it so new that it's not broken in yet?
2. What is the wp pulley to Crank pulley ratio?
3. Can you show us a couple of pics? I'm particularly interested in the upper hose configuration and the shroud configuration.
4. I assume the Be Cool Radiator is new? Is it 1" tubes or 1 1/4" tube model?
 
And one more idea along the lines of Khryslerkid's post.... I say this because I made this mistake myself year ago with a *cough* Trans Am. Did you by any chance accidentally use "coolant concentrate" instead of "50/50" antifreeeze. Water cools better than ethylene glycol, so you probably don't even need "50/50" in your area. While it's still warm outside, you might just "try" running straight distilled water for a short period. If that fixes the problem, then maybe run 1 "coolant concentrate" antifreeze, 2 parts water + bottle of water-wetter type stuff.

Oh yeah, and check the front of your radiator for dirt/leaves or a plastic bag you picked up on the road. Engine degreaser + power washer/hand car wash wand works well to clean the cooling fins... I've had that problem too before.
 
The 90 degree delta might be telling you the water is moving too slow. I've used my temp gun on all of my cars (road runner, grand marquise, ranger, mustang) and the upper to lower hose temp delta is in the range of 40 to 50 degrees.
 
Not enough timing can make them run hot also. Too lean will, and useing ethanol will increase the heat.
 
It sounds like you have a restriction. High flow 'stats have about a 1 1/2" opening. I'd suspect the radiator. You would have to flow check it.
 
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