On my trip to NY, I noticed that when I turned on the heater, my engine temp climbed from 199-201 up to 212-216. It would go back down once I turned off heat. I'm sure the SS has been doing this all along, I just noticed it after running over some road debris, and then cycling through the DIC to see if I was losing tire pressure. Anyone know if this is normal for the cooling system to do this when giong through the heater core? I'm thinking the heater return dumps near the thermostat?

 

Pretty sure it's normal..... Part of the "quick warm-up" programming... they run hotter when cabin heat is called for. At least I've read that about the LT, I imagine the SS would be the same.

 

Ur all good man nothing to worry about. In the winter my average is about 210 and now my coolant temp is like 190 tops

 

I've always noticed it run hot in the Winter, 210-212° especially when idling. It runs 190-200° without the heater on. Glad I know it's normal now too.

 

Yes I have noticed that I even shut the heater off to let it cool down before shutting it off.

 

Wouldn't the temp go down when you turn the heater on? Like the old cars?

 

If it is anything like the Saab engine, which they stole the design from, it may have a 3 way thermostat that shuts off supply to the heaater core if the temp rises too much. I can't tell you how many old cars wher I had to turn the heater on in the summer to help lower the temp of an overheating car, once while stuck in traffic in the Lincoln Tunnel in NY. Reminded me of the hot box in "The Great Escape"

 

I'm not sure what they did to cause this, but no.... just the opposite now. It has to do with whatever they did to get warm air in the cabin faster on a cold start..... Remember, well you are young so maybe you don't, but in the old days you would be half way to work before there was any cabin heat or defrost..... Man, those were the days.

 

Heat in the winter, anybody here besides me have experience with a gasoline heater in an aircooled Chevy, once you overlook the fire/CO danger....they work pretty well. Like Greybeard said, it used to be a case of freezing to death for half the trip before the heat began to trickle out.

 

"..... it used to be a case of freezing to death for half the trip before the heat began to trickle out."

That and trying to see out of that 4" X 6" hole scraped in the ice that kept fogging over....