T-Type is overheating

[billy]

Good  evening , my 87 is whipping my but , I have good flow in the radiator, fan  is coming on when it reaches temperature, every time I take it down the street about 2 miles it gets up to 240 degrees , I have one single electric fan , it comes on with the ac and when I turn the ac off if it’s at the right temp the fan stays on ! Should it be at a higher speed when the ac is on and the temperature is high ? Please help any recommendation s will be greatly appreciated!

[Steve Wood]

I have more questions than answers

Does it get hot with the AC off?  If it does not, when you turn the AC on and it gets hot, does it cool down when you turn the AC off?

AC's, especially ones converted to R134 pour a lot of heat out of the condenser which gets pulled thru the radiator core.  Electric fans comes in a number of configs and prices.  It takes a good quality one such as a Spal and usually a dual fan set up rather than a single unit.  Which fan are you running?

Also, a leaky head gasket can make one get hot in a hurry.  Testing the coolant for exhaust gases with an exhaust gas tester is not a bad idea if it is getting hot even with the AC off.

Where do you live and how old is your current radiator?  too small a core, or one that is old may be stopping up in the lower part of the core, or the bonds of the cooling fins to the tubes is common with age and greatly affect its ability to pull the heat out of the water that is passing thru the tubes.

[billy]

I will check for exhaust gas this afternoon before pulling radiator to send to shop , I’m running a single fan ,looking for a dual fan set up , it gets hot with ac on or off . I recently picked up from a buddy who let it sit for 12 years, he finally let me get it for 1000 dollars , the motor was replaced with a rebuilt one before he bought it . He says there is approximately 12000 miles on engine and tranny . I wanna do the best for the car , it’s a dream but I’m on a budget .

[Steve Wood]

Given the economy and the fact that most of us like to eat, our hobby is getting more expensive fast. smh

Trying to clean out an old radiator is not a very efficient way to spend money in many cases.  Given the abundance of new aluminum units available, it may be actually cheaper to buy a new one.  I think these days, most radiator shops just install a new core.  If they use a good heavy duty core, it can be okay, but many want to use a four row core instead of the stock three row.  Four rows usually provide very little benefit.  A modern aluminum unit will generally do a much better job.

Once you get it to run cool, be sure you have a good scantool like a Scanmaster at a minimum to try to protect the engine from detonation.  These cars will run well and reliably if everything is "right"

Much of the stuff that you absolutely need costs money initially but will save you a ton of money and grief.

[billy]

The car came with a scan master and a lot of upgrades , bigger turbo , chip , etc . I found a aluminum radiator with dual fans I’m gonna purchase and see if that does the trick , fingers crossed .

[Steve Wood]

I hope it does!  Don't forget to test for exhaust gasses in the coolant to confirm the head gaskets are good. 

[billy]

I did that today and the fluid stayed blue so I’m good ! Thanks

[Steve Wood]

that is great news

[Steve Wood]

You said the coolant was flowing thru the radiator so I assume the thermostat is opening.  You might check when it starts flowing by grabbing the hose and seeing when it opens and at what temperature.  With a car that has been sitting for a long time, I hate to assume anything

[Scoobum]

If it's the original rad, then there's likely a pile of shit laying in the bottom one third. When you get the heat issue sorted out, it's been sitting for 12 years. Drop the tank...clean it out...and install a new fuel pump and fuel filter. We'll talk about injectors and chip after you get the tank, pump and filter done.

[billy]

I have done the tank , fuel pump , cleaned injectors, plugs , wires , ignition control module , change oil , fuel filter and Oil filter . The car runs great just gets hot . Ordering radiator and dual fans this week !

[Scoobum]

I have done the tank , fuel pump , cleaned injectors, plugs , wires , ignition control module , change oil , fuel filter and Oil filter . The car runs great just gets hot . Ordering radiator and dual fans this week !

I'd recommend a TT chip if it hasn't got one. Some of the older chips have aggressive timing. Other than that you're rockin! The turn on point for the chip for the fan might have something to do with it as well.

[xracerx13]

Is it possible that the thermostat is stuck? Seeing how it sat so long in the closed position and corroded possibly.

[billy]

It isn’t stuck it is opening and when the temp gets around 210

[Steve Wood]

Sounds like that needs to be changed out as some one has apparently put one made for  current emission cars.  Put a 180 in it.  We used to put 165 deg units in them but I don't know if that really helped much, or not.  180 is a good number.  That will certainly help.