I posted the same thread in the General Discussions Forum. I wanted to make sure plenty of people read it so I could get to a solution...

I have a 355 that I had built and places in my 85 Olds Cutlass that I've adored ever since I bought it.  I had issues with the ignition to the point where the car wouldn't start, it was paid off so I parked it and bought a 91 Caprice Classic.  I traded that in for a 96 Impala SS.  And then I decided to strap the Cutlass' Olds 307 and put a 355 in it.  By this point the Cutlass had been sitting for 5 years.

This summer I put the 355 I have in it.  It has an Edelbrock 7102 Performer RPM cam and lifter set, 062 vortec heads that were port polished for 2.02 flow, Edelbrock 7516 Perfromer RPM Air-Gap intake, Edelbrock 1407 Performer Carburetor, Hedman Hedders, and Edelbrock 7800 timing chain and I installed a 180 thermostat.

I cannot get this car to run cool for anything.  I've let it run just to see how hot it would get but by the time it gets to 220, I get scared and shut it off.  Since the car had been sitting for so long I decided to get the radiator professionally cleaned.  So I'm good there.  I replaced the fan clutch and noticed more cooling but still not enough so I'm good there.  I replaced both upper and lower radiator hoses and it has a brand new water pump.  The fan shroud is also properly placed.  The water is flowing well and doesn't bubble at all.  When I drive the car on stretches at or around 60mph the temp stays steady, but if I hit a red light or traffic, it's going up.  The timing on the engine is within its recommended range, but I know for a fact I have a vacuum leak.  I've read a few of the posts pertaining to this issue and they've stated that a vacuum leak would contribute to heating issues, but would it make a difference of 20+ degrees?  I've spoken to a few radiator experts, they've offered to sell me new radiators but stated that a new one isn't going to solve my problem.  Today I even installed a flex-fan out of curiosity.  It still got up to 220.

I've tried to provide as much information as possible so that someone might lead me to a solution.  Any constructive replies are appreciated because this is driving me mad.

It sucks to have a car sound so good, but to only be able to drive it 3-5 miles at a time...

Also, if anyone has a set up similar to mine, could you post your average running temperature?  

More information that I remembered after posting this...

The block is from a 75 C10 truck...

I also have Keith Black Claimer Performance Series Pistons...

My engine is running kinda rich.  I'm seeing some carbon deposits on my plugs...  

Can anyone provide any input?  

Have you tried running without the thermostat to see what the difference is?  

i installed a serpentine setup on my 355, running the reverse water pump w/0 flex or clutch fan just electice and with the 180 i have problems cooling off as well, i would breach 220 if i set for about 5 mintues with fan operating correctly. but i put a 160 in and it barely breaches 180.

although i will change this come winter, but through the heat im keepin the 160, even though its probably flowing constantly like one doesnt exist during city driving.

redline makes a water mix thats said to drop tempatures 20 degrees, you might want to check that out for 20 degrees off your temp..  

I haven't tried removing the thermostat.  I figured that I might have a bigger issue and I didn't want to just patch it by removing the thermostat...

I guess that should be my next plan of action.  If removing the thermostat works, then I'll pop in the 160 for the summer and maybe the 180 or 195 for the winter...

Thanks for the replies canted and JCR3WS!  

FINALLY!!

I've solved this problem...

It turned out to be the fan.  The blades on the fan weren't facing the right direction, therefore air was being pushed out the grill versus sucked into the engine compartment.  I guess using the fan off the Olds 307 wasn't a good idea...

I've been driving it since yesterday afternoon after I replaced the fan.  The engine temp never got over 180, it actually runs at 170.  I'm thinking I need to put a 195 thermostat in there now...

Thanks to all that assisted me!  

glad you fixed it