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I use this old pickup on my hunting camp, poking around in second gear (4 speed) at 10-15 mph. It continues to runs great but I have noticed it may be running a bit hotter than usual based on temp gauge. Yesterday evening, it was around 210 degrees, maybe 215, with the auxillary fan running (in hot Florida summer weather). Seems like it usually runs 10-15 degrees cooler.
Again, it is running ok but I am beginning to wonder if the water pump is acting up but not sure how to tell. Should the coolant be circulating when the motor is running and the cap off? It doesn't seem to be but I did not run it like this very long. Is 210-215 a problem?
Sounds like your thermostat or water pump is shot. My 68 would run normally until you shut it off after a 50+ mile run, then it would belch water/coolant. Pump was completely shot.
Check the thermo first, its cheaper and easier to replace.
What temp should the truck be running at? No one has stated that the 210 is too high, but based on comments related to the thermostat, it sounds like you believe i have a problem. What is a normal operating range? Like I mentioned, i have not owned this truck long enough to know "normal" but it seems like it was running 190-200 in the past.
210 is way too hot. 195 is usually normal for emissions-controlled engines. your T-stat sounds bad. i would change that before anything.. they are no more than $10 and another dollar for the gasket. switch to a 180. it wont have much effect to performance or emissions (based on tests me and my company have done) plus since you run a carb, you wont have any problems as far as "running too cold".. but even older EFI and CFI systems will tolerate a 180 t-sat. all my vehicles (and former vehicles) , except my f-150 (soon to be changed) run a 180 t-stat.. this included my '87 Econoline (EFI 5.0L) '87 CrownVic (EFI 5.0L) '86 Thunderbird (3.8L CFI) '94 Taurus (3.0L EFI) and my '85 Ranger (2.0L 1bbl) all run well, no drivability problems, and all but the ranger passed emissions (Ranger has yet to be tested for emissions)
anyway long story short: switch your t-stat, prefrerably a 180 then see how it reacts.
You can get t-stats as low as 160 for your truck, but i agree that there is nothing wrong with a 180. I run a 180 and it works fine. Anything over 200 is getting too hot. New stat and new coolant is a good place to start.
Normal Temp is about 7 to 9 °F higher than T-stat opening point...
I'm not sure about the original T-stat for your engine model, but for EFI engines is 192°F, so they run betwen 195 to 205 "in hot Florida summer weather"
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