Operating Temperature on stock Engine?
 

I'm slowly whipping this car into a stock (drivetrain-wise) driver. I had an Ebay aluminum radiator that I just swapped back to the original radiator after having it repaired. PSA: the fitment on those cheap Ebay ones is junk, avoid them at all costs

85*f out today and it holds steady at ~155*f while in motion and sits between 160*f and 165*f at idle. I'm running 50/50 antifreeze, plastic 6-blade fan, and no thermostat

Is that too cold?

Whenever winter does set in, I do plan on continuing to drive it (as long as there's no salt on the road). Any tips for cold weather driving preparations?

Winter weather around here consists of temps mostly in the upper 30s/low 40s

Re: Operating Temperature on stock Engine?
 

160-180 good yours looks ok! Top is hotter than the bottom of radiator.. Heater manifold is nice to have and a garage!

Re: Operating Temperature on stock Engine?
 

That's what I found in California before I put in the 165 thermostat. Now it heats quickly up to 165 and only rises above that when I'm pulling a grade, fast. I've seen it as high as 190 but that was summer, at altitude, pulling a long steady grade at 45-50 mph.

My '31 came with a coolant water heater that sure is nice in the winter, but since I'm in a relatively moderate climate I doubt I'll do it on the car I'm building up now. Will enjoy it while I have it, though. Maybe if I can find one of those exhaust pipe heaters that feeds through the floorboard...

Re: Operating Temperature on stock Engine?
 

Install a thermostat in the winter and remove it for summer driving. Your temperature seems OK. Use an IR thermometer to measure various parts of the engine after a run.

Re: Operating Temperature on stock Engine?
 

When looking at the temperature measurements, I'm presuming that with a given range of 160-180 degrees, they're referring to 180 going "into" the radiator at the top and 160 going "out" the bottom of the radiator. I was measuring the temperature of the approx 4" of rubber hose just before it goes into the engine.

Re: Operating Temperature on stock Engine?
 

I think that consensus is that if you are inputting 160-180 to the top of the radiator then that's pretty normal. I suppose that if you want to get really picky that's outlet temp at the water pump, which should be pretty close to input temp to the radiator (I doubt that you lose much in 14" of thick rubber hose). I've not heard much discussion about temperature at the outlet (bottom) of the radiator, typically it's not the temperature drop across the radiator that is critical as much as it is the water flow.

Re: Operating Temperature on stock Engine?
 

If you are using an IR thermometer, it will measure temperature slightly different depending on the coefficient of emissivity. So the black rubber hose will measure slightly higher than, say, a bright metallic object.