His gauge starts at 300... No readings below that temp

Never seen one like that

 

I point the gun at the turbo exhaust housing and on the driver's side exhaust manifold. This is when my EGT gauge is reading around 450* - 600*ish just coming off the interstate when pulling my 5th wheel. Pretty darn close between the IR thermometer and the EGT gauge. The one I bought is linked below, and I use it quite a bit on my truck and the trailer hubs/brakes/tires as well.

Idling your EGTs will be around 200 - 250, so your gauge will not register until your driving.

 

I turned the tune all the way up and beat on it today. Slight to moderate black smoke when I'm standing on it. I hit the on ramp at 50, put my foot in the floor and didn't come out until about 90. I started at about 350 and after that little 20 second or so pull I was coming on 1100. The I came off a light, barely at 300 and stood on it until 60, and brought it up to about 900. So all in all I'm feeling much better.

In the mean time. I realized the top radiator tank is leaking at the seal to the aluminum, so looks like a new radiator, t-stat and recovery bottle cap time. I noticed the ford t-stat is a 190, and most aftermarkets are 205. That seems high to me, or am I just used to 160-190 in gassers?? I plan to get the coolest one I can find, and at least a 2 if not 3 row radiator.

On a slightly related note, I was pondering... The job of the coolant system is to remove heat. Where does that heat come from? Well I'm sure some is friction. But most of it is from combustion. The higher the temps of the combustion, the more heat imparted to the engine, the more heat needing to be removed. All that said, it does not seam unrealistic to think that extended high EGT's (900-1100 for example) would increase coolant temp. And visa versa.

 

I have sat on 1200 towing but never had my gauge come up. Some do tho.

 

One of the points of the higher T stat temps is to remove moisture from the C Case . Mileage is another . The Higher the better .

 

THe Primary function of the T stat is to maintain the most efficient operating temp.

 

The higher the better? Hmm that opposite of gas...thanks

 

Yeah, I get that, but 205 just seemed high for "efficient" I've pulled 190's out in favor of a 170 on my Mustang. But, the PSD is a whole new world, so...

 

If your going to pull heavy, stay with a 180°!

 

Honestly, the most it will ever see (most likely) is a travel trailer 5000-7000#. Or may be a car on a trailer, about the same. Other than that its just my beat around. I daily drive a Shelby, so trips to Lowe's are a bit difficult..haha. But it was bought specifically to pull the trailer and seat the family.

 

I order most of my parts from a wholesale distribution warehouse. My mom works for them so I get the hook up. I'm going to see if they have a 205* available (I've got the "memo" on long stem vs short). I've seen plenty of threads going both ways. I want to try the 205* because my needle has stayed on or near the bottom bracket for an hour straight on the hwy, and I don't plan to be pulling more than 7000#, but much of the time I'll be near empty. It seems the 205* is well suited to lighter duty. All that said, I plan to keep my current T-stat handy, just in case. I appreciate all (civilized) feed back. We all disagree from time to time. There is a long list of topics that are debated. What works for you, your rig, and driving style is just that. It works for you. I'm a huge fan of research, squeezing the last drop, and quantative data. But there is a LOT to be said for qualitative experience also.

 

I put the 203 thermostat in my 97. I typically gross out 22-24k. Even pulling the mountains of Route 68 thru west VA and Maryland
never had any issues with it running hot. even with the I/C restricting the air flow some.

I say if IH used it in the medium duty trucks, then why not out pickups. After all, Internationals ENGINEERED the engine, I think they would know best

 

I'm putting my 2 cents in on this one.

Match your t-stat with your Engine Oil Temps.
I run a 203 T-stat and see 215-220 Engine Oil Temps.

T-stats also depend on your ability to cool.

Putting a really cold T-stat in a truck that can cool too well will cause poor combustion. Diesel needs heat.
Putting a too cold t-stat in a truck that cannot cool well enough will cause excessive heat due to too high of flow of coolant.

Stock radiators in these trucks cannot cool fast enough for a 180 tstat.
And if I remember right, glenn runs an aftermarket radiator.

He's also hauling really really heavy. So he wants all the cooling he can get, so running a 180 with his setup, he's seeing 215-220 the last I talked to him on the phone.
What he runs unloaded, i'm not sure.


Point number 2.

The temp gauge on the dash has no clue what your temp is. Never listen to it unless it says really crazy stuff.
Use a good thermometer to measure that.
However, i dont care what my coolant temps are. I care what my oil temps are.
That is the critical part.
Anywhere from 200-220 is where you want it running for good performance.
You'll get a bit more ponies keeping it closer to 200.

The internationals came with a 203 because they run best around that temp.
Ford put in a 197 for some stupid reason, probably emissions and the fact of the lousy crimped exhaust they put on them which would raise EGT's.


Point 3.
If you're only seeing 600 on your EGT's while hauling, your gauge is busted or the sensor is installed wrong.
The truck should run around 600-800 unloaded at 65-70.

 

Good points Talyn. I am with Glenn on this. I tow just a little less than he does and have had the exact same experience he has had. I had a 203 degree thermostat and the first time I towed with it, I pulled it out and put the 180 back in . Lower coolant temps equals lower engine oil temps and that is my main concern when towing. Ask me how I know. I even posted some video on here a while back just to show everybody what was happening. If I never towed a trailer, then I wouldn't worry about it near as much. But because I do what I do with my truck, the engine oil temps are critical.

 

What works for one doesn't work for everyone. I ran a 195 motorcraft for quite a while. Hot windy days grossing 24-25k with my race trailer my oil temps climed to over 250, water getting close.

What Glenn said was if you tow heavy all the time to go with a 180. That is all my truck is for, and runs 200 or so towing. Get's to 220 ish on the hot windy days. I hardly ever run empty, but if I do it's only 180. I agree you need more heat than 180, but I don't put 200 miles a year on empty. I've ran it for a couple years and its worked real well.

I did my research before I bought it. I really don't care what IH put in it. If it's too high for one's usage, it's too high. Just the way it is. The truck wants what it wants, and mine wanted and works well with the 180.