vermontcalbud

I will give you all a little detailed info on my car issue.
It is an early 85 model.Had 6000 miles on top end rebuild when I purchased,2 months ago.
The car sat for 14 months after the rebuild.
I drove the car home from Boston.About 225 mile trip.
The gauge would start to get close to the red so I thought I would have it checked out.
The garage just deals in imports like 928,911,914,944s!!
He informed me that the waterpump was shot!!
Claimed that from the car sitting 14 months the seals dried out and the waterpump was toast.
He did the following work last week.
Changed timing belt,balance shaft belt,rollers,tensioner,oil pump seal,cam shaft seal,balance shaft seal,waterpump,thermostat.
He did all the work and they test drove it.Still on 3rd mark!!!
He called back and said the radiator was clogged!!They tried twice to unclog!!
I purchased a brand new one for $225 delivered!!They also installed new fan switches for me.
They called and said it was done!!Drove it home and it still sits on 3rd line and the fan is on constanly!!
They said that they bled the system about 4 times and it wont run any cooler than 180!!!They checked it out after a long run on the open road and rechecked temp.185!!!
I paid $2000 for the work and am not a happy camper!!
called today and want them to change the thermostat and rebleed the system again!!What could my temp problem be????
They have been in business for over 22 years and are highly recomended!!
He said that the head was resurfaced before due to broken belt.
Could a shaved head(resurfaced) cause the temp problem???
I am looking for any help on this problem.Thanks!!

KuHL 951

With an 85 early you should run at the 1/2+ mark, fan should kick on at 3/4 or before. I assume from the MY you have the 6-blade fan set? A shaved head should have no affect on the temp. Actually 185 isn't out of spec; you might want to check the gauge grounds behind the cluster. Does it go any higher than 3/4 in slow traffic? Your only alternative with the given problems is installing a low-temp fan switch and 160 deg. thermostat. The low temp fan switch will still make the fans run a lot more though. The only other thing I can think of is the water/coolant ratio too low. Too much coolant % will make any car run hotter for sure; viscosity is higher and the ability to carry off heat is less. I run 60/40 water/coolant here in a hot climate. Vermont would require at least 50/50 if you keep the mix in all year. It's very easy to get the ratio out of whack if the shop adds them separately during repairs. I had this happen on a Maxima after a $1000 warranty repair, ran hot as hell on the freeway until the ratio was brought down. Hope this helps.
Steve

83na944

It is possible that the only problem you've had all along is a bad gauge or sensor. Did they check that?

vermontcalbud

They originally removed skid plate to gain access to the hose at bypass and found water pump wasnt circulating.
My wish was that the temp would run consistantly at center!!
Could I have drivin all the way home from Boston (225 miles) with the waterpump not working??The fans were kicking on and off on my trip home.
The needle was close to red mark but never got there!!!
The fan stays on constantly now.
Seems to drop down a bit when driving in town..
I would think it would run hotter in town putting around then doing 75-80 on interstate!!!
There isnt alot of difference but it does run noticeably cooler around town then interstate.
Should I have them drain some coolant and add more water ratio to it??
I have put a bottle of waterwetter in it today also.
This SUCKS!!

KuHL 951

Your symptoms are classic for a radiator that's clogged: hot on freeway; cooler around town when the fans are on. You have a new radiator though so something is wrong. If the waterpump wasn't working after driving 225 miles you would be posting about a siezed engine. I would drop a gallon of the coolant mix and add straight distilled water. If it doesn't change, you need to pressure bleed the system. The effects of Water Wetter are dubious at best but yes I use it. Did you ever drive the car before the 14 month break? Was it OK? Again, how many blades on your fans?

83na944

Check out this link about the gauge: http://frwilk.com/early944/misc/watertemp.htm

It'll tell you how to determine if the gauge is accurate.

KLR

If the fans are kicking on and the gauge is reading high, then it probably is truly running hot. Check out clark's garage for some basic steps to diagnose cooling issues (e.g., make sure that you are getting circulation through the radiator by feeling the hoses, try bleeding it yourself on a steep hill with the heater on, check or replace your expansion tank cap). Cooling issues are usually not terribly complex.

BTY, I wouldn't feel bad about the money that you've spent -- there's plenty of benefit to knowing that your belts and waterpump will be good for years to come and I'm sure that, after 19 years of service, we would all be better off with new radiators.

billybones

I had this exact same thing on a toyota PU after a head gasket blow. redid the top end. Found out after new radiator and t stat and things that The rings were shot and the blow by from the pistons were superheating the oil.. cool around town anything over 60 miles an hour on the freeway and the engine would run hot... system could not remove the extra heat. do a compression check. my compression was at about half on all 4 cylinders.. HTH.. and hope it's not your problem..