92 6-Speed Cooling Issues
Thread Starter
Cruising
Joined: Jul 2004
Posts: 13
Likes: 0
From: Kokomo IN
92 6-Speed Cooling Issues
Hello guys!
My Uncle just picked up a 92 6-Speed Corvette with 70k Miles. We took it for a spin and noticed it was around 192 Degrees while normal driving and when stopping getting up to 220-230. At 230 the Fan would kick on and cool it down to 220 or so but this seems pretty hot to me. When I looked in the lower coolant container I noticed the dipstick was rusty and there we stuff at the bottom of the tank. He is going to flush the system out and clean both tanks out. Do you think the wrong Thermostat is in this car? Or it could be getting stuck? What is normal temps to see with this car?
Thanks For The Help Guys!
Ryan
My Uncle just picked up a 92 6-Speed Corvette with 70k Miles. We took it for a spin and noticed it was around 192 Degrees while normal driving and when stopping getting up to 220-230. At 230 the Fan would kick on and cool it down to 220 or so but this seems pretty hot to me. When I looked in the lower coolant container I noticed the dipstick was rusty and there we stuff at the bottom of the tank. He is going to flush the system out and clean both tanks out. Do you think the wrong Thermostat is in this car? Or it could be getting stuck? What is normal temps to see with this car?
Thanks For The Help Guys!
Ryan
Melting Slicks
Joined: May 2002
Posts: 2,670
Likes: 4
From: Severna Park MD
Sorry, those are the normal temps for the LT1.
One trick in traffic is to turn on the AC when you don't really need to cool down inside. It turns the fans on at a lower temp.
I pulled the shroud, thoroughly cleaned the debris out of the radiator, put it back together with a 160 thermostat and it ran 175 to 190 while under way. But it still went up to 230 or so when stuck in a traffic crawl.
I bought a Hypertech programmer and set my fan setting lower and that finally brought the temps down when not running at speed.
To run up to 230 before the fans come on will not damage the engine. It does hurt the performance while it's hot so don't pick on any Mustangs when it's up there. But what you see is completely normal.
One trick in traffic is to turn on the AC when you don't really need to cool down inside. It turns the fans on at a lower temp.
I pulled the shroud, thoroughly cleaned the debris out of the radiator, put it back together with a 160 thermostat and it ran 175 to 190 while under way. But it still went up to 230 or so when stuck in a traffic crawl.
I bought a Hypertech programmer and set my fan setting lower and that finally brought the temps down when not running at speed.
To run up to 230 before the fans come on will not damage the engine. It does hurt the performance while it's hot so don't pick on any Mustangs when it's up there. But what you see is completely normal.
If your system shows rust, it's time for a flush. But those temps are normal. 
Team Owner
Joined: Apr 2000
Posts: 27,818
Likes: 8
From: CT
One trick in traffic is to turn on the AC when you don't really need to cool down inside. It turns the fans on at a lower temp.
Funny enough! I had my boss' 1994 LT-1 last week and was in traffic with it. I had the windows down and noticed the temp was SOARING on the gauge. I remembered someone mentioning on the LT-1 if you turn on the A/C the temp will go down(it went the other way on my L98). Sure enough, it did...by quite a bit.
I'd pull the shroud also. Mine had a lot of leaves and junk in there(daily driver). Anything that can restrict airflow will cause temps to elevate.
Good luck.
Funny enough! I had my boss' 1994 LT-1 last week and was in traffic with it. I had the windows down and noticed the temp was SOARING on the gauge. I remembered someone mentioning on the LT-1 if you turn on the A/C the temp will go down(it went the other way on my L98). Sure enough, it did...by quite a bit.
I'd pull the shroud also. Mine had a lot of leaves and junk in there(daily driver). Anything that can restrict airflow will cause temps to elevate.
Good luck.
Safety Car
Joined: Oct 2000
Posts: 4,234
Likes: 355
From: Albuquerque, NM
As others have said, those temperatures are normal and turning the AC on causes the fans to run all the time, no matter what the coolant temp is. It's a good idea to pull off the radiator shroud and clean all the debris out that accumulates between the AC condensor and the front of the radiator.
Also, if you're thinking of doing a flush of the cooling system, remember that to get most of the coolant out you need to remove the two knock sensors from the bottom of the engine block. Simply draining the radiator won't do it.
Also, if you're thinking of doing a flush of the cooling system, remember that to get most of the coolant out you need to remove the two knock sensors from the bottom of the engine block. Simply draining the radiator won't do it.
