xtremerevolution Posted October 25, 2007 Report Share Posted October 25, 2007 So a while back I had some issues keeping my temps down... Not pretty. That's at idle with A/C off after a 30 minute drive at 55mph. After fixing a number of problems, here's a picture I took a couple of weeks ago. That's my temperature after 2 hours of cruising at 75 mph. Coolant is a 50-50 premix. 180 t-stat, wide open Z34 vents, and a massive transmission cooler: Aside from being happy that my engine is finally running cool, I have a bit of a different question. Is my engine running too cold? Its been in the 40's the past few nights here in Chicago, and so far my engine hasn't had any problems warming up and running. Quite the contrary, there's a considerable increase in power. The heater works fine. However, I had heard somewhere that its not good for the transmission to be too cold. Can anyone comment on this? The transmission cooler is still unbearably hot to the touch after a 5 minute drive. Am I going to have any issues running the 180 t-stat during the winter as far as the engine goes? I don't mind waiting a bit longer for the car to warm up from a cold start since I have a Viper alarm installed with a remote start (currently set to 15 minutes). Just wanted to make sure I've got all my bases covered. So far my engine's been extremely reliable. Unlike boulevard's flowing river of fluid leaks, I have yet to leak a single drop of any kind of fluid. My fluid levels always stay the same no matter what, and the engine doesn't burn any oil either. I currently have 161,500 miles, and I'd like to keep the engine running as well as it is now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Psych0matt Posted October 25, 2007 Report Share Posted October 25, 2007 if it were me, I'd just grab a stock t-stat and pop it in for the winter, because that seems like it may be a little cold for the winter. granted you probably wont have any problems or anything, it just seems like it might be a little better for the engine, as well as your heat. either way you should be fine though Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slick Posted October 25, 2007 Report Share Posted October 25, 2007 Yes, the transmission needs to warm up to a certain temperature to perform correctly. That's partly the reason why you have to choose the correct size tranny cooler. Too big, and it won't warm up. As far as the engine running that cold, you should feel a power increase- it's dumping much more gas. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian P Posted October 25, 2007 Report Share Posted October 25, 2007 Well that marker in the center is the 200-210 mark depending on what cluster you compare it to (early Cutlass, or early GP) it looked like you were in the 220-225 range before, now you're around 150? But even so, your gauge or your gauge sensor could be a little too drastic with readouts. Check the upper radiator hose temperature with an infrared thermometer, or even scan the PCM and see what the other PCM temp sensor says. If that gauge is accurate then I'd say you're running a bit too cold. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xtremerevolution Posted October 25, 2007 Author Report Share Posted October 25, 2007 Well that marker in the center is the 200-210 mark depending on what cluster you compare it to (early Cutlass, or early GP) it looked like you were in the 220-225 range before, now you're around 150? But even so, your gauge or your gauge sensor could be a little too drastic with readouts. Check the upper radiator hose temperature with an infrared thermometer, or even scan the PCM and see what the other PCM temp sensor says. If that gauge is accurate then I'd say you're running a bit too cold. The thing is, that's only a highway temp on a clear highway going 75. Under stop-go traffic, the temps stay between the 1/4 mark and the 1/2 mark. Yes, the transmission needs to warm up to a certain temperature to perform correctly. That's partly the reason why you have to choose the correct size tranny cooler. Too big, and it won't warm up. As far as the engine running that cold, you should feel a power increase- it's dumping much more gas. So far I've noticed much quicker shifts out of the tranny than before. What signs should I be looking for if its too cold? And as far as it dumping more gas, is that a bad thing? I would figure it would improve performance, as I have noticed more power. I averaged 29 miles per gallon on my road trip last week from Chicago to the east coast, to DC, and back (2300 miles). Car ran extremely smooth that whole time. How exactly is a cool engine bad though? I mean it's not freezing cold; it definitely hurts to touch it. Right now it's getting excellent gas mileage (more than the factory), and better performance as well, and I've been running these temps for the past 2 months. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chadz34 Posted October 29, 2007 Report Share Posted October 29, 2007 Well that marker in the center is the 200-210 mark depending on what cluster you compare it to (early Cutlass, or early GP) it looked like you were in the 220-225 range before, now you're around 150? But even so, your gauge or your gauge sensor could be a little too drastic with readouts. Check the upper radiator hose temperature with an infrared thermometer, or even scan the PCM and see what the other PCM temp sensor says. If that gauge is accurate then I'd say you're running a bit too cold. The thing is, that's only a highway temp on a clear highway going 75. Under stop-go traffic, the temps stay between the 1/4 mark and the 1/2 mark. Yes, the transmission needs to warm up to a certain temperature to perform correctly. That's partly the reason why you have to choose the correct size tranny cooler. Too big, and it won't warm up. As far as the engine running that cold, you should feel a power increase- it's dumping much more gas. So far I've noticed much quicker shifts out of the tranny than before. What signs should I be looking for if its too cold? And as far as it dumping more gas, is that a bad thing? I would figure it would improve performance, as I have noticed more power. I averaged 29 miles per gallon on my road trip last week from Chicago to the east coast, to DC, and back (2300 miles). Car ran extremely smooth that whole time. How exactly is a cool engine bad though? I mean it's not freezing cold; it definitely hurts to touch it. Right now it's getting excellent gas mileage (more than the factory), and better performance as well, and I've been running these temps for the past 2 months. If you can't touch it, it's probably fine. I think by the look of the temp gauge it was no different than my 96' Lumina. If you are worried about no heat in winter time, put the stock 195 stat in, although a 180 that you have is good enough to make enough heat. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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