When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
After purchasing my first Vette (2002 Coupe) back in March I have noticed that my Vette seems to run a little bit hotter than any other vehicle I've owned. MIne will run anywhere from 190 - 240. It will hit 240 if I'm sitting in traffic or a drive through. Then the fan apparently comes on and it will start cooling down to about 220. After reading on this forum and several other places, I'm seeing that anything from 200-240 isn't considered hot. My boyfriend also just recently bought a new Vette to him (2000 Coupe) and his runs between 199-220. WE both thought we needed to do something to make them run a bit cooler. Thought about changing the thermostat to 180, but they come from the factory at 195. Even thought about getting a 160 Thermostat. Some people have said that if you change the Thermostat I would need to change something on the computer because it may cause the computer to throw a code thinking something is wrong. Thought about a different radiator, but that's kinda pricey too. So.....what does Your Vette typically run?
After purchasing my first Vette (2002 Coupe) back in March I have noticed that my Vette seems to run a little bit hotter than any other vehicle I've owned. MIne will run anywhere from 190 - 240. It will hit 240 if I'm sitting in traffic or a drive through. Then the fan apparently comes on and it will start cooling down to about 220. After reading on this forum and several other places, I'm seeing that anything from 200-240 isn't considered hot. My boyfriend also just recently bought a new Vette to him (2000 Coupe) and his runs between 199-220. WE both thought we needed to do something to make them run a bit cooler. Thought about changing the thermostat to 180, but they come from the factory at 195. Even thought about getting a 160 Thermostat. Some people have said that if you change the Thermostat I would need to change something on the computer because it may cause the computer to throw a code thinking something is wrong. Thought about a different radiator, but that's kinda pricey too. So.....what does Your Vette typically run?
I'm in south Texas so pretty much most of the summer means 100+ days. I run a 180 t-stat with the fans coming on at 190, temp never goes above 200. My 04 has the stock 195 t-stat and stock tune, temps gets up in the 240 range.
Truthfully these cars were meant to run hotter. Most mods are done to chase a few extra horsepower. Well with a DA of 2500 and air temps at 100 no tune or t-stat change will overcome those conditions. I just run a thicker synthetic oil in the summer to protect the motor and roll with it.
Those numbers are normal. Don't waste your money on a 160 degree stat! If you decide to, it won't throw any codes, but you'll need to get your PCM tuned to have the fans come on sooner if you want to lower the temperature. The stat alone will not do that...
The guy I bought my vette from ran Mobil 1 synthetic. He also told me to run 5w-30. I thought to myself that 5 weight is pretty thin. I used to run that on vehicles in the winter when it was cold. So what weight would you recommend? I also live in Houston, TX and it gets pretty hot in the summer.
210-220 is NORMAL,, If you are in the 240 range in traffic, you need to clean out the radiator and the space "BETWEEN" the radiator and the AC Condenser. You will be amazed at the CRAP that collects in there!!! Just pop off the top plastic cover and look down between the two radiators..
Ive seen GRASS, LEAVES, SAND, Paper towels, ect.. Also look under the front of the car into the area where the air enters the radiator and see if its full of trash and leaves!
One forum guy had a bad over heat issue on a long trip. He found an empty 25 pound dog food bag inside that opening blocking all the air!
Easy fix if its just needs a good cleaning. I BACK FLUSH my radiator with the garden hose on full stream and you will be amazed at all the sand and dirt that comes out of the radiator fins!
210-220 is NORMAL,, If you are in the 240 range in traffic, you need to clean out the radiator and the space "BETWEEN" the radiator and the AC Condenser. You will be amazed at the CRAP that collects in there!!! Just pop off the top plastic cover and look down between the two radiators..
Ive seen GRASS, LEAVES, SAND, Paper towels, ect.. Also look under the front of the car into the area where the air enters the radiator and see if its full of trash and leaves!
One forum guy had a bad over heat issue on a long trip. He found an empty 25 pound dog food bag inside that opening blocking all the air!
Easy fix if its just needs a good cleaning. I BACK FLUSH my radiator with the garden hose on full stream and you will be amazed at all the sand and dirt that comes out of the radiator fins!
210-220 is NORMAL,, If you are in the 240 range in traffic, you need to clean out the radiator and the space "BETWEEN" the radiator and the AC Condenser. You will be amazed at the CRAP that collects in there!!! Just pop off the top plastic cover and look down between the two radiators..
Ive seen GRASS, LEAVES, SAND, Paper towels, ect.. Also look under the front of the car into the area where the air enters the radiator and see if its full of trash and leaves!
One forum guy had a bad over heat issue on a long trip. He found an empty 25 pound dog food bag inside that opening blocking all the air!
Easy fix if its just needs a good cleaning. I BACK FLUSH my radiator with the garden hose on full stream and you will be amazed at all the sand and dirt that comes out of the radiator fins!
I will check to see if there are leaves and crap in there. But the engine was completely clean when I bought the car. Looks bran spanking new. I had my mechanic check the car over when I first bought it. I have had to replace one of the O2 sensors and also had to replace the left rear axle seal. When the had the car up on the rack, my mechanic said that he couldn't believe how absolutely clean and immaculate the under neath of the car was. He said it had no signs of any scraping or hitting anything at all. He was completely impressed as to how clean the engine and the underneath was. But I will look and see if there are any leaves in the engine compartment. I seriously doubt that there is. Flushing the radiator would be a good thing! Thanks
Another vote for cleaning. I had a crack in the top plastic and the new radiator gave me almost five degrees lower temps, according to the interior gauge.
Those numbers are normal. Don't waste your money on a 160 degree stat! If you decide to, it won't throw any codes, but you'll need to get your PCM tuned to have the fans come on sooner if you want to lower the temperature. The stat alone will not do that...
True. Cars built since the 70's run hotter temps, it is more efficient, but 240 seems a little on the high-side, even for a modern engine.
I had a tune and also had the fan temps lowered. Radiator cleaned 195 stat runs 190 to 195 on hwy and 200 low speed never gets above 210. I run Mobile one syn 5W 30. 30 lbs oil pressure idle hot 45 to 50 on HWY. I think 240 is a little warm but I am old school.
You will not find the debris that could be blocking the radiator in the engine compartment.
Easiest way to see what may be blocking the radiator is to have the car on a lift and then look up into the pocket behind the air dam where air from the ground gets deflected to pass through the radiator cooling fins. The face of the radiator and AC condenser will be seen. Any debris will be on the face of these two items and will cause the engine temp to run higher than normal.
Just went out and checked under the car and found the area in front of the radiator that you are talking about. It's also Clean as a Whistle. Honestly, I think when it went up to 240, it was when I was trying to figure out why the check engine light was coming on. At that time my mechanic was resetting it and we were trying different things to see if it would quit coming on. We ended up replacing the O2 sensor that had something to do with a "heat bank". Think it was called the heat bank sensor. It was on the right front of the engine. We replaced the sensor and the engine seems to run cooler. It does however get up to 210 now. That's when I'm sitting in the drive through. My main question was what was everyone else's temps running. Just trying to see if what mine is running is normal for the corvette engine. I will have the radiator flushed. I think that is probably a good thing to do.
The guy I bought my vette from ran Mobil 1 synthetic. He also told me to run 5w-30. I thought to myself that 5 weight is pretty thin. I used to run that on vehicles in the winter when it was cold. So what weight would you recommend? I also live in Houston, TX and it gets pretty hot in the summer.
I run 5w30 Mobil 1 synthetic in the winter and 10w30 Mobil 1 synthetic in the spring and summer, if only for piece of mind.
In post #7 and post #10 they are referring to this pile of sand. I took the top shroud off and used a hose to clean the fins.
They pick up road debris because of the low inlet. Lowered in traffic temps about by about 15 degrees.
I have a 96 Grand Sport and these C4s run hot as well. I installed a hypertech 160 degree thermostat and reprogrammed the fans to come on earlier with a hypertech power programmer now the temps stay 185-195 range. Before the temps would creep up to the levels of your C5
05-04-2016, 01:43 PM
What's the Temperature on Your Vette
Just pop off the top plastic cover and look down between the two radiators..
