456 gets hot in stop and go traffic

my 456 is running perfectly right now during winter, but in the summer months when ever I am stuck in stop and go traffic, my car's water temperature would get close to 110-115 Celsius , which is around 230 F TO 240 F. that only happens during stop and go traffic. once the car gets going again, it will drop back down to around 90 C, around 195 F. I've flushed out the system and my mechanic checked out everything and changed everything that has to be change. we know the car is fine in every aspect except when it is not moving for mins or stuck in traffic. just wondering if I upgrade the radiator fans and perhaps the oil cooler fan with some racing electric fans which gives you a quite a bit higher CMF, could that solve the problem or be able to lower the temperature by around 5 to 10 degrees C ???? At least that is what my mechanic suggest for me to try. Also a friend that has a corvette C5 that is having exactly the same problem, he upgraded to the more powerful fans all around the cars, transmission fan, radiator pulling fans, the main fan, oil cooler fan. He says it is making a big big difference. The only downside is that it is drawing more power from the battery and alternator. whenever the HID lights and air con are on at night , the voltage will drop to around 10V when it is idling, it quite hard on the alternator. may need to upgrade that too. So with a ferrari 456, should I do the same, any suggestions? anyone here have tried upgrading the fans?? really want to get this problem solve during the winter months. Here where I live only goes down to around 10 C, which is around 50 F. So no need to worry about heat, but in the summer months goes up to 35 C or 95 F..........also any know what is the size , diameter of the oil cooler fan? thanks

 

Do a search. I remember reading a post where someone replaced their radiator with a Ron Davis unit and swapped the fan at the same time.

Colby

 

I installed a Davis radiator. Great improvement. Here is the thread:

http://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/showthread.php?t=329566

Keith

 

These cars are known for marginal cooling systems even when functioning properly. If the coolant was never changed the radiator could have corrosion in it that compromises its efficiency to the point that without air being forced through it from the car moving (plus the water pump spinning faster at higher rpms flowing more coolant) it can't cool it sufficiently. I'd replace the radiator and fan at the same time.

Colby

 

My car is a '95, I live in South Florida and I never had an overheating problem so far.
Therefore I would have to disagree on the statement that these cars have a marginal cooling system.
A few things need to be kept in mind, for the cooling system to work properly:
- the water / antifreeze mix is critical, as the antifreeze actually inhibits the cooling capacity of the water.
-100% water would get the most cooling capacity, so if it does not get near freezing where you live, you may want to consider doing away with antifreeze and use instead a rust inhibitor.
- Antifreeze quality is important, as some antifreeze products, over time, tend to clog the radiator passages, thus reducing the heat transfer capacity.
- Replacing your coolant periodically is very important as the coolant tends to turn acid over time.

 

Alfredo- Affirmative and neither the 456 or 456M (and 550 and 575M) manuals call for changing the coolant. My techs swear by Zerex G05.