# Overheating chevy diesel



## Sealer People (Nov 16, 2008)

I have a 1996 chevy diesel 2500,

I just put the plow on today ( 7.6 blizzard ) 
Its overheating.
any suggestions ??? The truck has never overheated in the past, but then again, it never had a plow on it.


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## theplowmeister (Nov 14, 2006)

Use the search at the top of the page (gray line above the Meyer banner" and put in "overheating" This has been discussed to death

And by the way Welcome to PLowsite


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## Sealer People (Nov 16, 2008)

thanks meister, Im not sure the truck has the plow package 
this is my second year doing this. Last year my 1995 gas gmc was horrible for me, for decided to plow with the diesel truck this year.

Im really worried about all this as Id hate to ruin the truck.

Thanks for responding earlier
Im also wondering if I should put a set of timberin on the truck. The fellow installed the plow says it didnt need them but I notice about 2 inches sagging when raising the plow.


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## theplowmeister (Nov 14, 2006)

What was wrong with the gas GMC Lots of people use them without a problem.


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## Sealer People (Nov 16, 2008)

I bought the 95 from a guy, this truck sat for about 2 years & I guess it just seized up. B4 i took it off him he did about 2000$$ of work to it, but for me it just was bad news. for some reason it sucked back
$100 of gas for 200 kms., it overheated all the time & had no reserve bottle on it so fluid would leak everywhere. 
there was a constant chirping noise when driving, so we had a pulley changed, the serpintine belt changed but it never went away. I guess the truck was just not taken care of at all before i tried to work with it.
The most anoying thing that it did was, the jump from forst to second gear, it was like someone smashed me from behind, really hard gear change. torque converter maybe.
All in all, the truvk worked all season, I bought it for $4500, did the exhaust manifold ( $400 ) right side, 3 weeks later the left side went on it but I didnt bother fixing it. also shelled another 1000 into her for other things & then I just decided that that would be it.
Im not really knowledegable on repairs and al but I figured I didnt want to shell out $10,000 for a 1995 chevy 2500.
Some guy offered me $5000 for it in as is condition.
Hope I didnt make a bad move by selling it. 

My concern right now is the overheating diesel pickup. I wonder if I crank the torsion bars & raise the truvk a bit, if that will let more air get into the front end.


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## stroker79 (Dec 2, 2006)

you can crank the T bars a bit for more height but if I remember correctly, you need the HD fan clutch for the truck. I think installing that is suposed to fix the overheating issue.

Im sure and hope that B&B will cjime in cause somehow he actually knows everything! LOL


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## Mark13 (Dec 3, 2006)

I'm assuming it over heats while your driving down the road. 
How high are you running your blade and in what position (angled or straight)?

I run my blade about 4-5" off the ground and angled to allow as much air as I can to the truck.


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## B&B (Nov 4, 2006)

A good quality aftermarket HD fan clutch will solve your overheat issues as long as the rest of cooling system is in good condition first. This would include a clean radiator (BOTH inside and outside) and coolant that's in good shape. If the systems never been cleaned it's suggested that you do so. Normally its the gas trucks that have heating issues with a plow since the 6.5's aren't known for being big heat producers, but a poor component in the cooling system will show up quick once a plow is installed no matter what the engine.

I recently mentioned that I've been having very good luck with AutoZones "Extreme duty" fan clutches on plow equipped trucks so you may want to check into that avenue for a replacement clutch.


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## stroker79 (Dec 2, 2006)

I think B&B that all you do when you log in is do a search for your name to find all the posts waiting for your response, LOL.

I was right again! Thanks for the backup LOL.


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## B&B (Nov 4, 2006)

Nope, just move quick.


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## Sealer People (Nov 16, 2008)

Hi Guys & thanks for all the responces.

again i just had it installed & I had the blade straight, angled, 3- 4 inches high.

I will have my mechanic look everything over on monday morning.
I did see a plow today, same as mine with something called an ``air foil `` I;d like to know more about this, it`s on the blizzard web site under accesories, I think it helps direct air into the rad.

Anyone know if that would be effective


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## Sealer People (Nov 16, 2008)

*engine light comes on with fan on*

1996 chevy diesel 2500. w. 280, 000 kms.
Also when I normally turn my fan on ( heat or air conditioning ) a few minutes later the

engine light comes on. My Mechanic says its a fuel injector pump ( $2400.00 ) but I`m not quite sure I believe that seeing as its only when I turn the fan on. he gets to readings, the injection pump & a vacum pump. ( I wish i knew more about these things )

«can anyone advise please. it a picture of a motor, it does not say check engine.

note ; the light did come on in the warmer months of summer etc. but as it started getting colder it didnt come on as much, actually today was the first time it came on in a few weeks & normally its an everyday occurance in warmer weather. Im canadian, the temperaure gauge rose up to about 115 before I let the truck rest.


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## B&B (Nov 4, 2006)

Whatever codes your mechanic is finding after the illumination of the check engine light (which is a pic of the engine symbol on the older diesels) are likely being falsely triggered; false codes more or less. And, the fact that they set when you use the blower motor is likely due to a poor ground between the cab and the engine or battery as the blower motor consumes more power than anything else that's inside, or grounded to the cab. 

Time to clean/inspect/replace the ground points between the battery, engine, and cab. 

Which is a great deal cheaper than replacing the injector pump or module. payup


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## Potomac Lawns (Jan 28, 2004)

Sealer,
I have a 96 also that does the same thing with the plow, try upgrading the fan clutch or put an electric one in. As for the pump if its not hard starting when warm or cutting off on you at operating temp then i do not think its the pump, these truck are known for the pump going bad, normally its just the pmd and not the pump, try these people I have ordered from before and they are very helpful.

http://www.ssdieselsupply.com/


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## Sealer People (Nov 16, 2008)

good morning guys, I had to go out last night to clean my walkways. we got some fall last night.

whats a PMD ?

Also, B&B you mentined getting all the grounds checked, cleaned / changed, is this something I would just ask my mechanic to do ? & if so, should this cost alot f $$ ?

I cant believe how knowledgeable you guys are in regards to these trucks and all. I just joined this site last night & I was reading some stuff from the past, I take my hat off to you fellas, sounds like you really know your stuff. Its almost like your a support staff for one another.

Cheers!!
How about these " air foil " units from blizzard, do you think I should try it out to get more air into the rad ?


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## Detroitdan (Aug 15, 2005)

Sealer,
I have a 97 6.5, I belong to several 6.5 forums and have learned a ton over the last 6 years I've owned it. First, DO NOT listen to your mechanic, he doesn't know anything about 6.5s, very few people do. They all blame everything on the injector pump, when in reality they almost never go. It is like the automatic go-to diagnosis for mechanics. If the truck starts to give you running problems then it will 99% of the time be the PMD, but I won't go into that here. What you are encountering is normal, my truck has very HD cooling, plus the 97 upgrade cooling sytem which consists of 2 thermostats instead of one, and mine still gets hot when the blade is on. I try to angle and lower it just right to maintain airflow, but you can't argue with a big steel wall in front of the truck disrupting airflow. My fan clutch still works, so I let it work. It doesn't overheat only because the fan comes on and does it's job. I've thought about adding an auxiliary electric fan for emergencies, like if the clutch let go, but I haven't yet. I've also thought about an airfoil. I was going to make one like Blizzard sells, but now I'm thinking about making a plexiglass air dam on the light tower to direct air to the grill. If I do it I'll post some pics on the Blizzard forum.

If you are actually overheating, not just getting hot, then you need to stop and fix it because you will blow a head gasket in no time, especially with the 96 style thermostat. If you are getting hotter than normal and your fan clutch is working, then don't panic. There are several things you can do.

I'm not sure about the extreme duty fan clutches, if they work better than stock, or if they are just simply a better replacement when the original goes. But if B&B says it, it is gospel. So consider that.

A coolant flush and a new thermostat is surely due with a truck your age. I cannot stress enough the importance of the next part. Since you will be emptying your radiator anyway, it's a perfect time to pull the radiator out and clean it. You cannot clean it in the truck, the aux coolers block everything and you can't get the crud. Everyone will tell you how nasty the radiator will be. I just did mine this summer, it didn't look bad at all, but since I had to unbolt it anyway for the bodylift, I took the opportunity to pull it. OMG, it was plugged so full of dirt you couldn't look though most of it. I soaked it with Castrol Super Clean, then gently pressure washed it from both sides until it was clean. This wasn't from dirt roads or anything, just normal everyday 11 years of dirt, dust, bugs and debris. I can't believe my truck wasn't overheating. I guarantee your radiator is just as dirty. And it's not difficult to do.
A few cranks on the torsion bars will help carry the plow, but a couple inches isn't going to make a difference in airflow. I cranked mine for an inch and a half gain, then installed a three inch body lift and 33 inch tires. I'm still killing my airflow. But I'm fine if I stay off the highway.
Common issues such as bad grounds and loose (vibration gets them on the diesel) battery terminals can give faulty codes. Clean your grounds and inspect your battery terminals, then clear the codes. Stop worrying about your injector pump, if the truck starts dying let me know and I'll tell you how to fix it for under $300, rather than the $2400. I can PM you links to some great 6.5 resources if you're interested.


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## Sealer People (Nov 16, 2008)

Thanks alot Detroit, I will be in touch. Im starting to feel better about the chevy & I will try to have everything checked out tomorrow morning.

I will get the HD extreme clutch fan, & I was wondering if I should put put in a new & larger sized rad.

Im also gonna throw in 2 new batteries ( any suggestions on make ? ) 
Timberin kit goes in on Tuesday & I throw a set of leafs on it on Wednesday ( $300 Canadian installed ) hopefully im not getting ripped off. 

I like the $300 idea as opposed to the $2300 ,,,,,,, WOW 
I saw the air foil on a plow yesterday it looks like it may work but if you make one for your truck Id love to see it.


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## Detroitdan (Aug 15, 2005)

Glad to hear your feeling better about it, I love my truck and I hate the way the 6.5 gets a bad rep. It really isn't a bad motor, it is a light duty diesel designed for pickups. Ford and Dodge claim better motors, at least i nthe 90s, because they took medum duty diesels and dumped them into light duty trucks.
Is your truck a 6 or 8 lug 2500? Check the 8th letter of the VIN, should be an F or an S. F is better, has a better intake, no egr and HD computer programming.
I put a mechanical wastegate and free flowing exhaust on mine, really woke it up. Now I'm saving for an 80 hp ECM upgrade.
For batteries, I like Diehard, but AcDelco, Interstate or most name brands are good. I don't like Optimas but some people swear by them. All WalMart batteries except the yellow ones are recycled junk. Important thing is to match the batteries, and buy them both together. If you replace one the older one will hurt the new one. People even say you should check the date codes on the battery to match them up as close as possible. I just went to Sears and got the biggest Diehards that would fit and still be able to **** the hood. I use both terminal styles, the factory side terminals can be a problem on the passenger side. I can show you how I did that, if you end up getting batteries with top and side posts. Cures the loose terminal problem.
Chances are you already have a big radiator, so Iwouldn't replace it unless it's leaking. But pull it out and clean it, I can't impress enough how much dirt they will hold in the vanes.


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## B&B (Nov 4, 2006)

Sealer People;637670 said:


> Also, B&B you mentined getting all the grounds checked, cleaned / changed, is this something I would just ask my mechanic to do ? & if so, should this cost alot f $$ ?


Wouldn't be expensive, just some time tracing, removing, checking, and or cleaning them. The trick is to be sure you get them all as there are several.

Never hurts to add an extra one (or two) on an older truck either. Grounds are a very, very important "link" in any electronically controlled vehicle that are often overlooked but will cause all types of strange issues.


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## Detroitdan (Aug 15, 2005)

B&B;638306 said:


> Grounds are a very, very important "link" in any electronically controlled vehicle that are often overlooked but will cause all types of strange issues.


I've had my share of nightmare headaches that turned out to be nothing more than bad grounds.

I wouldn't ask your mechanic to do it, he's getting $70 an hour or thereabouts, to do something you can do yourself for free. And like I said earlier, he probably doesn't know your truck as there really aren't that many of them and it takes a little specialized knowledge. I'd hate to pay someone when you don't even know if they will findthem all.


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