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I have used Arctic silver. Works fine. Can't monitor temps like my computer but it works fine there also.
i've been using artic silver for 14ish years on ICMs. I seem to recall the guys on thirdgen.org using it
Thinking back when I converted my 93 Camaro back to a 93 GM ICM (undoing more PO f00k3ry) it came with a compound.
Ambient temperature is less important than underhood temp--although higher ambient can and generally does lead to higher under-hood temp.I have no doubt that the circuitry driving the coil primary gets plenty hot...even before the
ambient heat is considered. (Especially in a TX summer day engine bay with the AC on while pulling a trailer.)
GMT400 vehicles were an "early 1988" product, they made a heap of them in '87. My service manual set has a copyright date of 1986.By the way, thermal compound has a useful working lifespan and should be renewed periodically.
(Especially if whatever is between the ICM and it's mount was troweled on back when Clinton was
president.)
Ambient temperature is less important than underhood temp--although higher ambient can and generally does lead to higher under-hood temp.
I can tell you my IATs will hit 180F on a 115F day and that is with the air intake near just behind the hood. The old 350 got hot enough it was cooking LS D585 coil packs, which is part of the reason the 383 has a distributor again. When I swap it to the 58x system, my coils will be on the frame rails in front of the engine, using LT1 style plug wire routing.Yeah -- while writing that I was wondering what kind of heat stacks up in @L31MaxExpress's doghouse when
he's putting a proper fully-loaded flogging on?
It must have been like the heat wave whenever we opened the hood on that old '75 Chevy Monza that
we swapped in a sharp 355ci engine into. You would open the hood and the heat wave would just punch you in the face.
I remember being impressed that the old large-cap HEI ignition never faltered in the back of that oven of an engine bay. :0)
That same van would run 3/4 up the temp gauge when it was less than a year old. Dad complained multiple times to the GM dealer it was bought from and it had an 11 bladed fan and larger fan clutch on it when it was next picked up.I was not happy or comfortable with my 86 K3500 always running over 200°F , this was brand new. And opening the hood was sticking your head in a 400 ° oven blast wave.
So after about 90 days of open and jump back , it was nope no more. Drained everything, axles, trans, transfer case, oil, filter, fuel filters, radiator. Installed a 180 ° thermostat. What difference. Open the hood no longer get a 2nd degree flash burn. Way cooler. Last year for carburetor and leaded fuel. So no issue with electronics and water temp.