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Proper engine temp./.

58K views 34 replies 22 participants last post by  Schurkey 
#1 ·
My truck 4.2 runs rite at 210 all the time, what does everybody else think it should be at, i know that 210 is normal i wish it were cooler tho..
 
#2 ·
Thats pretty much where mine hangs out too. I guess from what I hear that these engines like it a little warmer then most. So if your looking to reduce the temp of your engine somehow, I wouldn't go to low might end up losing performance or worse. Maybe someone else could shine some more light on the subject.
 
#3 ·
Mine is anywhere from a hair cooler than 210 to 210F according to the dash. With EFILive hooked up the actual temp ranges between 203-207F (so the dash guage is decently accurate for the LL8). This is the temp this engine was designed to run, so all you old school V8 guys used to seeing them run at like 180-190 (and the V8s), DONT CHANGE THE THERMOSTAT IN THE LL8!! It will mess up mileage and the engine will not be as efficient. The I6 and Vx motors are designed to run at different temps.
 
#7 ·
Hey every one,
sorry to bring his out of the dead, but its always better than starting a new thread :undecided at least people might read ever thing and get a better picture... so mine WAS also running cool the past 4 years, but this time after my yearly 1400K trip, at the last 100 Kilometers and the temp gauge jumper over the half and started moving to the end FAST :no: checked every thing, it was even serviced fr the 80K service befor i started the trip, coolant is full, fans r working, donno whats going on .when i made it to my destination, i parked the car for a hole day, and at NIGHT when i stared it jumped to half way right a way :no: it NEVER did that ever..:cry: but when i turn the a/c off it backs of a little to the half mark ...
heres a pic of where it ALWAYS was :


and where its ALWAYS at now :duh:


and bw, for the TECH xperts, how far can i go till its dangerous enough and the engine must be shut ? my old man always told me never to shut down an engine when its hot, but leave it cool it self down 1st, and thats what i always do...
need help you guys, i am 1400K a way from my dealer and n these areas most people dont knowjack about Chevys :cry: PLEASE help my car is in pain :bonk:
 
#8 ·
The cool down thing was mainly to avoid vapor lock in carburated engines...& the manual says up to 235 is normal for these engines.

My 06 always runs 210 to slightly above...always has :yes: Normal

Those that used to run here, but have begun seeing the temp go higher all of a sudden, may be experiencing the start of a fan clutch failure. But if the temp is remaining under the 3/4 mark, the engine will run fine :D
 
#10 ·
The cool down thing was mainly to avoid vapor lock in carburated engines...& the manual says up to 235 is normal for these engines.
my 06 always runs 210 to slightly above...always has :yes: Normal
Those that used to run here, but have begun seeing the temp go higher all of a sudden, may be experiencing the start of a fan clutch failure. But if the temp is remaining under the 3/4 mark, the engine will run fine :D
no no fan clutch thank god ! no noises and fan working great !!thanks buddy :D

It's pretty warm here in Kuwait now and getting up around 116 to 120 in the daytime. Last Saturday I had to go to one of the outlying caps up toward the Iraq border and my coolant temp was up in the 225 range running 80 Mph with AC on. I noticed before that it would take a while to get to operating temperature and I would get a wide fluxuation in temp. My check engine light would come on for a while then go off for a few days. I installed an Interceptor Scan Gauge and I got two codes, one for the thermostat and one for fan speed circuit. This weekend I changed the thermostat and used Dex Cool and now the temp gets up to operating range (204-207) fairly quickly and at 75 to 89 mph the temp stays at 207 - 210 range. Now as soon as the E-fan controller is ready form PCM4Less for my I6, I'll get rid of the old fan.
warm ? DUDE you can latterly fry an egg on the hood these days, ts freakin HOT !!:duh:
ok so its ok if the gauge goes up as long as the " check engine " light doesnt come on ?:confused: coud it be my thermos then ???
 
#9 ·
Running in Kuwait

It's pretty warm here in Kuwait now and getting up around 116 to 120 in the daytime. Last Saturday I had to go to one of the outlying caps up toward the Iraq border and my coolant temp was up in the 225 range running 80 Mph with AC on. I noticed before that it would take a while to get to operating temperature and I would get a wide fluxuation in temp. My check engine light would come on for a while then go off for a few days. I installed an Interceptor Scan Gauge and I got two codes, one for the thermostat and one for fan speed circuit. This weekend I changed the thermostat and used Dex Cool and now the temp gets up to operating range (204-207) fairly quickly and at 75 to 89 mph the temp stays at 207 - 210 range. Now as soon as the E-fan controller is ready form PCM4Less for my I6, I'll get rid of the old fan.
 
#11 ·
210 (according to the electric gauge we have, which are notorious for not reading exactly right) is about right for these engines. Mine has run that temp since day 1, and 146,000 miles later, still runs that w/ original thermostat.....and never gets much above that, even on hot days.

If you go much below that, you run the risk of the PCM setting a code for low temp.
 
#12 ·
210 (according to the electric gauge we have, which are notorious for not reading exactly right) is about right for these engines. Mine has run that temp since day 1, and 146,000 miles later, still runs that w/ original thermostat.....and never gets much above that, even on hot days.

If you go much below that, you run the risk of the PCM setting a code for low temp.

dude what r u talking about ? mine always WAS below that a tik ot two, now its always 210 to 3/4 :eek: thats why i feel something is going on, yoyurs been like this since you got mine wasnt :undecided:confused:
 
#13 ·
First thing you need to do to diagnose this is to get an Aeroforce Interceptor, Dash Hawk or the like to find out the actual temperature your sensor is telling the computer.

At some point GM decided to make the computer force the gauge to say normal 210 over a range of normal temps and not let it bounce around much.

So...

1. See if Dash hawk matches your beyond 210 reading on dash gauge.
2. If 1 is a match, try to see if vehicles temp gauge is right. Do this by bringing in a known good temp sensor if possible.

Some things that can affect coolant temp:

1. Thermostat valve
2. Problem with the radiator core
3. Air in the system.
4. Whatever I forgot.
 
#18 ·
If you're worried about the extreme temps and the engine running hotter, one thing that will help prevent damage is to run an oil that will not break down as easily. The main concern with high temps, besides boil-over obviously, is the oil reaching the point in which lubrication is compromised. I'd absolutely be running a synthetic, just for piece of mind.

Now, as said above, get a OBDII tool that allows you to monitor things and check to see if the temp gage is accurate.....it is possible that the temps are not quite as high as gage is showing. Inexpensive ELM based tools that connect to any USB notebook/computer are available on eBay for around $40. (They ship from overseas to us, so I would expect you would be able to have one shipped there). Just picked one up for a buddy of mine and it works great on his beater notebook.
 
#25 ·
My 04 TB has had a P0128 error for some time and the engine temp was typically 160-180 while driving. Finally got around to changing the thermostat ($30) and sensor ($32, sensor was probably not needed). and now it's running about 195 idle and 205-210 driving. I'm pretty sure that the thermostat was stuck open. The thermostat change in the 4.2/6 cyl isn't the easiest maintenance on these vehicles - took me the better part of a day due to the inaccessibility of the mounting bolts. Best to have a buddy to help hold hoses and cables out of the way and be sure to have the proper tools before you start. I decided to change the sensor as I was getting that deep into the engine and didn't want to do the job again. Also, a good time to change the radiator hoses and fan belt if needed ( $35 and $36 respectively).
 
#26 ·
My truck gets crazy hot

I drive my truck on very steep mountains ( lots of braking and need for engine power to push up ) and my the temp goes up to 3 quarters of the entire gauge. My coolant water is topped up. What else could be causing this?

The truck is almost always fully loaded with passengers and baggage, so the engine is probably going through a lot to push all that weight up mountainous slopes.

Thanks
 
#28 ·
Not getting hot enough

Hi guys, most people have an issue with temperatures getting too high. My 'problem' is that I can not seem to get my gauge to show over 176F! There is plenty of fluid in the rad system. I will check again with my OBDII scanner to verify the temperature but I seem to recall it is accurate. It also takes a while for the engine to get to this temp as well.

This TB was sitting for over 2 years. The transmission / transfer case needed work and the previous owner did not want to pay for the work so a used transmission and transfer case was installed as part of the deal for me taking the vehicle.

This is my first TB so any ideas or suggestions are greatly appreciated! :D
 
#29 ·
Close!

Lately my OBDII has indicated a Cylinder 1 Misfire. To help determine the cause I swapped the coils on cylinder 1 with cylinder 2. The problem seems to have cleared up (connector needed to be reseated maybe?) and the engine temp also came up to almost 100C (212F).

I wonder if having that one cylinder not firing properly was causing the engine to not heat up as quick as it should. Weird ...

Anyway, now to figure out the newly developed ticking noise that changes with engine RPM, and only seems to occur once the engine is warmed up. The engine is currently running the same oil as when the TB was parked for the last 2 years or so. There was some Sea Foam additive added to the oil. I will take the TB to a local oil shop to have the oil and filter replaced. Let's see what happens then! :undecided
 
#30 ·
Ticking noise gone

Well here is my story ... that ticking noise started to sound more and more like a diesel engine under the hood. It almost sounded like a bad lifter but there was no change in engine performance. This didn't add up to me.

Just before Christmas I was out driving and noticed how quiet the engine was sounding - like it did when I first got the SUV. About a mile further down the road the engine RPM suddenly jumped up so I left off the fuel pedal. I also notice the engine idle RPM was very jumpy and I was also coasting. Much like a motorcycle with the clutch pulled in.

9 days and many hundreds of $$$ later it turns out the flywheel sheered itself in two pieces. I have never heard of a flywheel sheering like this but mine did. Just a heads up - if your vehicle is making that diesel sound, your flywheel might be worth looking into!
 
#31 ·
Hey Powerman crazy that the flywheel broke, I bought a van w a 4.3v6 i though it had a rod kn8ck so i got it cheep i pulled the motor and the flywheel bolts were just loose. I rebuilt it anyway.
I see you are in soo ont. I used to live near the soo mich. I would come over to go to the bush plane museum!
Now im in north carolina, it's 67 today yippee!
 
#34 ·
Can anybody tell me why I have oil seeping from my PCV valve on top
The engine and goes all down the side! I’ve also noticed my oil caps keep coming loose and I have to replace them, oil gauge goes above 40 when accelerating and stays there, sounds like something is clogged in the engine
 
#35 ·
1. You should have started a new thread instead of tagging-onto an unrelated thread that hasn't been posted to in years.

2. PCV system could be clogged and not working properly, or you could have excess blow-by. You'll need to do some investigating.

3. Oil gauge over 40 sounds perfectly reasonable. Mine hangs at 42--45 at 2000+ rpm.
 
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