Hi,
It is not yet hot here in Albuquerque but the other day the temp of the 327 in my 62 Bel Air rose to about 220, and seemed ready to go higher, just idling in a parking lot for about 3 - 5 minutes. I left right then and the temp dropped to about 210. When driving on I-25 or I-40 the temp is consistently about 180. In town driving from stoplight to stop sign, in traffic, the temp will be 195-200. If I turn the heater on the temp drops about 10 degrees pretty quickly.
Should I add a pusher fan to the front of the radiator, increase the idle speed, or something else? I think it is only idling about 650 - 700 (no tach yet) from what I remember the tach in the timing light was reading when I timed it in April. It has a 180 degree thermostat right now with an OEM fan shroud for the 327. It takes about 5-10 minutes for the temp gauge to read any temperature, and about 10 - 15 minutes for the 327 to get fully warmed up at 180.
I am considering the Flex-a-Lite Model 440 fan as it is a thin style fan and I would use a switch so I can decide when I need it. But, the $272 cost and the amount of plastic covering the front of the radiator are concerns. If I do not have the fan on will the amount of plastic make the cooling worse, and require me to have the electric fan on more often?
It is not yet hot here in Albuquerque but the other day the temp of the 327 in my 62 Bel Air rose to about 220, and seemed ready to go higher, just idling in a parking lot for about 3 - 5 minutes. I left right then and the temp dropped to about 210. When driving on I-25 or I-40 the temp is consistently about 180. In town driving from stoplight to stop sign, in traffic, the temp will be 195-200. If I turn the heater on the temp drops about 10 degrees pretty quickly.
Should I add a pusher fan to the front of the radiator, increase the idle speed, or something else? I think it is only idling about 650 - 700 (no tach yet) from what I remember the tach in the timing light was reading when I timed it in April. It has a 180 degree thermostat right now with an OEM fan shroud for the 327. It takes about 5-10 minutes for the temp gauge to read any temperature, and about 10 - 15 minutes for the 327 to get fully warmed up at 180.
I am considering the Flex-a-Lite Model 440 fan as it is a thin style fan and I would use a switch so I can decide when I need it. But, the $272 cost and the amount of plastic covering the front of the radiator are concerns. If I do not have the fan on will the amount of plastic make the cooling worse, and require me to have the electric fan on more often?