Quick question -- what is the normal running temp of the engine per the temp gauge?? I still have the very high voltage, can't figure out why. Thanks, Ken
Generally, factory temp gauges are calibrated so that at normal range (195-225* F.), the needle is about in the middle of the sweep. Is yours showing at the hot end all the time? Realistically, you need to verify what the actual temp behind the t-stat is. Question: is the hot condition you refer to happening when the car is idling, or when the car is moving down the road?
Technically, your operating temperature should be whatever degree thermostat you have in the car. Bad coolant temp sensors are notorious for reading incorrectly. If you have access to a scan tool, check the temp sensor reading while the engine is cold. It should read somewhere close to ambient temperature. Very often, they will read below zero or very high, in which case you should change it. Then drive the car with the scan tool hooked up and bring it up to operating temperature and read it again. It should be close to your thermostat rating. Very often the thermostat will have been changed to a lower rating in the mistaken belief that it will run cooler. This isn't the case. Make sure the installed thermostat is the one rated for your vehicle.
Thanks Thanks folks. the gauge is reading at the cool end of the normal range all the time and I wonder if it ;has been swapped with a colder rating or taken out all together. I haven't had it long and have been focusing a lot of money on the voltage gauge. The voltage seems to be up at 17 volts +/-. Nothing I have done has made an difference. Ken
My 93 Caprice wagon with 5.7 and tow package usually runs just barely over the first mark up on the guage and every so often just a little hotter than that. A couple of times it went up to the halfway mark before I had the weeping water pump replaced and had run just a little low on coolant before realizing it (longer drives leaked more coolant). I had the pump and thermostat changed and it is back to hardly ever going much past the first mark on the guage.
Exactly what have you done so far? Offhand, I can only think of two reasons why: 1. You have a bad voltage regulator. 2. You have a badly sulfated battery, which could cause 1. above to fail eventually if not already. It's requiring constant voltage to keep it charged. Are the sides of the battery bulged out and is the battery always very hot? Do a load test on it. Lastly you could have an alternator belt slipping, or a short that's draining your battery overnite requiring constant charging to attempt to get it up to snuff. Remember, alternators DO NOT charge batteries, they maintain the charge of a good battery. Most likely it is a combination of the above.
