I just bought the car at an auction, its a 87 caprice with a 305. I drove it down the road a lil ways maybe 5 miles and the temp gauge was around 220-230, i thought it was overheating so i have replaced the waterpump and thermostat.I havent drove it since to see if it goes to the same temp, but was that normal? I wasnt running the a/c only the heat and it was on low, but if someone could tell me the reg running temp of this car i would really appreciate it.

 

220-230 that is a bit high...
My 305 Silverado runs about 150-180 on average. My engine hit 230ish once because I had two bottles of Barrs running through my system, too much can plug radiator vanes. Its entirly possible that you have a small coolant leak and they dropped in stopleak to avoid the repair. Try thoroughly flushing your system with a flush kit and look for leaks.

EDIT:
Dont overlook replaceing your radiator cap! lol easy to forget

 

Did you check to see if your radiator was clear? I had issues with overheating, I had found that there was a bunch of crap clogging up my radiator it wasn’t getting any airflow, so I shot her clean with a pressure washer, no problems now

Also is your fan cowling still there? If it isn’t you may not be getting as much airflow as you need

let us know how you make out

mike