[David L. Chacon]

Feel kind of :notallthere: asking this but, what should be the normal operating tempature for a 392?
My Challenger seems to go between 195-215 and the fans do not come until around 220 is this normal??

David

 

[KJ392]

That is about spot on for the stock stat and fan settings. Stock fan settings are 220.

 

[Thunderinn]

Yes, those are normal operating temps for a 392. You have a factory 203 degree t-stat. Last summer driving across South Dakota on I-90 on a hot summer dat coming back from the Black Hills I was running 224-226 degrees! I really did not like that.
I have since installed a 180 stat and set my fans with my Intune to come on at 195-200- and 205 (low, med, high) and here in Minn. we are not yet into "hot" summertime temps but my car is staying at around 200 degrees now consistently....

 

[FWB]

That's why many owners install a 180 t-stat and change the fan settings using a tuner.

 

[797Power]

At what point do you start to worry?

 

[David L. Chacon]

Which brings this up...........

I happen to be at my local dealership and I mentioned that I was going to replace my stat to a 180 unit and I was told that I should not because it would void my warrantee!!!!!
Im now on the fence on changing it or not............

Rat Bastards:icon_evil:

 

[EricG]

I happen to be at my local dealership and I mentioned that I was going to replace my stat to a 180 unit and I was told that I should not because it would void my warrantee!!!!!
Im now on the fence on changing it or not............

Rat Bastards:icon_evil:

Loose lips sink ships

I'm sure these cars could run at 250 degrees without issues, after that though, you would be running into the red zone on the gauge.

 

[72to12Challenger]

The new engines are designed to run hotter using the aluminum heads that lose more heat compare to cast iron heads and for better emission control as well. I do agree the margin from overheating is reduced but is best kept above 200 F.

 

[salvy59]

The new engines are designed to run hotter using the aluminum heads that lose more heat compare to cast iron heads and for better emission control as well. I do agree the margin from overheating is reduced but is best kept above 200 F.

>> you could be right, could be a bad thing keeping the temps down under 200...

 

[David L. Chacon]

Six settings, which one are refering to?

Yes, those are normal operating temps for a 392. You have a factory 203 degree t-stat. Last summer driving across South Dakota on I-90 on a hot summer dat coming back from the Black Hills I was running 224-226 degrees! I really did not like that.
I have since installed a 180 stat and set my fans with my Intune to come on at 195-200- and 205 (low, med, high) and here in Minn. we are not yet into "hot" summertime temps but my car is staying at around 200 degrees now consistently....

I did my Diablo tune yesterday and there are 6 settings for the fan :scratchhead: the 195-200-205 setting you are mentioning are for which set up? with AC on or AC off?? something that I have no idea what the hell they are refering to :scratchhead:

 

[KJ392]

I did my Diablo tune yesterday and there are 6 settings for the fan :scratchhead: the 195-200-205 setting you are mentioning are for which set up? with AC on or AC off?? something that I have no idea what the hell they are refering to :scratchhead:

Only need to change the AC off, low mile per hour settings. High MPH settings are pretty useless as the airflow through the radiator cools her down.

I run low MPH HS at 199 and low MPH LS at 190

 

[3boystoys]

>> you could be right, could be a bad thing keeping the temps down under 200...

You are CORRECT, modern engine are DESIGNED to run this way, it oil temp that the important number (178ish or so is the sweet spot for engine longevity in modern engines). You can reduce your engine life by a LOT by running too cold.

One of the guys over on a Vette forum I'm on was part of the design team for the C5 and worked on this.
Read post # 15
160 or 180 degree thermostat ? - Corvette Forum

Since the hemi is very much like the LS engine, I think I would defer to people that ACTUALLY KNOW vs. old hot rod voodoo.

T-stat's do not have a lot to do with steady state temps anyway, it's fan setting that do. A colder t-stat will just keep the engine from getting to temp longer. Run cooler, kill the fans faster and all for nothing. There are time and ways to use them but you have to monitor oil temps and if it's your daily driver, you might have to change t-stats twice a year.

 

[EricG]

You are CORRECT, modern engine are DESIGNED to run this way, it oil temp that the important number (178ish or so is the sweet spot for engine longevity in modern engines). You can reduce your engine life by a LOT by running too cold.

One of the guys over on a Vette forum I'm on was part of the design team for the C5 and worked on this.
Read post # 15
160 or 180 degree thermostat ? - Corvette Forum

Since the hemi is very much like the LS engine, I think I would defer to people that ACTUALLY KNOW vs. old hot rod voodoo.

T-stat's do not have a lot to do with steady state temps anyway, it's fan setting that do. A colder t-stat will just keep the engine from getting to temp longer. Run cooler, kill the fans faster and all for nothing. There are time and ways to use them but you have to monitor oil temps and if it's your daily driver, you might have to change t-stats twice a year.

Um, this seems like a bit of double talk. First of all, the Corvette engineer says himself the stock tstats at 200 degrees are too hot and 180s are what you want to run, and that the hot ones in modern engines are there to meet emission standards. Also, your car warms up at the same speed regardless of the tstat, it's just how hot it gets in the end that changes.

Yes oil temps are important, the best part about SRT engines are the oil squirters that cool the pistons, they force oil to eat heat and it's pretty easy to send the oil past the 212 degree flash point when you start to get on it. Running a 180 is a non-issue, people have been doing it for a decade on the modern Hemi now with zero documented issues due to it.

 

[Thunderinn]

I did my Diablo tune yesterday and there are 6 settings for the fan :scratchhead: the 195-200-205 setting you are mentioning are for which set up? with AC on or AC off?? something that I have no idea what the hell they are refering to :scratchhead:

To simplify things for me I just set ALL my fan settings at the 195-200-205 setting. A/C on and A/C off. Otherwise I know I would have just confused myself (lol). Being in Minn. we are not having any "Texas heat" here now and won`t for a month or two. So I have just started with those fan temp settings and will monitor and re-adjust as the temperature dictates.
I did not want to set the fan settings to low because 1) I actually do want the engine temps to run around 200 degrees, not in the 180`s or low to mid 190`s and 2) I don`t want to run the electric fans constantly and perhaps have premature failure with those. So I picked the 195-200-205 temps to start with and we will see how it goes.,

 

[David L. Chacon]

Agree w/ you guys about the thermostat.....

The control of the thermostat just opens and closes. So the question is for the "AC On" or "AC Off" on the fans, the tune ask for three settings on each? in high speed (is that the AC Off?, I do understand that it is the job of the incoming air that cools it but why three settings? and why is everthing so "coded" plain english would do just fine :icon_evil:

David :scratchhead:

 

[David L. Chacon]

Thunderinn, I think that I will go with your suggestion!

Thunderinn, I'll take your advise and start out with your suggested settings, Thanks! I'm taking a trip to Albq. NM tomorrow and would not want the fans on for the whole damn trip and "ware out the fans" LOL

Thanks Man! :thumbsup:

 

[Thunderinn]

Thunderinn, I'll take your advise and start out with your suggested settings, Thanks! I'm taking a trip to Albq. NM tomorrow and would not want the fans on for the whole damn trip and "ware out the fans" LOL

Thanks Man! :thumbsup:

Have a great trip - I love New Mexico! I think those setting will work out great or at least be pretty close. I`m sure you will bring your tuner and tweak a little if need be...... have fun!!

 

[440_Magnum]

Feel kind of :notallthere: asking this but, what should be the normal operating tempature for a 392?
My Challenger seems to go between 195-215 and the fans do not come until around 220 is this normal??

David

Perfectly normal. Its odd to see it run cooler in city traffic when you turn the AC on- but it does, since that makes the fan run most of the time.

Have you watched the oil temp yet (available in the EVIC "vehicle information" pane). That'll surprise a lot of people- the 392 runs its oil nice and hot, even with an oil cooler. Mine never runs below about 215 in the winter, and stabilizes around 220-230F in hot weather. If I get frisky with it, it'll get up to 235 or so. I've never circle-tracked mine, but I've talked to people who have. One guy with a 6.1 says his stabilized around 300F when he got to run the infield roadcourse at a NASCAR track.

None of this is actually a bad thing with modern oil. It keeps fuel dilution and moisture at a bare minimum, and heat actually activates some anti-wear additives, but it means you can't cheap-out on engine oil.

 

[David L. Chacon]

Got it packed!!!

It is in my car as we write..........I'll set it up with your suggested setting this afternoon and take it from there:bigthumb:

Thanks again "Thunderinn" :thumbsup:

 

[Yahooligan]

FWIW, our cars do not have a medium-speed for the fan so setting the medium speed temp to something different than the high-speed (Not high MPH) is pointless.

As for a 180 t-stat voiding your warranty...find another dealer, that one is run by idiots.