I have a 235 ingine with a 185 thermostat in it and i think its a 3 lb. radiator cap. when i am climbing up an average hill [ Santa clarita to palmdale ] for those who dont know its about a 20 mile hill . on the freway my thermostat reaches about 190 to 200 is that about right or should it stay at 185. the temp outside today was about 95. by the way i finely changed my ring and pinnion to 355 to 1 from patricks and can go about 65 and still feel farely safe on the freeway I think that will be as fast as i want to go with the stock brakes. and it seems to top out at 65 any way butt it sure beets topping out at 50.
Is the motor stock in that. Have you updated the rad is 3lb cap the highest you can go. Maybe a 8 to 10 if the rad and motor will handle it. Because with high faster speeds you will get higher heat. Does the rad have a good air flow throw it.
From what I've been told that it takes 20 degrees for the thermostat to fully open. It just " cracks" open at listed temp, and it varies how far it's open depends on temp. This is acorrding to the Slant Rep
The easy way to check is put in on the stove in a boiler with a thermometer. It wont be any guessing then.
Hillclimb Temps Hi Ron ; You're good to go, this is entirely normal , I'm assuming the temperature slowy drops again as you're going down the other side... Your engine will love you for this and last longer , make more power , better fuel economy etc. . Remember to change the coolant every couple years regardless of milage and only use distilled water ~ you can also add in some " Water Wetter " , that won't make it run much cooler but the temps will change faster , a good thing unless you're a clock watcher and let the temp. gauge scare you.
Thanks guys Ya it cools pretty fast once on level ground Nate. Now i need to do something with the front brakes mabee disks what you guys think about that and leave the rears original.
Topic Drift Yes , there are some kits to get disc brakes , research them well before buying . Or , find a '51 > and swap on the Bendix brakes , much better those.
