Thanks for the info... I've read the manual and what CAT recommends is to start the climp at 100% and shift down at 80% and so on.. for me that means start the climb @ 2850 and down shift @ 2200.. going down the hill not to exceed 3000 rpm that seems to do well along with the retarder .. I've also figured out that sixth gear means 62-65 mph fifth means 47-50 forth means 38-45 and third means 28-35... below that you may as well walk... The manual says if you cannot accelerate your in to tall a gear below 100%... makes sense..
Good idea on reducing the mix water cools better I'm using a NAPA extended life pre-mix and I believe that is a 50/50..
I took a look inside the radiator it's nice & clean.. found an overhaul tag so not many miles since then..
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Originally Posted by prairieschooner
Jimmy,
We had to "learn how to drive" when we took our first trip. What I found out was that we could climb just about any grade (even with the car in tow) by simply gearing down, thanks Larry Bell. What I want to do is keep the RPM around 1800-2000 with our V-6 (6V92) and sometimes this means climbing the grade at 25-30 MPH. The good part about that is that I am at the right speed to go down the grade when we get to the top.
Yes the Coolant can make a big difference---what ratio of Coolant to Water did you go with? Some Hot Rodders will run only around 25% Coolant in the Summer just to help cooling, you need to correct this when it starts to get cold! Remember to use a Coolant that is compatible to your Engine and Distilled Water.
The Radiator needs to be cleaned every so often on our older coaches. I use Simple Green and spray a heavy concentration from the Engine Side, allow it to sit for a while then spray the Water from the outside of the Coach towards the Engine so that I push the gunk back the way that it came in.
You are correct about the Pressure --- Good Find! I have found that our Radiator may look low when cold but after it heats up the level should be in the Sight Glass. This was another "learning curve" when we went to Creed I over-filled our radiator and the V-6 burped it out.
I have since learned much about our Prairie Schooner.
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