the idiot lights they put in these things without gauges came on around 243F. so 225F is not bad for a fresh motor. but, i would run a hose from the water pump housing to the nipple on the pass. cylinder head. coolant is pulled out of the heater core by the pump and thus out of the back of the engine as well. with them plugged off it's going to take longer to circulate all that hot coolant through the radiator...my .02 cents.
