Coolant Pressure 6.0L Vortec

[adventurenali92]

I agree with @TheAutumnWind , a trans cooler upgrade is definitely the way to go!

 

[millerladam]

Personally, I have never had need to try and find a larger radiator. That being said, a very quick search on Rock Auto, found that the same radiator from spektra is used in the '07 Yukon XL 6.2L 1500, 6.0L 2500 and Sierra 6.0L 2500. The 6.6L D-max Sierra 2500 uses a different radiator. Chances are, that the D-max radiator has more cooling capacity, but should probably bolt in.

You could order one for the d-max from Amazon and see if it fits. If it does, then you have your answer, if not returns are pretty painless with Amazon.

Thank you for the search. For some reason every time I am trying to cross reference one part for one vehicle to another, I can never figure out how to do it. I am a website developer and server engineer but some websites just suck for comparing in my opinion. That being said, it's also funny that you mention the Duramax radiators. I am in the process of rebuilding my LLY (bought a remanufactured one after blowing mine up) and happen to have a brand new radiator sitting in my garage for it. I know the body styles changed but I wonder what the chances of the radiator being the same are? My Duramax is a 2005 3500 body.

 

[Jason_S]

An '05 and an '07 have different part numbers. Doesn't mean that it wont fit or work, but something is different.

 

[millerladam]

Well, the saga continues. So today I replaced the water pump, both belts, and the idler pulley. I proceeded to flush the entire cooling system with distilled water even though the DexCool coolant says tap water is fine. I used approximately 8 gallons to flush the system from everywhere I could until the water was coming out clear. I put everything back together and filled the system with 1 and 3/4 gallons of coolant. I turned the heat on and let the truck get up to operating temperature with the reservoir cap off. I then put the cap on, drove it around the block, came home grabbed a few things and drove to the dealership because when I had it in Saturday they forgot to put the damn clamp back on the intake pipe to the air box (the reason why I don't bring my vehicles to the dealer). While sitting for about two minutes, it moved probably 5 to 10 degrees above normal operating temperature. When I get home, I will let it cool down completely and then check the coolant level. Besides swapping the radiator and replacing the hydraulic fan with electric fans, does anyone have any other ideas of what is going on? Is this normal? The temperature outside today is around 100 degrees with 80% plus humidity and the transmission reached 190 degrees on the way here. I still think there is an issue with the transmission getting to warm when I am not driving it hard or towing.


Any next steps are highly appreciated! Thank you.

 

[TheAutumnWind]

@ 100 degrees ambient I was seeing ~190* trans temps when stock in stop and go traffic.

 

[millerladam]

@ 100 degrees ambient I was seeing ~190* trans temps when stock in stop and go traffic.

Okay, so even if that is normal, why in the hell is the engine getting over 210* sitting at idle for a couple of minutes? On my way home, I stopped and grabbed my toy hauler from it's storage which is about 5 miles from my house and is flat terrain. The engine temperature reached a little more than half way between the half way line and the third quarter line, so somewhere around 220* to 230* with the air conditioning on. I turned the air conditioning off for the half a mile or so which is a school zone and then into my neighborhood. When I did this, the engine temperature dropped back down to around 215* or so, still slightly above the 210* half way mark on the gauge. I am afraid of the truck overheating while towing my toy hauler this weekend. Should I be concerned or should I just tow as much as I can with the air conditioning off, especially up the the grades and just take it easy? The only grade I am concerned about is 9 miles long at a 6% grade.

Thank you!

 

[TheAutumnWind]

Okay, so even if that is normal, why in the hell is the engine getting over 210* sitting at idle for a couple of minutes? On my way home, I stopped and grabbed my toy hauler from it's storage which is about 5 miles from my house and is flat terrain. The engine temperature reached a little more than half way between the half way line and the third quarter line, so somewhere around 220* to 230* with the air conditioning on. I turned the air conditioning off for the half a mile or so which is a school zone and then into my neighborhood. When I did this, the engine temperature dropped back down to around 215* or so, still slightly above the 210* half way mark on the gauge. I am afraid of the truck overheating while towing my toy hauler this weekend. Should I be concerned or should I just tow as much as I can with the air conditioning off, especially up the the grades and just take it easy? The only grade I am concerned about is 9 miles long at a 6% grade.

Thank you!

I was getting s steady ~220* in stop and go traffic when it was 110* last weekend. Left it idling running the a/c that day and I saw about 200* trans 220* coolant. That is with an upgraded 12x12" transmission cooler, in a recently flushed system with a brand new waterpump.

 

[adventurenali92]

You should always have the air off when towing up a grade. That's kinda towing 101. My 6.0 has been doing the same thing the last week or so with warm temps and driving through the construction zones and stop and go. Warm temps outside, my trans gets to about 190ish and my operating temps get right on the 210 mark. Just take it easy towing your trailer and try not to hammer it.

 

[millerladam]

Thank you for the replies.

I was getting s steady ~220* in stop and go traffic when it was 110* last weekend. Left it idling running the a/c that day and I saw about 200* trans 220* coolant. That is with an upgraded 12x12" transmission cooler, in a recently flushed system with a brand new waterpump.

So it seems like this is pretty normal then? I have thrown probably damn near $1000 at this engine in the last two months and I am sick of throwing money at it and nothing changing. The last item to replace is the radiator and I am thinking about doing it just to get it done. My cost is $155 plus another two gallons of coolant at $10/each.

You should always have the air off when towing up a grade. That's kinda towing 101. My 6.0 has been doing the same thing the last week or so with warm temps and driving through the construction zones and stop and go. Warm temps outside, my trans gets to about 190ish and my operating temps get right on the 210 mark. Just take it easy towing your trailer and try not to hammer it.

Yeah, I understand I should have the air conditioning off when towing a grade, I am just afraid I guess. I don't tow as much as other people as we only use our toy hauler maybe once every couple of month,s and it's the largest trailer I have ever towed. This will only be our fourth trip with it since we bought it back in November but when I bought it I was towing with my 2005 Duramax, which unfortunately ended up having a blown head gasket and I am still rebuilding it. I am hoping to have it done by the end of August, but I don't know if that's going to happen. In the meantime, my Yukon is my tow rig which I traded the wife's minivan in for after blowing up my Duramax.

I guess I will just take it slow and easy. We are traveling at night so the temperatures are cooler, hopefully this will help.

 

[ccapehartusarmyINF.(ret)]

okay your coolant tempshould always stay just below 210 always if it ever goes above 210 something is wrong doesnt matter if your towing idling or just driving
ive got 240k miles on my suburban and here in arizona ive sat for hours running the ac full blast when it was 115 dagrees outside and the temp stayed just below 210 and never budged
now the ac may start blowing warmer air but thats it engine temp stayed the same
now its very important for the cooling system tomaintain 15psi this raises yer coolants boiling temp from 212 to 245 dagrees water boils at higher temp under pressure
every time ive had this issue in the past ad cant seem to located the source of the problem it usually winds up being a leak somewhere it winds up being a tiny and obscure hard to find leak
the affectiveness of your cooling system depends on its ability to maintain pressure roughly 15 psi