Is that $120 for shipping?? ws https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_fr..._TitleDesc=0&_osacat=6000&_odkw=I.R.+temp+gun
No...thats one in stock, a quality brand, in stock at the auto parts store one minutes walk from my workshop. And Im not buying it. I can buy a whole car for that sorta money! Just got given a 99 Nissan Pulsar for free and Im using it as my runaround car , no way will I waste that sorta money. Ive survived the last 61 years without a temp gun Im sure I can go the other 40 without one
I paid $7 for my temp gun. Harbor Frieght on sale. I needed one for checking paint and car panel temps prior to priming and painting and I keep it nearby all the time. It's crazy how often I use it. Just used it a few days ago to check wheel bearing temps while out on ride as I tightened one abit and wanted to compare temps from side to side. Find a dead cylinder, a clogged catalytic converter, verify thermostat opening temps.....lotsa stuff. And don't forget to check that thermostat for chafing, wear . It may very well be your issue. JIM
Just removed the thermostat and suspended it in a pan of boiling water and it opened smoothly and took about 90 seconds to fully close again after I took it outta the boiling water, did it a couple of times. Heres some pix of it. As to availability of a gasket here in Oz it may not be easy, 455 Buicks aint exactly common, I may need to cut my own. l
Maybe verify the guage is correct? Is it an aftermarket guage? This is where the IR Gun would help.....Jim
Looks fine, but looks mean nothing. When you tested it, did you measure the temperature of the water as it opened? As long as it smoothly opened and closed, it most likely isn't sticking. The thermostat should just START to open at it's rated temperature. It should be fully open 20* above the rating. What thermostat was in there?
It looks brand new, no I didnt have a thermometer, it did open smoothly and closed smoothly when taken out of hot water. Parts man said I should change the coolant as its probably over 2 yrs old..It had green coolant it it. Car has only done 4000 miles since it came from USA in 2011...
Only thermostat in stock is a 170 so Im going with that, off to buy new coolant then flush and refill. Cant get the correct gasket so Ill cut one from gasket paper . Dont ya love cooling systems. Could be this Could be that. Could be something else! Bit like chasing electrical problems..
Yeah well it does look like its been opening and closing slighly cocked sideways, and seeing as its now out Im gonna replace it with a brand new 170 item. Also while its out Im gonna flush the entire cooling system and refill with fresh coolant. And if that dont fix the temp cycling 80-120 then at least the coolants fresh and we know its not the thermostat. Aussie ambient temps a 170 should work fine. No snow in my state except in my refrigerator freezer
18 litres!...google Ok got type A cos its had an ally radiator fitted. And some flushing stuff. Might as well do it while its out and apart.
Test that new one before you install it! I did a new one (185F) during a Mtce. job on mine, and the 455 ran and consistently at 230F! I put the old one back in 4 years ago and its still there. Take the T stat housing and clean in by doing a figure 8 on some ruff sandpaper, then spray glue a piece of gasket material to it. Trim it with a knife and use never-seize on the mating surface. You can re-use that gasket many times that way. FWIW, any acidic cleaner needs to be thoroughly neutralized with an alloy radiator! ws
Ok, after filling and dumping the old coolant 4 times and still getting green out a mechanic mate tells me Im going about it the wrong way! I do it his way. After thermostats removed and housing refitted, remove one heater hose, open heater tap to turn on. Stick garden hose in heater hose and run it till all green coolant is expelled out the fitting the heater hose was removed from. Ok. Then block that fitting with my finger after removing radiator cap and then turn hose on again till all green coolant is expelled and water runs clean. Then drop bottom hose and drain everything. Now all traces of old coolant are gone. Reconnect hoses. Tip in a bottle of non acidic cooling system flush, top up with water and run engine as per directions on flush bottle 20 mins min to 60 max. I drove and filled up fuel tank came home let it cool for a while then dumped the contents via bottom rad hose. Reconnect then refill system then remove heater hose and this time I used hot water tap via garden hose to repeat the above flush process then had a sandwich while letting it cool off a bit before repeating again with cold water till it came out clean. Heres where I made a mistake! I didnt remove the bottom rad hose again and dump all the contents! I removed the thermostat housing and it looked very clean inside the engine, I made a new gasket, glued to the housing, then fitted the 170 thermostat, after drilling a 1/16" relief hole in it. Gasket silicon on the other side of the gasket and refitted it all, then started pouring in the Type A long life coolant, but after pouring in around 3 litres the radiator was full! Thats when I realised my mistake!!! I hadnt dropped the bottom rad hose again and emptied out the entire contents!....there was still water left over from the flush and probably a small amount of flush concentrate still in there with the incorrect ratio of coolant. Grrrrr!.....ok stop! Think! Take it for a drive see if level drops but hey I really need to drain the lot out and start again... Got the wrong ratio as well as a small amount of flush still in there! Cars parked in my shed now. Tomorrow Ill go buy another 6 litre bottle of long life coolant. Drop the bad mix out, reflush with fresh water as above and make sure its all drained out this time. Then add the coolant and water at a ratio off 33% minimum 50% max. Probably closer to the max than min as Ill have a remaining 3 litres I didnt waste plus a new 6 litres so nine all up. .Damn close to a 50% ratio mix Alls well that ends well and Im running 80C driving which goes to 100C idling then back to 80C-90C driving....perfect. So all will be well tomorrow, alarm on and Ill hit the parts store soon s they open. Got a feeling all will be well.
