Is my Dodge overheating?

[beardedone]

I have the 08 Dodge with the 6.7 Cummins. On a recent trip in the mountains towing my Landmark the Insight monitor showed a coolant temperature of around 225 F for a very short period of time. It will normally range from 196 (prairie) to 208 (hills). Has anyone else seen 225 or this not worth concern?

 

[cjbearden]

Hubby says ours has never gone over 210. He recommends you have your dealer check the codes, you may have a sensor going bad. Let us know what you find out. C.J.

 

[Bob&Patty]

Gerry, 1st of all, what was the outside temp? 225*, if it was mine, I would not worry about it TOO much. If it cools down quickly after you level out....then to me ...all is good. JMHO

 

[jpajax]

These trucks fan is control ed by obc and some have had to be updated or reprogram. If it is still under warranty have it checked out. The fan is electronic control ed and the computer can speed it up or slow it down based on the info it is feed. 225# is getting to the point of concern. Mine has never seen over 212# and when that big ole fan is locked it sounds like a freight train.

 

[Willym]

Gerry,

Towing our Landmark through the rockies on a +20 C day, I saw 103 C (217F) on a few long hills. The fan clutch kicked in and brought it below 100 C within seconds. I wouldn't worry about it too much. As someone suggested, your dealer could check that the fan is cutting in at the right temp. You could also lift your hood and check the front heat exhangers for bugs. Clean it if required. A lot of bugs/debris on the fins will result in lost heat exhange capability.

I use a Scangauge, but additional monitors can sometimes make you worry more than you need to. The analogue temp meter barely moves during normal operation, and the red area is quite well over to the right.

 

[beardedone]

Well thanks for all the replies. Just an update here. The truck is completely stock and recently had a J-35 re-flash, which I wonder may have had something to do with it. I keep bug screen in front to stop bugs from plugging the rad and that makes it easier to keep clean. The analogue gauge doesn't show any wide variations at all and no codes are generated. The truck is stock and properly plugged in. I replaced the radiator cap with a 17 lb one. A Cummins mechanic friend of my BIL says one thing that could be the culprit is the thermostat and I am thinking about replacing that. In the meantime I am going to just monitor it carefully. Thanks for the replies.

 

[westxsrt10]

That bug screen is likely to be some of the problem because it blocks the air flow. Running 225 deg. is not an issue but I wouldnt run a higher than stock psi radiator cap.

 

[beardedone]

I thought about the bug screen possibly creating part of the problem so I have already modified it and that didn't change anything temp wise. I think having the screen is a benefit because of the large amount of grasshoppers etc that we seem to encounter. I just make sure to take my brush to it regularly and keep it clean.