I have a 72 Nova with a stock 350 with a mild cam...I go down the road dosent matter what the season is and it goes to about 190-195 when i come to a red light or have to stop for a couple of seconds the temp rises to about 210 or more depending how long im sitting.. Anytime i start driving down the road and am continually driving it may drop down to about 180.. I've changed everything the radiator is a Be Cool Aluminum Radiator, i have a 16 inch Syclone High Performance electric fan that flows 2500 cfm that is on the inside of the engine compartment pulling in air from the outside, not on the front of the radiator facing the outside . i have a high flow water pump (not electric) with a 160 high flow thermostat.. After all this it still does the same thing.. I dont know iif its the engine building alot of heat or what, but is there something i can do like going to an electric water pump, or using header wrap or trying water restrictors to see if i can get the temp to stay 180 or below no matter what.1972 Nova cooling problem?
air flow over the radiator is insufficient try a clutch type mechanical fan and shroud be sure your water pump drive ratio is about 15 percent under drive use stock pulleys from a non a/c 307 v8 nova do not remove the thermostat as coolant will flow to fast and will not transfer heat from engine correctly also cam timing errors and ignition timing errors can cause over heating1972 Nova cooling problem?
Remove thermostat and see if problem still persists. If it does consider that the coolant has to travel through chambers in the engine---- could they be clogged with rust or sludge?1972 Nova cooling problem?
take out the thermostat don't need it restricting flow1972 Nova cooling problem?
May depend on the setting of the fan. Can you hear it come on as soon as the temp starts to rise? May need adjustment.
Some install different pulleys to help with extra power by running the accessories slower. This causes the water pump to run slower. Do you have these?
Try removing the stat temporarily to see if it makes a difference. There are some stats that allow larger volume of coolant.
Do you have the proper 50/50 coolant mix? Pure water will NOT cool as efficiently.
Bubba has a very good suggestion - shrouds can make a BIG difference. Without one - the only air being brought through the radiator, when sitting still, moving very slow or travelling with the wind, is the area immediately in front of the fan. This can leave a 30 to 50% lack of cooling?1972 Nova cooling problem?
I had the same problem and my neighbor, who was a GM engineer at the time, solved the problem for me. He instructed me to get a fan shroud. I installed a stock shroud and it solved the problem.
