LQ4 Running Too Cold!

[Frenchy]

30-40 degrees isn't cold. At all. You shouldn't be having any trouble. Even when it's -20 my truck gets up to temp, it takes a while, but it does.

[Hambone!]

Right, has been in the 20's the last few days... And so far it seems anyone with an issue has developed a work around using cardboard over the radiator instead of actually fixing the problem. I can't be the ONLY ONE who has this issue and wants to actually fix it. Am I ?

[DINK]

30-40 degrees isn't cold. At all. You shouldn't be having any trouble. Even when it's -20 my truck gets up to temp, it takes a while, but it does.

dam -20. when it gets down to 20 here i can barely stand it

[tanz45]

You did get the proper thermostat correct? One that opens too much and flows too much can cause a vehicle to do 1 of 2 things.

1. Over heat cause coolant is not given enough time to cool when passing through the radiator

or

2. Run colder because the coolant is not heated as thoroughly when passing through the block at a faster rate.

Just trying to eliminate any possible fault.

[Hambone!]

Yes, tested the 2 new ones I pulled out. In a pot of water, they both open at 190, close at 180 or pretty close. By 200 they were both open pretty far, and closed fast when dunked in cold water. Used a meat thermometer instead of infrared.

[oleshifty]

Right, has been in the 20's the last few days... And so far it seems anyone with an issue has developed a work around using cardboard over the radiator instead of actually fixing the problem. I can't be the ONLY ONE who has this issue and wants to actually fix it. Am I ?

Yup. I've spent a bunch of time/money to make sure mine runs cold in the summer when I'm spraying/towing/etc. Cardboard works just fine for me in the winter. Put a honda radiator in it if you want it to heat up faster.

[Hambone!]

Have we run out of steam here? It's an odd feeling to be the only one trying to actually solve the problem rather than develop a work-around. No idea what would cause significant coolant flow through the upper hose when started cold (32deg)? Anyone have an engineering diagram of the water pump or cooling system for an LQ4?

[pl4yboy]

Just out of curiousity, have you verified engine temps on a scanner of sorts such as HPT? Both my trucks run at around 190* on a scanner but the gauge is always off by 20* or so.

[skeet]

do you use 50/50 antifreeze?

[Hambone!]

CTS data matches what I get from the infrared, still below the rating of the thermostat. The mix may be heavier on the glycol than water right now, but even so, wouldn't the heat transfer properties be fairly close?