I'll answer Randy's message, with a thanks to everyone else who
responded.
> Scott, you didn't say, and I forgot, what year this critter is. Early 70's
> if I remember. For up through 76, the systems are pretty much self bleeding.
> Fill, then run up to temp with the cap off, adding more coolant if/as needed.
It's the cap-off part that was news to me. I also found the cable
connector to hook up the heater valve, so I'll install that, open
the heater, and then do the cap-off bleeding of the system.
> Then top it all the way up when cool. At this point the system should be
> totally full. The next time it is run, it will puke out the water it doesn't
> want.
> From your description, I'd toss that thermostat.
It's a possibility, and I've got two on the shelf. Funny, I thought
this was the thermostat that came out of the stock 18GK, which never
got up to the N unless it was 105 degrees outside. I have at least a
165 degree and a 185 degree thermostat on the shelf, though, if it
ends up needing them.
The symptoms sound more to me like it's just a couple of quarts low
on coolant -- see comment above about filling the heater core. I
just dumped coolant into the radiator, some three or four weeks before
I was able to get the car to start. That is, it warms quickly, runs
a little hotter than it used to (still below the N on the gauge) as
long as I'm moving, and heats up (just over the N) if I stop in traffic
for any length of time; it drops back down to below the N as soon as
I get some air past the radiator. My first suspicion is that it's just
low on coolant, which makes sense as I haven't bled it yet because
I didn't know the cap-off trick. I'll try that in a day or two,
then retest.
Thanks to everyone for helping!
--Scott
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