Over heating issues

[kuhndg]

Still working out a few of the gremlins On my car. Today was nice enough that I could actually pull the car out and let it run.

Well, it over heated. It has been running at a little over 200 F. Today the needle peaked!

1980 FI

Motor was a complete rebuid with 1800 head conversion.
Mark's; performance cams,header/exhaust,cone air filter.
Has new water pump and thermostat with a 1/8 hole drilled into it.
Front end was put up on jacks and system bled as per IAP tech bulletin. Yes, I have heat.

Thanks in advance.

[kmead]

Any chance you installed the thermostat facing the wrong way?

Did it really overheat? Have you checked with an external IR type thermo reader? Sometimes gauges don't read correctly.

[kuhndg]

Definitely running warm!! I do not have optical equipment to perform your suggested task. Thermostat is installed correctly.

Bob

[So Cal Mark]

fan working? coolant circulating? radiator have any cool spots across the face?

[manoa matt]

When was it running hot, and when did it overheat? Was all this in the driveway and the first time it got to operating temps or have you been driving it around? Was it running hot while you were driving above 30mph? At 40 or 50mph in cold weather it should be running a few deg cooler due to the air flow through the rad.

Do you have the behr thermostat (190 deg F.)? With the added HP a 10 deg increase could be expected.

If you keep a stock cooling system and up the horsepower of the engine it will run hotter, this would apply to all engines. You really need to verify your temperatures accurately with a good non contact thermometer. You spent some money on that setup so what is another $20-50 to ensure its running at the right temperatures. Insurance.

The other thing it might be is too advanced timing. Fuel injected spider distributors have 14 deg advance at the dizzy which equates to 28 at the crank, add 10 deg initial timing and factor in the vac advance module and your total timing is above 38 deg. Your upgrades increased the compression ratio and efficiency of the engine, so you might need reduced timing.

You installed performance cams right? Did you accurately time them with the head off and a degree wheel, or just go with the stock pulleys and stock marks on the wheels and pointers?

Did you hear any signs of pre-ignition or detonation?

[kuhndg]

fan working? coolant circulating? radiator have any cool spots across the face?

Yes, the fan kicks in after the car has idled for about 5 minutes. Cap off, coolant circulating. I did not check for cool spots

When was it running hot, and when did it overheat?

Need to have the front end aligned...don't want to take it out on the road until I do that. I had it idling in my driveway with the temperature about 35 f.[

o you have the behr thermostat (190 deg F.)?

Did not receive that yet.

The other thing it might be is too advanced timing. Fuel injected spider distributors have 14 deg advance at the dizzy which equates to 28 at the crank, add 10 deg initial timing and factor in the vac advance module and your total timing is above 38 deg. Your upgrades increased the compression ratio and efficiency of the engine, so you might need reduced timing.

You amaze me with your mechanical aptitude and intellect....I'm a newbie to this stuff, I will pass that along to a friend of mine that helps me out and he may understand.

You spent some money on that setup so what is another $20-50 to ensure its running at the right temperatures. Insurance.

I will go out and buy one and educate myself.

We used the stock pulleys and the stock marks On the wheels and pointers.

I guess this is a place to start, any other advice is appreciated.

Mark, With the questions asked here, do you have any suggestions that maybe you have done in the past on other setups?
Do I need to look at putting on adjustable cam pulleys?

[

[So Cal Mark]

you don't need adjustable pulleys with those cams.
What idle speed was the engine running at as it got hot? If you had it running at a fast idle speed,(above 1500rpm) the fan doesn't pull enough air to cool it.
I'll also throw this out since whole car was apart; make sure the fan is turning the proper direction.
Harbor Freight has the non-contact thermometers on sale for about 29 and they work very well. It would be helpful to check temps at various spots in the cooling system. It makes it very easy to check the radiator for restrictions.