Overheating question
Thread Starter
Intermediate
Joined: Apr 2005
Posts: 37
Likes: 0
Overheating question
Hi,
Been driving my car all week (50 miles per day). A lot of it in traffic.
Today, temp gauage started acting wierd.
Driving steady (40 - 50mph) temp was at 1/4 on guage.
When I can to a stop, guage would creep up to 3/4 - took about 1 minute. When I started going again, it would drop right back down.
Any thoughts?
It is raining now so, haven't had a chance to look under the hood.
Been driving my car all week (50 miles per day). A lot of it in traffic.
Today, temp gauage started acting wierd.
Driving steady (40 - 50mph) temp was at 1/4 on guage.
When I can to a stop, guage would creep up to 3/4 - took about 1 minute. When I started going again, it would drop right back down.
Any thoughts?
It is raining now so, haven't had a chance to look under the hood.
Drifting
Joined: Nov 2002
Posts: 1,665
Likes: 1
From: Ontario
Originally Posted by the_lane
what is the clutch fan? (sorry!!)
On the front of your engine there is a fan, it is driven by a belt. When the engine runs the fan spins and draws air through the radiator to cool the coolant. This is your clutch fan.
As your car moves faster, more air flows freely through the rad. This free flowing air can adequately cool the rad so there is less need to have the fan spinning. That is where the clutch comes in; when enough free air flows the clutch 'disengages' the fan from the engine, which frees up horsepower & improves fuel economy because the there is less load on the engine.
If the clutch is worn out (too loose) what will happen is the fan doesn't spin fast enough when you need it the most - when the car is not moving. This is why it looks to me like your clutch fan is worn out, not enough cooling at a stop.
When you spin the fan by hand (with the engine off of course) it should stop after about 180 to 270 degrees. If it spins more the clutch is worn, the more it spins the more worn the clutch is. This failure is not uncommon for these fans.
There are different types of clutch fans so hopefully you have the one I am talking about. What year is your vette?
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Race Director
Joined: Sep 2002
Posts: 10,362
Likes: 5
From: San Diego - Deep Within The State of CONFUSION!
Originally Posted by the_lane
what is the clutch fan? (sorry!!)
It is an auto btw
It is an auto btw
My first thought though, is the thermostat. It may be sticking every now and then causing the temp to fluctuate widely.
Last edited by SanDiegoPaul; Sep 16, 2005 at 06:16 PM.
Pro
Joined: Dec 2002
Posts: 560
Likes: 1
From: Mooresville NC
Originally Posted by the_lane
It is a 1979
Good Luck
Melting Slicks
Joined: Apr 2004
Posts: 2,083
Likes: 2
From: Montreal Qc.
Originally Posted by TopGunn
You might want to check the radiator fluid level before you go too far into things.
Bill
Bill
simple things first! Your symptoms are the same as mine were after winter storage this year, added water/coolant all was fine.
