I've had several through the years, and it seems more of these are all over the map in temp than other makes. I have a 60 right now that runs a bit warmer than it should given the conditions, and it has a 7 blade fan and a shroud. I had another 60 a few yrs ago and it wouldn't go past 180 on a 105 degree day in stop and go traffic for 2 hours, and it had a 4 blade and no shroud. Why is it mostly pot luck on Pontiacs more than other makes? Thanks
ive never had a problem out of any ponchos now big block mopars on the other hand are hot basturds i know your in cali and prolly dont run a heater but around here the heater core is allways the first suspect or theres allways the case of some former owner beating a leaking block core plug into the water passage and blocking up the system
It's got the right water pump and cooling line/hose arrangement on it, right? '60 was the changeover year, my dyslexia is kicking in but I believe '59 and back are reverse-flow and '60-up are conventional, but don't look a lot different underhood from one another.
I read about a lean carberator condition on a 67 firebird, that was making it overheat, so that might be something else you could look at...
That would be my question.Seems to me they had a problem awhile back with the aftermarket 4 bolt pumps that had the impeller blades facing the wrong way.Yours should be an 8-bolt though I think.
John...I am not sure on the earlier model years like you have..but on the later 60s Ponchos you gotta make sure that the plate behind the water pump is there. Maybe the earlier ones have that too.. originals are steel and when they get rusted and full of pinholes they become very inefficient. They make them now in stainless and it directs the water from one side to the other...Ron
99% of suspected hot engines is incorrect reading on the guage. What are you referencing for temp readout? Are you using an IR gun on the t-stat housing? Thats the only 100% accurate way I use. Incorrect guage reading issues could be using sealer on the sender, and poor ground issues. Most of the time, If its a new guage (most likely made in china) I have to solder in a resistor to get the actual correct reading. I see what resistor to use by using an inline adjustable rheostat that I can move to match up guage to actual temp, then measure resistance on the rheostat setting it was at with my DVOM. Just a thought...
My '60 Ventura runs hot if sitting in traffic on a very hot day, but once, rolling, cools down immediately. There are different blade types on the water pumps. I've been told to stay away from the new style and get the OEM type. They seem to push the water better and more efficient. I do have a NOS Wieand 4bbl intake and made changes to accommodate the heads, water passages. But all in all, it runs cool. Plus I'm here in Riverside, Ca. Yes '59 are notorious for being HOT and changed the water flow in '60 Ken
Probably because the ignition timing isnt working correctly. I used to work for a Pontiac dealer and I don't remember running hot problems, unless the diverter plate behind the water pump rotted away and the coolant didn't divert properly. Look for a bad or wrong water pump diverter,, or ignition timing.
I see you are double posting on Pontiac Years as well. Go to their "Cooling" section and read the first few stickies. ALL the answers are there. For a street car, eliminate the clearance between the WP impeller and the backing plate, get a smaller WP pulley and overdrive the pump and fan 125%, and you will have the weird Pontiac stuff out of the way. The rest of your cooling work will be the same as a Chevy or anything else, but those 2 items will break your chops if you don't go there first.
Andyleonard has the right idea,works for me,get the cast impeller pump,and adjust the space between impeller and plate with a small hammer. I did that on my 455, but i made a mistake in installing the freeze plugs with permatex ,i should of used aircraft sealer,or Indian Head. Any way i could bust open the carb and i blew out 2 of the large freeze plugs,it had that much pressure,volume,but it always run cool....JOBOB
I had a problem with heat, but the vacuum advance wasn't hooked up and there was no thermostat. I installed a 160 thermostat with the three bypass holes and hooked up the vacuum advance. Now the car runs at 180.
From what I've seen here, everyone's cars run hot except for mine, regardless of make. Now I jinxed myself for sure... Bob
As others have stated make sure that divider plate is clearanced correctly. Adjusting that on my 400 made a difference of nearly 15 degrees.
My '66 always ran hot summer or winter. I just thought it was the proper operating temp or the gauge was toast. But I have heard a lot of fellas say that they run hot. No one ever offered me an explaination as to why. And like you I had one that never ran hot, even Barstow to Vegas in the summer ran cool as a kitten. It was a '63 Bonnie with the extra doors.
In addition to the water pump diverter plate being in good shape and installed correctly, the fan shroud should be installed and the little rubber pieces that seal the radiator from the core support should all be there. Failing that, check the timing. Pontiacs are notorious for running hot when the timing is retarded. Advancing the timing on my engines always brought down the operating temperature. They were harder to start, though...
I used to have a 1994 Grand Am SE that always ran hot, whether the A/C was on or not. I had talked to other Grand Am owners and they had the same problem. Tried a different T-stat, but that didn't help either. I guess it's not just the antiques that have overheat problems!
My wife had a Grand Am. I fought the overheating deal till I realized the beautiful looking (in the side) radiator was plugged at the bottom. LOL. My 67 GTO, (400, 4spd) never ran hot even with the air on. Although it did shell a timing gear at 60,000. The old turd nylon one. Which I promptly replaced with the steel one. But it was a tire smokin SOB. Lippy
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