noticed running the the length of IN in the 96 2 door today that on the highway cruise-controlling along I-65 at 70 (plus a little) that the temp needle was steady at about halfway between the midpoint and the 210-and-above Red zone. But when I hit a couple of traffic stoppages for construction it went right up into the red zone. a couple times I rolled the windows dow turned the fan upon high and turned on the heater to MAX. the engine was;t steaming or anything, pretty much ran normal but running the indicator needle int both red zone bothers me somewhat, particularly since I have that long road trip to extreme south Texas late this month. I had the radiator replaced 5 or 6 months back, but wonder if I ought to get the whole coolant system flushed out and replace the coolant I just that the Serpentine belt replaced and the water pump inspected all that all looks to be OK.

Do these things just run on the hot side in heavy traffic? is there anything more I could should do to prevent overheat problems" blowing the plastic end out of your radiator will really ruin your day, and your petty cash BTDT and want to avoid it happening again.

 

If the thermostat hasn't been replaced recently I would start there. If you have ac and it was running when this happened is the electric fan working?

 

Normal running temp on my 96 2 door was identical. Yes, slow traffic causes it to rise. In fact on slow very steep hills in very hot weather it has gone well into the red. Like a bit over half way through the read and did not boil. Just cooled back to normal after the top of the hill.

But since then I completely flushed the system. Forced a lot of water through the block with the pump removed. Removed the radiator (all brass two row) and flushed it real good. Installed a Hesco high flow pump, Hesco high flow thermostat cover, and a high flow Mr Gasket thermostat. Also I installed a new fan clutch.

All of these make incremental differences that add up to a huge improvement.

Temps stay down real nice even on the hottest days and on the steepest hills. I don't even have the aux electric fan reinstalled. I did for a while, but removed it to fix something else and decided to run without it. So all summer I ran with no aux fan and did not see the temps rise on account of it. Even with the AC on.

Most of my driving is over 35 mph. I think if I was doing a lot of stop and go on a hot day the aux fan would be essential. But in my opinion, over 35 the fan is just in the way.

Also, I have a Wagoneer quad light grill. I don't know if there has been any discussion whether the various grill options make a difference on air flow enough to effect cooling. I don't suspect there is, but maybe so.

Also, I keep the bugs out of the AC condenser and radiator.

 

"Do these things just run on the hot side in heavy traffic?"

Not if the components in the system are functioning as they were designed to.

I live in Texas and my '98 has never gone above 210* even if I somehow got stuck in traffic w/ ac on.

If you're making a trip to south Texas I would strongly encourage you to replace the thermostat w/ an OEM unit (it's a better design than aftermarket), check the fan clutch, electric fan and your hoses/clamps.

There are some desolate stretches of road where you're headed and the temps will still be pretty high down there even late next month. I'm sure it would make for a very unpleasant trip if the cooling system failed.

 

What he said.


There is NO need for "high flow" anything, and there is some evidence that these can do more harm than good.

By the way, the only thing that could have been "inspected" on the water pump is to check for leaks and listen for grinding bushings, unless you remove it. The fins can be worn away and there will be no visible indication of this.

Do yourself a favor - just replace the hoses, fan clutch, water pump, t-stat and make sure your electric fan is working properly.

If you really want to make sure it's clean in there, toss in a quarter cup of Amway SA8 laundry detergent and run that way for a few weeks. Then, drain & flush with clean water, do the replacements mentioned, and refill with coolant.

You'll be glad you did.

BTW, some people say Dawn dish washing liquid works too. Dunno, haven't tried it. The SA8 is great. Won't harm anything, either. No, I don't sell it.

 

well, duhh (self-adminstered dope-slap or two) I sure should have checked the coolant level before pushing the panic/send button. It was way low. thinking it over, after I had the emergency radiator replacement, back in the cold months, the old mechanic who did it told me I'd need to keep adding fluid for the next few weeks as the trapped air worked it way out of the system. Well I forgot it. then as it warmed dup I started driving my Buick Regal GS. until it got hot and then the A/C climate control head went out on it. I've been driving the Jeep while searching for replacement AC unit, and of course I had long forgotten about getting the Jeep coolant level back up to where it should be. So I've been adding 70% solution coolant every couple days, usually not more than a coup or so and even in the hi80/lo90 heat and sitting in traffic jams the temp gauge is staying very well centered. I'm using the richer solution in preparation for that Texas road trip. aloing with a bunch of other stuff.

 

If you going to a hot area you want as close to 50/50 as possible the antifreeze actually makes it cool worse.

 

I thought the label said that the higher (70%)percentage solution had a higher boiling point than a lower (50%)one?

 

That may be true but the glycol can carry less heat per floz that water.

 

I'll pick up one of those little antifreeze testers and see exactly what the concentration is.
When I first discovered it was low I added quite a bit of straight water. since I have added the straight coolant rather than the 50 50 in small amounts as the engine "burps", but probably not equal to the amount of straight water I put in;
so I should be OK, but I'll check it to be sure. However I'm still a little perplexed by the confusing information.

 

FYI. Do not use tap water as coolant. Use distilled. Tap water is fine for flushing, but not for leaving in the cooling system.
Glycol boils at a higher temperature than water and is a corrosion and rust inhibitor. But it also carries less heat away from engine, hence the proper mix.

My 1996 burps itself through the reservoir. The radiator if it is low on fluid will also fill itself from reservoir.