south carolina to montana...in progress

[tclndcrz]

south carolina to montana...complete

hey guys im on my way from folly beach south carolina to bozeman montana right now. tomorrow is my last day as i am in rapid city south dakota.

so far the only problem ive really had is a possible overheating problem. its hard to tell because the wire to the sensor had broken off and another sensor near the thermostat was loose and some coolant was coming out. so far i have reconnected the wire and i made the loose fitting tight again. i thought i was good again and 300 miles later the temperature started to spike again but dropped back down.

i believe that my thermostat is cheap and is sticking until the engine almost overheats and then opens again. tomorrow if i have the problem again i am just going to remove the thermostat or let the truck cool down and hope it opens up again.

any other recommendations?

i feel confident that whatever happens i can take care of it but i figured i would check in for advice from people who know their stuff.


but anyway an update on the trip thus far... everything is going fairly smoothly so far. i average about 73 mph on the interstate. at 78mph im running 2500rpms which i think is pretty good. the truck struggles some on the uphill sections but nothing i cant deal with. its a truck and it has a fricken tractor motor i cant exactly expect sports car performance. i will be rollin into bozeman tomorrow and it should be the shortest leg of the journey so i can take it pretty easy.

btw im going to bozeman for college at montana state university for mechanical engineering.

anyway thanks for any help/comments

 

[batman]

if you're realy worried about it remove the thermostat completly, do worry about buying a gasket just make your own unless you can find auto parts store that stocks then. You can use manilla folder for a gasket. Serious!!!

 

[3_puppies]

if you're realy worried about it remove the thermostat completly, do worry about buying a gasket just make your own unless you can find auto parts store that stocks then. You can use manilla folder for a gasket. Serious!!!

removing the thermostat, will make an engine overheat, the themostat keeps the flow of coolant from passing thru the rad to quickly, it needs time to cool.

that is how I understand how it works.

 

[lovetoski]

Bozeman is pretty amazing. You'll have a great time there (good school too!!)

Maybe you have a cheap thermostat - easy to change. Go to NAPA - usually good enough (rarely bad stuff).

Also, there is a known problem with the engine temp guage. It looses its ground, then spikes to the top of the range. It's an electrical issue, not a temp issue. The way to detect it is that the fuel level guage shares the same ground and they both spike to the top at the same time. Sooo...if your temp guage spikes, quick check your fuel guage, if it's spiking too, it's only an electrical issue.

 

[calfj60]

Man I miss the Bozone.....I had the privilage of attending for one year back in the early 90's....fun times....enjoy

 

[batman]

removing the thermostat, will make an engine overheat, the themostat keeps the flow of coolant from passing thru the rad to quickly, it needs time to cool.

that is how I understand how it works.

I have had an opposite effect with this. In the past I have had it keep the motor to cool, where the temp needle will not move until you come to a stop and then it only moves to the 1/4 mark. but to each is own right?

 

[batman]

Bozeman is pretty amazing. You'll have a great time there (good school too!!)

Maybe you have a cheap thermostat - easy to change. Go to NAPA - usually good enough (rarely bad stuff).

Also, there is a known problem with the engine temp guage. It looses its ground, then spikes to the top of the range. It's an electrical issue, not a temp issue. The way to detect it is that the fuel level guage shares the same ground and they both spike to the top at the same time. Sooo...if your temp guage spikes, quick check your fuel guage, if it's spiking too, it's only an electrical issue.

Mine was doing that and for some reason lately it just stoped, what is the common reason for this and what do you do to fix it?

 

[bigbertha]

I have had the same problem for the last 3 months after getting a new OEM tstat and my radiator re-cored. I also have a new long ranger tank underneath. It happens rarely, but I have to shut her off and restart the engine to get the fuel and temp guages to go back down.

 

[Chip B]

Good luck with what's left of your journey. That's a haul I've made a few times
when I lived there after college.

Bridger Bowl, The Filler...I'm jealous!

 

[lovetoski]

Mine was doing that and for some reason lately it just stoped, what is the common reason for this and what do you do to fix it?

One fix is to replace the guage, apparently it's not too expensive. Some have fixed the ground, but I haven't payed any attention to how they did it. Landpimp may have posted the fix though, as I think he was one of the first to bring this little problem out into the light of day...

 

[tclndcrz]

well i made it. 2600 miles total and 4 days.

the truck looked like it was going to overheat twice but as soon as it hit red it went right back down. i plan on replacing the thermostat at a later time to solve the problem.

thanks for your advice guys.

 

[MT_FJ60]

I just made the drive from Kalispell to NC in my '60. It's a good trip. Had the same intermittent problem with the temp gauge spiking. Took me 4 days as well. Glad you made it safely. Funny that you noted Rapid City in your post. I overheated (for real) there and drove through an unbelievable hail storm about 20 minutes later while passing through there.

 

[tclndcrz]

its always fun driving the cruiser places

heres a little ih8mud scenery out the back window.