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127 Posts
Now that we've been dealing with 100°+ weather, the truck is still running hot. I don't think the 180 BM can cope with trying to keep this thing cool. I'm going to move over to a Mark VIII fan and use the 180 in a far less demanding vehicle.
Transmission is the main culprit in getting things toasty. Fluid smelled somewhat burned and it was noticeably brown instead of red. I'm replacing that check valve just before the radiator, as the old valve was somewhat cruddy. Temps climbed about as high as 225°F on both pillar gauges when the air temp was registering about 108°F.
I have also noticed that when the ambient temps are lower, the truck is less likely to overheat. Once ambient is below 90°, it will never creep beyond the 210 mark on the dash gauge.
I've been able to get my hands on an NV3500 with associated transfer case from a Dakota with a 5.2, so that swap is in the near future.
I just rolled over 100K miles last week, so 100K on the original automatic isn't all that bad given the stories I've read of people getting them replaced or rebuilt around the 50-60K mile mark, but I guess even keeping up with fluid and filter changes, and band adjustments won't keep these things from eventually just giving up the ghost. There's no harsh shifting, there's no delay switching gears, and the torque converter is locking up when it should, and there are no strange noises coming from it.
Transmission is the main culprit in getting things toasty. Fluid smelled somewhat burned and it was noticeably brown instead of red. I'm replacing that check valve just before the radiator, as the old valve was somewhat cruddy. Temps climbed about as high as 225°F on both pillar gauges when the air temp was registering about 108°F.
I have also noticed that when the ambient temps are lower, the truck is less likely to overheat. Once ambient is below 90°, it will never creep beyond the 210 mark on the dash gauge.
I've been able to get my hands on an NV3500 with associated transfer case from a Dakota with a 5.2, so that swap is in the near future.
I just rolled over 100K miles last week, so 100K on the original automatic isn't all that bad given the stories I've read of people getting them replaced or rebuilt around the 50-60K mile mark, but I guess even keeping up with fluid and filter changes, and band adjustments won't keep these things from eventually just giving up the ghost. There's no harsh shifting, there's no delay switching gears, and the torque converter is locking up when it should, and there are no strange noises coming from it.