Running Hot

[Anonymous]

Hey guys, thanks for all the help with my earlier post with the shaking problem on my 66 200ci, it turned out to be a loose fitting valve and valve guide on the number 4 cylinder. It was sticking, causing the cylinder not to fire, and also causing the engine to shake alot while idling and accelerating.

While we were at it, we replaced the number 4 head and rings because they werent holding enough compression....now the engine runs and idles MUCH smoother.

After doing all of that, the engine seems to be running hotter. WHile driving around town it gets up around the half way mark, when it used to only get around 1/4. When driving on the highway around 65 it gets pretty close to the end of the normal range mark( pretty close to the H).

Could this be because of a timing problem? Or maybe the thermostat? Im pretty sure that one of these is the problem. The guy that put the new valves and head on said it was the timing.

How much is a timing gun cost? And what are the symptoms of a thermostat that has been put in backwards?

Thanks for all the help guys!

 

[addo]

Sounds like retarded ignition timing. The Snap-On light is a good buy if you can stretch to it. (Assumed they still make it...)

A thermostat normally is marked "RAD" or "THIS SIDE TO RAD". The coil spring side goes into the head.

Cheers, Adam.

 

[rbohm]

8) if the thermostat is put in backwards, the engine will overheat fairly quickly.

 

[Anonymous]

Ive never really messed with the cooling system on this car....how exactly can i check the thermostat on this engine? Sorry...im kinda new on this engine

 

[Anonymous]

i would say that it probably is NOT your thermostat

check the belt for tightness/over tightness....that causes your water pump to run different than designed to. also check thebottom hose of your radiator. there is a coil inside that keeps it open at high speeds...make sure its firm


also check your timing, like Adam said. That can cause hot conditions as well.

last would be to check thermostat and/or radiator CAP

 

[Anonymous]

How much is a timing gun cost

A timing light can be had for around $15-20(maybe less). If you keep it where it won't get banged around much a cheap inductive light will suffice for your needs. The shiny chrome $75-$100 ones sure are nice but a plastic bodied cheap one will do what you need well enough. I've got a cheap red plastic one that i keep in a drawer where it doesn't get banged around. I've only had it for 10-15 years so i can say that it'll last a long time :roll: Granted it works best in the garage where it doesn't have to fight with the sunlight for visibility but it works. [/quote]

 

[CobraSix]

Simple things first, don't trust the gauge until you know for sure it is working. I would invest in a good mechanical gauge that you can run in the car to check the temperatures. Nothing permenent is required. You'd be amazed at the differernce in reading that you'd get just by swapping out Temp Sending units on an engine. I put 2 new ones in, and neither one had teh same reading for the same conditions (are as close as Icould get them). Outside that, a lot of the above suggestions are good. Personally I'd do the following:

1) invest in a good timing light with a dial back feature. Check your timing.

2) If that doesn't solve it, look at the Thermostat.

After that, come back to us for more places to look.

Slade

 

[Anonymous]

for MY piece of mind...can you just check the belt and make sure it isnt too tight. there should be some play in it...

this is from experience. It is a no-cost check...which I neglected to do...and it POPPED off...

 

[Anonymous]

Yeah i think i may check how tight the belt is because i think he tightened it after he replaced everything. How much play should be in the belt? Theres no AC or power steering. Thanks

 

[Anonymous]

there should be play...like if you push on it, it should give maybe 1/2 inch...I am guessing

My mech (or me) made it too tight....or too loose...anyways one day my belt just wasnt there

 

[ludwig]

Running lean also causes a hot condition. Check your fuel/air mix adjustment with a vacuum guage.

 

[Stubby]

The guy that put the new valves and head on said it was the timing

I would like to think that the mechanic would adjust the carb and set the timing. I would check the timing. Then check to see if the vac advance and centrifugal advance are working.

 

[cfmustang]

Good point! Don't just rely on what you think a mechanic SHOULD have done.

I had my engine completely rebuilt by a (supposedly) reputable shop...

They:
1) Didn't notice the damper slipped 10 degrees (10 DEGREES!), so I thought the timing was at 13 degrees and it was really at 3. That was causing a ton of my problems.
2) Adjusted my valves wrong so I was leaking vacuum like a sieve.
3) Forgot to hook up the vacuum line to my C4 modulator.
.
.
.

I could go on and on.

The only way to know for sure is to take it slowly and verify everything yourself. Don't worry about being new with the engine. I hardly knew anything about engines when I started (ask anyone here, I was posting questions for a year). Everyone here is fantastic, patient and give great advice.

 

[Anonymous]

I found out what the problem was...the mechanic said it wasnt running hot enough, so he replaced the theromostat with a higher temp one. It probably had a 160 degree in there, so i think he put a 180 back in. He said that a colder engine can be harder on an engine than a hotter one. He must have tested the temp at the radiator, so now Im pretty sure now that the gauge is off somewhat. Thanks for all the help guys!

 

[Anonymous]

to me, that sounds like baloney

i would suggest a second mechanic. if he changed the thermostat, it wont affect the gauge...in fact...by putting a higher thermo in, isnt he creating more heat in the block?

maybe you should hange your tempo sending unti...its very easy...

but lets keep discussing here....

 

[t-west]

Get it to temp, then stick a meat thermometer from your kitchen in the filler neck to get a reading. From what I remember the local votage regulator on the back of the instrument cluster sometimes goes and affects the reading on your guage.

--tom

 

[Anonymous]

t-west has given good advice-- those old gauges are not marked in degrees anyways-- so you don't even know what temp it is reporting and if it was that doesn't mean it is correct. Get it at it's warmest temp then carefully

(OHH CRAP steam and boiling water everywhere )

find out what that is in real life, then you will have a frame of reference for your gauge. Meat thermoeter in kitchenware isle of supermarket ,best if it reads up to at least 210. goes any higher you got a problem anyways.

 

[CobraSix]

Tom and dan hit what I was getting at. Check the gauge. Someone in the past could have very well adjusted the gauge to ready 'normal' with a 160* T-stat. Now put a 180* T-stat in and it'll read hot. Very easy to do. Tom's way is cheaper then mine to give you an idea of what relative gauge position means what temperatures. Every TSU is different. I've had 2 installed on the same engine with the same set up, and I ran a mechanical gauge to verify temps. One would read 180* right in the middle of Normal, the other one read 180* just barely in the normal range.

Slade

 

[Anonymous]

i dint know it was possible to adjust the gauge

can I adjust other gauges?

for example...my fuel gauge is never FULL...and I dont know where empty really is

 

[Anonymous]

All of the other gauges are right on the money, so do you think it would be the sending unit? Since the voltage regulator regulates all of the gauges? Or does each gauge have a different regulator?