1997 80 series idle temps (1 Viewer)

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stvrn6

stvrn6

Joined
Nov 19, 2023
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Southern California
While driving my truck on the highway in Southern California traffic I saw my temps temporarily spike to 217 but than went down so I didn’t think much of it.
anyway the truck is new to me and when my brother parked it on a hill facing down, the radiator started leaking from where the transmission lines go ( previous owner bypassed them).
I decided it’s a great time to do the cooling system. Has a new water pump (AISIN), (OEM) thermostat, (AISAN) blue fan clutch and (TYC1918) Radiator. Filled with fresh Prestone 50/50. Previous owner flushed red out. Previous Radiator looked really clean inside.
So here’s my issue.
While driving in traffic or while idling in drive with my foot in the brake, AC on high. My Temps go up to 223F, not right away but within 5-15 mins, slow climb. Go down to 195-205 as soon as I start driving.
While idling in park with AC on high my Temps don’t go past 205F.
what can be causing this? My belts are also new (OEM).
Being in Southern California, stop and go traffic is unavoidable and although it’s never given me trouble, I’m not confident driving it like this. Using obd2 scanner for data.
 
Air still in system, radiator cap not holding enough pressure, blue fan clutch needs heavier fluid and or temp adjustment. Three things to check or modify.
I had to slightly bend the tabs on my oem cap to get a better seal on my tyc radiator and modify the blue fan clutch with heavier fluid and timed it to open sooner. These things keep my temps under 200 even on 100 degree days in traffic after heat soak and the ac wide open. Once moving at speed stays around 190-195. When in park and idling never gets above 185-190 no matter how long it sits.
 
Seems like the radiator you have can cool if you get air through it (driving), but not enough airflow when stopped or at low speed. I would start with a tune up of the fan clutch with the latest, greatest silicone grade. I know tuning mine made a big difference in low speed temps.
 
thank you guys for the help!
UPDATE: I changed the radiator cap to an older oem one and it actually kept the truck cooler longer. I have ordered a new one. Also the reservoir tank seems to be filling up about half way point. so as mentioned the temps only go up when in drive and idling. today I had someone press on the brake while I inspected it and when moving it to Park from drive the fan kicks in hard and the trucks begins to cool right away. when I move it from PARK to DRIVE the fan turns off. is this normal? AC is on Max. I know you guys mentioned modifying the clutch fan but its brand new and I'm just hoping this is normal.
took about 30 mins to go past 210 which is i think is WAYY longer than i will ever just be in drive and not moving so hoping that the radiator is the problem.
 
When you say the fan turns off, do you mean the roar of the fan lessons? Putting the vehicle in drive will put more drag on the system to a point.
The reason we say modify the blue fan clutch, even when new, it has been shown to have a low viscosity oil in it which causes it to not lock up fully. This causes it to have less ability to pull the max amount of air.
Even toyota sold a higher viscosity oil to replace factory fluid if running in really hot climates. It's not hard to do both the drain and fill and to set the fan to lock up at a lower temp.
For the overflow reservoir make sure it stays within the hot and cold lines during operation. If it overflows or fills real high your cap isn't holding enough pressure. This will cause the coolant to boil at a lower temp and overflow into reservoir. Or a bad head gasket, etc is pressurizing the system.
 
CruiserDave said:
When you say the fan turns off, do you mean the roar of the fan lessons? Putting the vehicle in drive will put more drag on the system to a point.
The reason we say modify the blue fan clutch, even when new, it has been shown to have a low viscosity oil in it which causes it to not lock up fully. This causes it to have less ability to pull the max amount of air.
Even toyota sold a higher viscosity oil to replace factory fluid if running in really hot climates. It's not hard to do both the drain and fill and to set the fan to lock up at a lower temp.
For the overflow reservoir make sure it stays within the hot and cold lines during operation. If it overflows or fills real high your cap isn't holding enough pressure. This will cause the coolant to boil at a lower temp and overflow into reservoir. Or a bad head gasket, etc is pressurizing the system.
Click to expand...
yes it lessens. Okay Ill do that this weekend. Going to order the oil to get this done this weekend. thank you. What viscosity did you use?
edit: after doing some looking looks like people use 15-30k. Im thinking of going with 25 or 30K considering im here in Southern California. Any opinion ?
 
Last edited:
I used 20k
 
forum.ih8mud.com

Blue fan clutch mod...Thread has gone to hell, read at your own risk

History: On my first drive this summer after replacing my transmission I was having an overheat condition with the truck. On the following weekend while towing a camper it was real severe in the 230* range. After returning I was able to confirm that my Blue hubbed fan clutch was to blame...
forum.ih8mud.com forum.ih8mud.com
 
It takes awhile for all the fluid to drain and even longer for all the new thick fluid to fill. Some people have reported to heat the new fluid up to make it flow better. I didn't do this just took my time and let it fill in the clutch.
 
CruiserDave said:
It takes awhile for all the fluid to drain and even longer for all the new thick fluid to fill. Some people have reported to heat the new fluid up to make it flow better. I didn't do this just took my time and let it fill in the clutch.
Click to expand...
did you also do the adjustment for the temp engagement or just fluid fill? would I be okay to just do the fluid? or should I do both?
 
First time i did only fluid. It helped a little but not enough. I would do both since it's the same amount of work. Only difference is heating the coil on the front of the fan clutch in water and adjusting two Phillips head screws and slider. One time take apart equals less chance of damaging the oring. Sounds difficult but once you have it apart you'll see it's easy. Read that thread post above and it'll show you how to adjust the temperature of the fan engagement.
 
This is what you'll see when you open it up. The two Phillips allow you rotate the plate to open at the temp you set.
 
CruiserDave said:
First time i did only fluid. It helped a little but not enough. I would do both since it's the same amount of work. Only difference is heating the coil on the front of the fan clutch in water and adjusting two Phillips head screws and slider. One time take apart equals less chance of damaging the oring. Sounds difficult but once you have it apart you'll see it's easy. Read that thread post above and it'll show you how to adjust the temperature of the fan engagement.
Click to expand...
I see thank you! you've been a great help. I just pulled it out and put it in a pan in the sun to let the fluid drain out, ill be adjusting both then. And finally how much fluid did you put back in? I know some people measure the amount that comes out but I also have read that people put between 45-50ml. I ordered about 50ml bottle.
 
50 ml I think? It's been awhile since I've done mine. I just followed what was posted in ther other thread. I know i didn't think I would be able to get the right amount in there since it's so thick, but it did take the amount I was planning. That much I remember.
 
Have you confirmed you don't have air in the system? 210 seems a bit hot.
I had a TYC1918 and it performed exceptionally well and my temps remained stable at 181 to 182. My Denso radiator is a thinner unit and fluctuates between 181 and 186.
 
lumbee1 said:
Have you confirmed you don't have air in the system? 210 seems a bit hot.
I had a TYC1918 and it performed exceptionally well and my temps remained stable at 181 to 182. My Denso radiator is a thinner unit and fluctuates between 181 and 186.
Click to expand...
hello and yes I did, I cleared the air and changed my radiator cap from a "Motorad" to an older oem one i had and yes temps went up but much much slower, I should mention these test were ran in 105-110 ambient temperature (California heatwave). As mentioned the system cools down quickly as soon as I put the truck in park, so I believe its the system not having enough air flow. In park the swoosh sound is loud but in drive it goes away. Its really hasnt been an issue but id rather not be worried about my temps in Socal stop and go traffic. I currently have my clutch fan draining, will fill and adjust tomorrow and re run the test but the temps tomorrow don't look to be higher than 88.
 
stvrn6 said:
hello and yes I did, I cleared the air and changed my radiator cap from a "Motorad" to an older oem one i had and yes temps went up but much much slower, I should mention these test were ran in 105-110 ambient temperature (California heatwave). As mentioned the system cools down quickly as soon as I put the truck in park, so I believe its the system not having enough air flow. In park the swoosh sound is loud but in drive it goes away. Its really hasnt been an issue but id rather not be worried about my temps in Socal stop and go traffic. I currently have my clutch fan draining, will fill and adjust tomorrow and re run the test but the temps tomorrow don't look to be higher than 88.
Click to expand...
It's a bit cooler this morning but even in 100* temps, the engine temp would be around 186*.

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