Ls1 temp
Melting Slicks
Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 2,384
Likes: 403
From: Horseshoe Bend ID
Way too hot! Should be 196 on the road, 220 at the drive thru. Check for crud, plastic bags on the front of the radiator, then check for air in the cooling system.
Team Owner
Joined: Dec 1999
Posts: 34,873
Likes: 487
From: Lacey WA RVN 68-69
NCM Sinkhole Donor
NOT typical. Especially this time of year!!! Likely that the face of the radiator is plugged up with debris.
The C5 is a bottom breather and pulls cooling air for the radiator and AC condenser from the road level. As such it sucks up everything off the road like a vacuum cleaner and throws it against the cooling fins. With debris blocking air flow the car will run much hotter than it needs to.
Get the front of the car up on ramps or jack stands and look up into the pocket just behind the air dam and you will most likely see lots of "stuff" covering the radiator and AC condenser fins.
Best way to clean it is to remove the radiator and use a garden hose from the engine side of the radiator toward the front to wash out/remove the debris. Going the other direction simply pushes the dirt and sand pebbles deeper into the fins.
The C5 is a bottom breather and pulls cooling air for the radiator and AC condenser from the road level. As such it sucks up everything off the road like a vacuum cleaner and throws it against the cooling fins. With debris blocking air flow the car will run much hotter than it needs to.
Get the front of the car up on ramps or jack stands and look up into the pocket just behind the air dam and you will most likely see lots of "stuff" covering the radiator and AC condenser fins.
Best way to clean it is to remove the radiator and use a garden hose from the engine side of the radiator toward the front to wash out/remove the debris. Going the other direction simply pushes the dirt and sand pebbles deeper into the fins.
Another thing to check is the condition of the lower air dams. These do get to a point where they are so beat up (or even missing) from hitting things that they don't force enough air up into the radiator and A/C condenser.
Once you get the high temp problem solved, you should do a cooling system flush and refill. The OEM coolant is DexCool and it has about a 5-year life. If the coolant hasn't been changed in the last 4-5 years, it should be done now. Do you know if the thermostat is original? May not hurt to replace it especially if you pull the radiator.
Check the radiator hoses too. If they are the originals, it's possible that a hose is collapsing and cutting the flow of coolant.
Intermediate
Joined: Dec 2015
Posts: 36
Likes: 3
way too hot
http://www.saccitycorvette.com/COOLITv2.html
Le Mans Master
Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 8,700
Likes: 298
From: Ft. Lauderdale Fl
There are several things to do to get those temps down:
1. New overflow tank cap..18 psi.
2. Check all the hoses
3. Make sure your water pump is working well.
4. Check your Tstat..test and make sure it opens when you want it to.
5. Make sure your radiator is clean and check between the radiator and
your A/C.
6. Change your coolant....use DexCool and distilled water at a 50/50%
mixture.
7. Check your air dam...not missing or bent.
My Vette runs between 180 to 200 degrees this time of year and depending on traffic and outside temps. (I do live in South Florida).
1. New overflow tank cap..18 psi.
2. Check all the hoses
3. Make sure your water pump is working well.
4. Check your Tstat..test and make sure it opens when you want it to.
5. Make sure your radiator is clean and check between the radiator and
your A/C.
6. Change your coolant....use DexCool and distilled water at a 50/50%
mixture.
7. Check your air dam...not missing or bent.
My Vette runs between 180 to 200 degrees this time of year and depending on traffic and outside temps. (I do live in South Florida).
Pro
Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 722
Likes: 70
From: Fla
hot z06
SacCity Corvette offers a gadget to control high temps. 220 is fine for the cooling system but there is a lot of other stuff under the hood that prefers cooler temps. This system, both wired and wireless work very well. My engine heats up when climbing any incline for a while. The CoolIt brings down the temp in minutes. Good luck...
http://www.saccitycorvette.com/COOLITv2.html
http://www.saccitycorvette.com/COOLITv2.html
