cooling questions

[johncbourg]

Ok here is it goes:

The car runs between the 3 hash marks in the center of the coolant gauge.

The fan does come on once it gets past the 3rd hash mark so that ok.

The thermostat should open up before this right?

I'm able to collapse the upper hose by hand causing level gyrations in the overflow tank.

The upper hose is warm but not super hard like I would think you would expect. It feels more like pressure (i'm no expert)

I'm not sure when the hoses were replaced if ever..the car had 5400 miles when I bought it, and now has 7200 miles

Do I need to replace the T-stat?

Thanks

 

[Martin]

It sounds like your car is cooling perfectly well - most people with cooling questions are asking because the car will never run within the three middle hashmarks. If the car is ten years old, it wouldn't hurt to swap out the hoses. After you do that, though, then you'll be asking why it runs so hot Then you'll get into the whole 'proper burping' procedure. Mine ran just like yours until I did a coolant replacement, and now it runs about 20-30 degrees hotter. I just haven't had the time to properly burp it again.

 

[jdeft1]

+1 to Martin.. You may also want to replace the pressure cap (cheap item at a local parts place) unless you have the equipment to test it...

On my gen 1, the stat opens at 192+/- (probably)
The fan starts at 225..or so.

It's normal for the gage to cycle from center position to 225 on warm days or in traffic. A/C "on" keeps the fan running and will stabilize the "cycling"...

 

[Olddudesrule]

Martin hit the nail on the head. Your system sounds like it's running perfectly normal. Make sure the overflow bottle in the front right facia is at the correct level, and enjoy the car. If it's time for a coolant flush, be prepared to burb it completely, or you WILL have higher running temps than you do now.

On a side note, why is it so many owners seem overly concerned about their cooling systems, when they seem to be running fine?

 

[AZTVR]

On a side note, why is it so many owners seem overly concerned about their cooling systems, when they seem to be running fine?

I'm thinking that most people are used to other cars which control their temperature to a specific point much better. It is a bit disconcerting to see the temperature needle wandering upward on a hot day in traffic or on a spirited run !

 

[Leslie]

I'm thinking that most people are used to other cars which control their temperature to a specific point much better. It is a bit disconcerting to see the temperature needle wandering upward on a hot day in traffic or on a spirited run !

...and with this car it does! at least in mine..I can be driving to the track and it'll be 160...sitting in traffic and it will jump to 200....at the track 220...then back to 160 on the drive home

Because I track my car I run a combination of 30% coolant/70% water, leaving room for 2 bottles of water wetter (in the warm months) and I pull the radiator out and clean it.

 

[johncbourg]

Thanks for the replies.

Put the car on a lift today, and my radiator is toast.

Leaking coolant from the seams. I noticed it after posting this thread.

Prob. unrelated to my concerns. The price of owning a 14 yr old car I guess.

Got a Dodge bud who is gonna get a OEM replacement hopefully.

 

[1994viper]

I recored mine last month cost me under 300$ and they added a 3rd row. Funny that my 94 came with a 2 row rad. Oh wait a second.....

Well now the car cools much better. I dont get temps as high as last year, and if I run the car hard, it actully cools much faster now too.

 

[RTTTTed]

Thanks for the replies.

Put the car on a lift today, and my radiator is toast.

Leaking coolant from the seams. I noticed it after posting this thread.

Prob. unrelated to my concerns. The price of owning a 14 yr old car I guess.

Got a Dodge bud who is gonna get a OEM replacement hopefully.

Actually, that's an "old ineffective" Antifreeze problem or caused by stress if an accident. 14 years is nothing. My 73 Duster has a plastic alluminium crossflow rad from a 91 F350 truck that had over 100,000mi. and had been written off. I have a dozen rads hanging on my shop walls from the sixties and 80s that are perfect.

If you drive your car in high temps a lot you should upgrade the cooling system. A roeracing.com front fascia scoop, Sean's 174F thermostat and a DC Performance blow through fan kit would be a great upgrade for your car. I'm not sure of your year? 2010-14= 1996? but the late 90s and early 2000s had the rad and cooling fan Systems upgraded.

I installed the Roe Racing thermostat as part of my supercharger kit and installed the front fascia scoop more for aerodynamics than cooling - because I've never experienced my car Hot. I also added the fascia scoop to increase the airflow to my intake filters.

Ted



Ted

 

[plumcrazy]

john, was it leaking at the front drivers side ?

 

[johncbourg]

john, was it leaking at the front drivers side ?

no its leaking from the passenger side.

 

[johncbourg]

Actually, that's an "old ineffective" Antifreeze problem or caused by stress if an accident. 14 years is nothing. My 73 Duster has a plastic alluminium crossflow rad from a 91 F350 truck that had over 100,000mi. and had been written off. I have a dozen rads hanging on my shop walls from the sixties and 80s that are perfect.

If you drive your car in high temps a lot you should upgrade the cooling system. A roeracing.com front fascia scoop, Sean's 174F thermostat and a DC Performance blow through fan kit would be a great upgrade for your car. I'm not sure of your year? 2010-14= 1996? but the late 90s and early 2000s had the rad and cooling fan Systems upgraded.

I installed the Roe Racing thermostat as part of my supercharger kit and installed the front fascia scoop more for aerodynamics than cooling - because I've never experienced my car Hot. I also added the fascia scoop to increase the airflow to my intake filters.

Ted



Ted

Its a 96 that had 5400 miles on it when I bought it. I have put 2000 miles on it since then. I had the coolant replaced when I got it, but that doesn't mean the old coolant wasnt just sitting in there years prior.

I got it from the original owner who obviously didn't drive it. (not that I drive it alot either)

No big deal. I'm going to replace it with the stock one. I will also replace the hoses, and T-stat since there original too.

 

[99 R/T 10]

Thanks for the replies.

Put the car on a lift today, and my radiator is toast.

Leaking coolant from the seams. I noticed it after posting this thread.

Prob. unrelated to my concerns. The price of owning a 14 yr old car I guess.

Got a Dodge bud who is gonna get a OEM replacement hopefully.

Just in case you want to upgrade:

Griffin Radiator 4" New, never used - ViperClub Classifieds

 

[97GTS]

Just in case you want to upgrade:

Griffin Radiator 4" New, never used - ViperClub Classifieds

If you need ANYTHING, check with Mike first.


Ron

 

[jay01m]

Have it re-cored. Any radiator shop can separate the radiator tanks and install a new triple core radiator, which is 1 row more than what is stock.

I don't recommend getting an aftermarket radiator. Don't bother, it won't cool any better. As a matter of fact, a triple pass radiator that some vendors try to sell you will go to crap sooner than a single pass because as the core corrodes, it will clog up, leaving you with more restricted water flow from the radiator being separated into thirds.

There's a thread on this from about a year or so ago addressing this. I posted in detail on it, including the pros and cons. I'll have to try and find it.

If you still want to go aftermarket, I'll take your old tanks off your hands just let me know.

Jason

Thanks for the replies.

Put the car on a lift today, and my radiator is toast.

Leaking coolant from the seams. I noticed it after posting this thread.

Prob. unrelated to my concerns. The price of owning a 14 yr old car I guess.

Got a Dodge bud who is gonna get a OEM replacement hopefully.

 

[Tom F&L GoR]

The green antifreeze uses silicates that coat the surface upon the first heating to protect against corrosion... but after 2-3 years it flakes off. The flakes are abrasive and cause water pump seal wear.

Long life coolants (and there are many, different colors, etc) are all extremely low or no-silicate. The chemistry lies in wait until corrosion begins, then attacks it. Therefore it lasts longer (5 yeats to lifetime) and water pumps last much longer. Whatever you do after your radiator swap, go with a long life coolant. The Peak Lifetime coolant looks good to me.

Coincidentally my '96 Dakota is going to my daughter, so I looked at the radiator and it is corroded from the outside; the lower half had lost all the cooling fins, even though the inside tubes looked great. I also had a hardened radiator cap gasket, so upon replacing the cap and radiator, the pressure caused a water pump gasket leak. To be safe, I bought a new pump.

Here is a picture of the OEM pump after one-fill of pre-DexCool antifreeze. Texaco pioneered this long life technology and um, well, I helped evaluate it. I guess I should let someone know how it did. After 13 years and ~95,000 miles, it looks better than the reman pump I put on.

 

[1TONY1]

Have it re-cored. Any radiator shop can separate the radiator tanks and install a new triple core radiator, which is 1 row more than what is stock.


There's a thread on this from about a year or so ago addressing this. I posted in detail on it, including the pros and cons. I'll have to try and find it.

Jason

I tried to find that thread with no luck. Seems like there was a debate over copper VS aluminum and heat dissipation. I would like to read through it again if you can find it.

 

[jay01m]

I tried to find that thread with no luck. Seems like there was a debate over copper VS aluminum and heat dissipation. I would like to read through it again if you can find it.

http://forums.viperclub.org/rt-10-gts-discussions/630586-radiators-latest-greatest-2.html

Hope it helps.