OP
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Well considering the tune targets 210-212* for engine temperature, I would say your questioning is kinda baseless. The fans don't even fully turn on until the high 210s.
205* CHT is perfectly fine, and according to Ford that's actually too cool. There's virtually no reason to be worried at 205* and certainly no reason to shoot for 195*.
I'd start worrying if you see constant 220* and above.
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I'm not sure how you drive but a few things to consider if you want better cooling in the heat. FL is brutal -
In short, I had mild improvements by removing the rain trays on the stock hood vents and by using a 60/40 mix with more distilled water. With these adjustments it runs about 8-10 degrees cooler at any point on really hot days but I think that for traffic, a lower thermostat might give you the best results and some peace of mind. I haven't tried this yet.
I don't really know how effective opening the vents were but on hot days at idle you can see the heat radiating through those openings. As they come, they won't do anything for cooling. They are there to reduce the hood flutter issue we have at high speeds on these cars by equalizing pressure. When opened, it seemed to help by 2-3 degrees on similar days where I had them in. It's small enough to be placebo though. I will say that since I've done this, I haven't seen super extreme temperatures. A proper hood vent placed behind the radiator (with louvers ideally) would be the real solution to preventing some front end lift and creating a low pressure area after the radiator for heat extraction. Removing the stock vent rain trays was free first step to bleeding off some heat.
The stock PP radiator actually has massive gaps around it that make cooling less effective at speed. There's some speculation that this was done to reduce front-end lift and improve fuel economy.
It seems that the car wants to stay around 200 degree CHTs in general if it's driven lightly so I wouldn't worry too much about it. I don't think damage is a concern (see linked thread). Mine stay around 200-215. I've personally seen 240 degree CHTs after doing pulls here in Florida, the PP really seems to struggle keeping temps down effectively if you drive it hard in the heat. It seems to be a common experience. I'm actually working on ducting my radiator and might add a thermostat since the car gets sluggish at these temps.
Getting the radiator to do its job properly is a pain. High IATs don't help it much, I've seen 150+ degrees in traffic, NA with the stock closed airbox. Some guys have actually blocked off parts of the front grill to force air through the radiator and reduce turbulence. I wouldn't suggest this if you're just driving to and from work in traffic, but it's maybe a final consideration. There's a lot of bad info on cooling upgrades so I would tread carefully and look at data backed/proven solutions if you choose to go down that road. The aftermarket has many poorly designed "cooling" products that actually do the opposite, and there are bad suggestions out there based on a misunderstanding of specific heat. Good luck.
----------------------
> Radiator ducting
> General Consensus on CHTs (gen 2 yote)
> Cooling issue thread
> QA With Members That Have Cut Their Hoods
> Track Cooling Megathread (dated but good info)
I wonder if I'm putting the cart before the horse by ducting first without adding a post-radiator vent, but I don't want to deal with not having a rain tray on a big opening during downpours. I'm not going to cut the hood until I have a plan or solution. Rather have it act as a big stupid wing on the front and deal with it for a while, and hopefully improve its effectiveness later with Racelouvers. The final step would be waterproofing + heat wrapping the stock headers to keep the engine bay cooler. I'm not worried about high EGTs through the exhaust since I don't have FI. I'll come back and share any noticeable improvements or issues when it's done.
In short, I had mild improvements by removing the rain trays on the stock hood vents and by using a 60/40 mix with more distilled water. With these adjustments it runs about 8-10 degrees cooler at any point on really hot days but I think that for traffic, a lower thermostat might give you the best results and some peace of mind. I haven't tried this yet.
I don't really know how effective opening the vents were but on hot days at idle you can see the heat radiating through those openings. As they come, they won't do anything for cooling. They are there to reduce the hood flutter issue we have at high speeds on these cars by equalizing pressure. When opened, it seemed to help by 2-3 degrees on similar days where I had them in. It's small enough to be placebo though. I will say that since I've done this, I haven't seen super extreme temperatures. A proper hood vent placed behind the radiator (with louvers ideally) would be the real solution to preventing some front end lift and creating a low pressure area after the radiator for heat extraction. Removing the stock vent rain trays was free first step to bleeding off some heat.
The stock PP radiator actually has massive gaps around it that make cooling less effective at speed. There's some speculation that this was done to reduce front-end lift and improve fuel economy.
It seems that the car wants to stay around 200 degree CHTs in general if it's driven lightly so I wouldn't worry too much about it. I don't think damage is a concern (see linked thread). Mine stay around 200-215. I've personally seen 240 degree CHTs after doing pulls here in Florida, the PP really seems to struggle keeping temps down effectively if you drive it hard in the heat. It seems to be a common experience. I'm actually working on ducting my radiator and might add a thermostat since the car gets sluggish at these temps.
Getting the radiator to do its job properly is a pain. High IATs don't help it much, I've seen 150+ degrees in traffic, NA with the stock closed airbox. Some guys have actually blocked off parts of the front grill to force air through the radiator and reduce turbulence. I wouldn't suggest this if you're just driving to and from work in traffic, but it's maybe a final consideration. There's a lot of bad info on cooling upgrades so I would tread carefully and look at data backed/proven solutions if you choose to go down that road. The aftermarket has many poorly designed "cooling" products that actually do the opposite, and there are bad suggestions out there based on a misunderstanding of specific heat. Good luck.
----------------------
> Radiator ducting
> General Consensus on CHTs (gen 2 yote)
> Cooling issue thread
> QA With Members That Have Cut Their Hoods
> Track Cooling Megathread (dated but good info)
I wonder if I'm putting the cart before the horse by ducting first without adding a post-radiator vent, but I don't want to deal with not having a rain tray on a big opening during downpours. I'm not going to cut the hood until I have a plan or solution. Rather have it act as a big stupid wing on the front and deal with it for a while, and hopefully improve its effectiveness later with Racelouvers. The final step would be waterproofing + heat wrapping the stock headers to keep the engine bay cooler. I'm not worried about high EGTs through the exhaust since I don't have FI. I'll come back and share any noticeable improvements or issues when it's done.
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