overheating prob..need help

[executioner]

read all the threads but could use an opinion for more experienced 5.0 people.
1990 5.0 lx 7up convert. car previously would run very hot on highway,replaced radiator(3 row),waterpump and t-stat(180).car now runs about 180(the O in normal on gauge and i will be buying new gauges soon)around town,back roads and on highway.the problem now starts after being on h-way for long periods.the minute i get off h-way temp goes way up.i'm afraid it's headgasket but not losing coolant and no water in oil.car blows no smoke of any kind.fan clutch is about 4 years old(prefer to stay with regular fan)how do i check if it's working right? also fan has several cracks where blades meet hub but dont know if this would cause this specific prob. also noticed the other day with top and windows up center console and tranny hump towards drivers seat gets hot as hell.back in the day i had 88 5.0 and at 40k cats got clogged.but in that case car would barely run.this runs car great and doesnt seem clogged. any help or advise would be apreciated.
thanks

 

[TheUser]

does your car have an aftermarket shifter? If someone pulled the shifter insulation thing and didn't put it back, that would cause the heat to get up there and heat up your console, etc...my LX does that because I didn't put the insulation thing back in.

As for the overheating problem, maybe it's a bad guage, but who knows. I doubt it's a head gasket if you don't have coolant in oil and aren't blowing smoke. If you still think it might be though, you could do a compression check.

 

[HISSIN50]

assumin the stock gauge works well enough to tell relative temp differences, when you come off the highway and are in the city (traffic), if you overheat it is the ancillary cooling stuff, as you noted.

get a new fan! if the thing grenades, you will have fan parts shooting through everything under the hood. i went with a metal replacement fan. id also bet the fan clutch has seen better days. there are several subjective tests. any silicone fluid around the bi-metallic spring? does it spin the same hot vs cold? when hot, it should be harder to spin.

my two cents worth, good luck.

 

[executioner]

overheating

thanks for the help .going to do the fan cluch and fan this weekend.hopefully that will solve problem.if not i'll have someone do a compression leakdown test. as far as tranny it is auto and never been out of car to my knowledge so insulation should be there. maybe i'm missing a heat shield?

 

[trooper]

gauge

read all the threads but could use an opinion for more experienced 5.0 people.
1990 5.0 lx 7up convert. car previously would run very hot on highway,replaced radiator(3 row),waterpump and t-stat(180).car now runs about 180(the O in normal on gauge and i will be buying new gauges soon)around town,back roads and on highway.the problem now starts after being on h-way for long periods.the minute i get off h-way temp goes way up.i'm afraid it's headgasket but not losing coolant and no water in oil.car blows no smoke of any kind.fan clutch is about 4 years old(prefer to stay with regular fan)how do i check if it's working right? also fan has several cracks where blades meet hub but dont know if this would cause this specific prob. also noticed the other day with top and windows up center console and tranny hump towards drivers seat gets hot as hell.back in the day i had 88 5.0 and at 40k cats got clogged.but in that case car would barely run.this runs car great and doesnt seem clogged. any help or advise would be apreciated.
thanks

i was told the "M" on the normal was 205 degrees

 

[executioner]

sorry,i meant it usually runs just above the A in normal. maybe i'll get a real gauge this weekend too.

 

[HISSIN50]

the stock gauge is too inaccurate, in and of itself (built in hysteresis and poor modulation). tryin to interpolate readings from an inaccurate gauge is not worthwhile.