[84 GMC Sierra Pickup]

I was looking through different threds, and found one on engine temp. After reading it, i realized that my engine might be running too hot. I'm guesing that below boiling is preferable. I have a 1972 chevy 355 (rebuild, was 350) and it ran around 230 for a few days until i tuned out the carb, which was too lean. Now it normally runs around 200 but it sometimes will creap up back to 220-230. This is with summertime temps of 70s and 80s. The only thing i can think of is that i might have crud in the coolent system.

[bracketeer]

It's not a bad idea to flush your cooling system once a year.

[84 GMC Sierra Pickup]

how does one do that?

[1931 steve]

You can take it to a repair shop and have it done for you, or you can go to the parts store and buy the heater hose adapters and install in line with you heater hoses and use you garden hose to forward and reverse flush the cooling system and the engine block. (you may want to remove your T-stat to do this).
The first will cost around $100.00 and the second around $10.00-$15.00. all depends on what you want to do. The first works the best because of the chemicals they use but it costs more.
Don't forget to look at the T-stat and coolant level. Also the amount of air being pulled through the radiator.
Does it get go up in temp when you are sitting in traffic or as you drive down the road?

Steve

[84 GMC Sierra Pickup]

there seems to be no pattern to when it heats up. i also don't stair at it very much, it's not boiling over so i'm not too worried. Could my guage be off?

[johnsongrass1]

Probably is. All stock guages are notorious for being wrong.

[84 GMC Sierra Pickup]

wrong by being too high or too low?

[johnsongrass1]

Both or either. Just plain inaccurate.

[Canadian Charlie]

Have you checked your cooling system? Thermostat, water pump, rad and hoses?

[hadsone]

Alot of people over look a very important part of the cooling system, the radiator cap itself. The cap allows the system to build pressure, the pressure that the system builds raises the boiling point of the coolant. So with a 50/50 mix of water to antifreeze the boiling point of the coolant at 15 psi is around 272 degrees. So running at 200 should be no problem at all.

Oh and is there a fan shroud on the vehicle, this would help the fan pull the air across the radiator more efficiently