Well i guess that was the problem, I did not put 4-5 gallons in when i flushed and filled. I am going to flush and fill again this weekend with the correct amount of coolant and borrow my brother in-laws pressure tester. I guess that would explain the problem. Man do i feel like an idiot. I still blame the moron at autozone who told me that my capacity was two gallons. I wanted to geta digital guage that tells me the correct engine temp at all times, probably strt on that next week once i figure out where to start!

Thanks geoffunkel

 

Well if you just drain and refill the radiator, maybe only 9 quarts or so will come out but the total capacity of the whole cooling system (including passages in the engine block, heads, etc, is 16-20 quarts depending on your radiator (Some have HD cooling package, A/C, Manual vs Auto, etc). Most blocks have drain plugs in them as well, although sometimes they are difficult to get to. You will never get every drop out unless you take apart the engine. So 2.5 gallons (10 qts) is probably a good guess for a simple radiator drain and refill.

The correct amount to fill is with the radiator completely filled to the top and then slightly above the cold mark on the overflow. This pretty much applies to virtually every car. I like to fill the radiator all the way up cold, then start the engine with the radiator cap off. The level will drop slightly with the engine running. Slowly add coolant and occasionally squeeze the top radiator hose to try to burp out any air in the system. When all air is out, and the radiator is topped off, then put the cap on. This should only take about a minute. Don't allow the engine to get hot with the cap off.

Oh, and I would do the pressure test before the drain and refill. If you do find a leak, you'll probably just have to drain it again.

 

I have A/C & Automatic,( A/C doesnt work) dont know if i have HD cooling or not.
I will definetly check the pressure first, When i drain and fill i drain everything out then stick the hose in there and let the truck run for about 20 minutes then turn the hose off and let all that drain out. then i put some coolant system cleaner in their and let it run for about an hour then drain and fill with coolant an distilled water. I know people hate stick normal water in their but sense im draining at the same time it sounds good to me i guess. Is that a pretty standard drain and refill?

 

This is why I either buy a thermostat with a bleeder or drill a small hole in the flange.
It will pass enough air to let you fill 99% of the cooling system.
Then overfill the reservoir a bit before you take that first drive.
The radiator draws from the bottom and it will take as much fluid as it needs when it cools down.

 

How does these thermostat's look?


Hypertech/Thermostat - Performance 1018 at AutoZone.com

 

The AZ link leads me to "Page Not Found".

Stant used to be good thermostats and radiator caps.
I would just drill a 3/32-1/8" hole in the flange.

RobertShaw from FlowKooler are good too.

Stay away from MrGasket products.

I don't buy any snakeoil like 'Failsafe' or whatever...
Why do I want a thermostat intended to fail???

 

X2 on the Failsafe snake oil ones! Just had to replace the ones I put in both my Fords and my daughter's Buick because they failed. Stuck open on purpose. I thought I was doing something smart at the time, but oh well. Live and learn!