Looking for ways to keep engine heat down I got a 4 row, trans cooler, and electric fan any other suggestions to cool buick engines (350) (455)
Geez. I must be the exception... My Riv has a 4 row and a new OEM fan clutch. With air temps below 60* I can't even get it to top 180*. When it's really cold out I have to cover the front of the rad with cardboard to get it to operating temp. How hot does yours run?
I gutted my thermostat because it used to run hot. Now it doesn't get past the second line on the factory guage. In the winter the heater barely blows warm enough to make a difference, of course this is California. We don't need no stinkin' heaters! John
Mechanical fan. A quote from a Flex-a-lite factory representative: "An Electric fan will never cool as well as a mechanical fan". Is your problem at high speeds (highway, etc.)? Or at idle? Advancing your timing will help engine temperatures. Do you have a vacuum advance? I don't like the 160 deg thermostat trick unless you have a race car- you need to get the oil hot to burn off those yucky (acidic) volatiles. 180 is okay, and if you have a 195 (common from the factory) then the 180 would be a good idea. -Bob Cunningham
Sounds like a tuning problem. Check timing advance first. If that is not it you may be running lean. You should have no problems with the setup you have. Other question, have you had the engine bored and if so how much? Will have to disagree with Bob on mechanical fans. I use a dual electric fan setup out of a junked ricer and it works great. But I also say use what works.
my moter will only run under 200 when im running a belt driven 7 blade fan and a good thermal clutch, I have a 4 row, also make sure you dont have under drive pullys, it will run hotter with those, i tried the electric fan thing also, no way i could get it to cool as good as the belt driven, some guys have, but i think they spent a lot of $$$$ on dual fans, and aluminum radiators. i want to go fast, but i want to be able to drive my car as fare as i want with the most reliability
How hot do you guys consider too hot? The stock semi-enclosed system on a '70 GS455 has a boil-over temp of 247*F.
I had Denny Mannor tell me that up to 230 is OK. Most of us don't like to do that but as long as it is not boiling over I would feel comfortable up to 210. Just a note on my cooling system, 5 core brass (sorry do not know where to get another one) , junkyard dual fan, painless wiring kit with thermostat control. Going to dump the 160* thermostat for a 180* when I put in the new motor. I have less than $400 in the whole system. Unfortunatly I think the 5 core is the real key to how good it works and they are hard to find.
a quot from me: "flex fans suck".:laugh: i'd take an electric fan anyday. my cheap single fan pushes tons of air and cools fine. maybe not as much as a clutch fan, but much more than a flex fan. it also doesn't rob any power and i don't have to worry about fan blades getting thrown into my hood.
i do not see the benifit of the electric fan set-up. it is a lot of money and i can get the same cooling with the belt driven fan. but...the one thing that we have to consider is..what engine mods have been done. i have the usual 455 12 sec set-up (235/245 cam, 10.25 comp, headers, stinger ignition) and it is HARD to keep it cool. i have been battling it for a couple of years now. but here is my final solution. 1. for core brass radiator (that was recently rebuilt so it is great shape). 2. B+M heavy duty stack type oil cooler and B+M stack type heavy duty trans cooler (i can get people the stock numbers if necessary, but they are good sized). you have to relocate the oil filter due to clearance problems with the spacer for the oil cooler lines. 3. i mounted them in front of the radiator. i fabricated brakets using angled aluminum and flat aluminum strips and attached them behind the grill, using the core support to anchor the aluminum brackets. they are at least 8" in front of the radiator. this is key, nothing is on the radiator. the car run under 195 degrees all day long in the hot New England summer. if anyone wants pics or info let me know. and the stuff is hidden behind the grill. nothing is seen from the outside. i also bend and flared hardlines for hte tranny fluid and oil so it was more professional looking than a birds net of black hoses. john
Belt driven fans use HP. Electric fans do not, other than parasitic electrical loss when running. There's the benefit. John
the higher the commpression and also if you have an over bore moter the hotter it will run, i never had a problem keeping my stock 70 455 cool even with a 3 row, now 11to1 compression, with .030 over bore and the block saved to get that commpression, i had to go to a 4 row and made sure my clutch fan was working good if you can spin it buy hand more then 1 revalution when hot, i think it is shot, mine was bad and it made about 20 degrees diference, i like to keep my engine looking as stock as possible and dont care about the hp gain from electric fans, i just put more hp into my moter
I've got a basically stock 455 with a 4core radiator and a 5 blade clutch fan. It never gets past 180*. With my old 3 core (nasty and clogged), it would boil over every other day.
I've added water wetter to the radiator and I've noticed that the temperature usually stays under 190 degrees, with a 180 degree thermostat and a 4-core radiator. Unless it's above 80 degrees, I'm usually running under 190. When I get stuck in traffic, I've noticed the temp goes up to 210. Good product to take the edge of the heat problem. Erik 71 Buick GS 455 Convertible
oh yeah..my motor is 0.038 overbore also. and how much p are we talking about? 10 hp? i will stay with my clutch fan. and stock engines are easy to keep cool. my 1973 riv with a four core was always under 190 degrees. john
After i sorted out my problem with the faulty thermostat when i did the aluminum head swap its been running at 160 on the highway with aluminum radiator and clutch fan,which tells me i think i may need to get a 180 thermostat cause it runs too cool on the highway,in town it creeps up to 180-190,if it gets too hot in town so far it hasn`t i`ll just flick the switch for the single fan i have up front. Thanks
I run Dual 12" permatech fans, a stock 3 core radiator, about 10.5 compression and It always runs at 160. most of the time, I never use the electric fans. The fans were expensive, but the suck soem serious air through the radiator, and they really clean up the engine bay.
the engne i a 68 buick wildcat 350 never been rebuilt, i have never had a temperature gauge that actually told me the temp just the temp light that comes on 72 skylarks, but i know one thing it runs hot 200 degrees at the very least and doent take long to get thee, i have a vacum adavce, the timing is at 0 degrees and is what the service manual suggest ,and if i turned he timng up the spark knocks. I live in Arizona and i have a fan shroud still on, i have cutch fan i could put on bu im saving it for my 455.
