Sounds like you are making good progress. I assume that you rotated the tire that was out of round to the back. Before you go through the trouble of pulling the radiator I would do a radiator check with the IR gun to see if there are any blockages indicated by cold spots. From what you describe it sounds like a normal 454 operation. If you provide some more detail as to what is happening someone might provide better incite. After a hill climb does it come back to normal range? Does it over heat at idle? Sounds like your fan clutch works the way it should. If you pull the radiator and replace it with the same OEM you may still have the same results. If you do pull it I would go with larger cores and or more rows. Check your thermostat first in boiling water does it open up enough? Anything blocking you radiator air flow (my overflow tank was). Do you have any air dams forcing the air coming through the grill into the radiator and not around it or under it?
