At what temp do our trucks overheat?

I have a 00 v6 with 130k on it. This weekend I was on a road trip. After about 2 hrs of driving I hit a section of the state where the temp was 104 according to my overhead console temp gauge (makes sense for the area I was in). I have a scangauge 2 and the truck normally runs around 215 around town and short trips. Well I was going about 75 with the ac on and the temp started to climb. When it got to 224 I slowed down. That didn’t do anything so I turned off the ac and just went with panel and it dropped down to 218. So I alternated between ac and panel until i got to my destination. I let the truck cool off and checked the coolant level and it was fine. I changed the fluid about 8 months ago so it’s not old coolant. Is this normal temps for a hot day with the ac on? What temp do these trucks overheat?

 

Boiling point of 50/50 coolant/water and 15 psi pressure is about 265f. 224 is nothing to worry about.

 

Good to know,thanks. The dummy gauge in the cluster didnt move(i know it would only when it gets real hot) so i wasnt too worried about it but thought Id ask to know for sure

 

Blow out the radiator and condenser- the can get bugs/dirt in them and can diminish the cooling.
Central valley/ northern cal butterflies are good for that!

 

I took a quick look at the radiator and it looked OK. Ill try cleaning it to see if it helps.

 

Agreed. 224 is way safe.

I'll make efforts to cool her down or pull over if it touches 230. Prior to that...

 

What RPMs are you at when doing 75 mph? That seems to be normal according to what you told us (hot day, A/C and engine load) Any temp from 190-230 the needle will not move. At 232*F exactly the needle will move. 245* is midway, and 255* is right before the red arc. However, at 260*F your engine will display the water temp and oil temp annuctuation lamp and the ECU will go into overheating fail-safe and kill the injectors on two of your cylinders (provided the driver would be unaware the engine is at extreme temperature) thus becoming a giant air-pump to cool the block. If this has happened you'd probably want a tear-down overhaul before driving again.

 

Why?

 

Id say roughly 2100 rmp. I have 33s,a lift,loaded toolbox and heavy wheels all of which put more strain on it. Thats the highest its ever gotten so no worry of damage but thanks for the info on the gauge