Re: 164LS running temperature

[Nizam Zambri <nizam@domain.elided>]

As a data point, I used a Raytek IR pyrometer and found that the fan in my 1994 164LS comes on when the radiator core is at exactly 200F.

The temperature then comes down to around 185F when the fan shuts off.  During this time, the gauge on the dashboard is reading about the same temperatures (those tick marks are not the most accurate), with the high mark being the three-quarter tick on the dial.

Since stock gauges have been known to lie here and there, the best way to identify and rectify the problem is to bring in external tools, such as the pyrometer, to know exactly what the car is doing.  When I first got my LS, I too, was worried about the high temperatures it runs at but later found out that it was engineered to run hotter than my 75/Milano.  It hasn't overheated (yet) and I'm now used to seeing the needle close to the end of the scale.

As a reference, my Milano/75 runs at about 180F, with the fan switch turning the fan on at around 200F, and shutting the fan off at 180F.  Again, verified with the pyrometer.

Can't help with the smelly heater core ... are you sure there's nothing dead in the path of the air?

Nizam
OneSixFourElEss
SeventyFive Type-N (Nizam-spec)

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