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Technical Overheating head scratcher

Discussion in 'Traditional Hot Rods' started by Nebraska Steven, Dec 5, 2018.

  1. 6sally6
    Joined: Feb 16, 2014
    Posts: 2,459

    6sally6
    Member

    Didn't read ALL the replies but..... n some SBF Mustangs the lower radiator hose will squeeze shut at highway speeds causing an over heating problem. Install a spring in the lower hose(same size as the inside diameter of the rubber hose) solves the problem, usually. Might work for you. Sometimes its the small things that "get-us"!
    6sally6
     
  2. morac41
    Joined: Jul 23, 2011
    Posts: 531

    morac41
    Member

    I havent read all the replys but it sounds like an ignition problem with the dist not advancing..this will run retarded and will heat the engine up very quickly..the dist advance meck could be gummed up..seen this problem often
     
    dan griffin likes this.
  3. Rickybop
    Joined: May 23, 2008
    Posts: 9,605

    Rickybop
    ALLIANCE MEMBER

    Figure it out yet, Steven?
    It's always the figurin' out that takes so #&*()(^& long sometimes.
    Once ya figure out what the problem is, ya just fix it...lol.
     
  4. Got that right! Take a doctor for example, he can talk to the sick person and he can tell what hurts and what don't. A mechanic has to figure it out by himself, Why do the doctors get paid so much more?
     
  5. of course just jokin'
     
  6. G-son
    Joined: Dec 19, 2012
    Posts: 1,276

    G-son
    Member
    from Sweden

    Machines talk too, it's just a language harder to understand. ;) And besides, the patient can only tell about the symptoms anyway, just like the machine does, someone still needs to understand what those symptoms mean.
     
    VANDENPLAS likes this.
  7. Truck64
    Joined: Oct 18, 2015
    Posts: 5,325

    Truck64
    Member
    from Ioway

    Mechanics don't replace pistons, for example, while engine is idling, lol
     
    VANDENPLAS and 46international like this.
  8. X-cpe
    Joined: Mar 9, 2018
    Posts: 1,958

    X-cpe

    Because they bury their mistakes.
     
  9. Rickybop
    Joined: May 23, 2008
    Posts: 9,605

    Rickybop
    ALLIANCE MEMBER

    Yeah...and some smart-ass had the bright idea that I should drive my old car while I work on it. Gave it a try. Proved to be quite dangerous.
     
  10. 1946caddy
    Joined: Dec 18, 2013
    Posts: 2,059

    1946caddy
    Member
    from washington

    Something to do with the rubber glove thing.
     
    46international likes this.
  11. Truck64
    Joined: Oct 18, 2015
    Posts: 5,325

    Truck64
    Member
    from Ioway

    What I've noticed in general these days, everybody wants to wear the surgical scrubs and a stethoscope and drive a ferrari, or sport a nomex flight suit, big watch and cool shades, you get the idea, but what they really don't want to do is first go through all the stuff that it takes to get there. I don't get it, they apparently think people are just interchangeable meat sticks or something, and no special effort or aptitude is required.
     
    Ralphies54 likes this.
  12. dan griffin
    Joined: Dec 25, 2009
    Posts: 505

    dan griffin
    Member

    If the radiator is that old the fins may not be tight against the tubes=no heat transfer.
     
  13. Model A Vette
    Joined: Mar 8, 2002
    Posts: 1,075

    Model A Vette
    Member

    You mentioned that you have a Mopar performanc distributor. Does it have a vacuum advance? Have you checked that the vacuum can is working? Easy to do by putting a hose on the can and sucking on it with the engine stopped and the distributor cap off.
    I worked on a '68 Firebird back in the '70s. It had a temp control that blocked vacuum advance for emissions at some temps. It had the same symptoms as you have. I bypassed the control and it never overheated again.
    Is your distributor vacuum on manifold vacuum?
     
  14. Truck64
    Joined: Oct 18, 2015
    Posts: 5,325

    Truck64
    Member
    from Ioway

    Fulltime manifold vacuum runs cooler at idle, but emissions (NOX) spike. It would revert to fulltime manifold in the event of engine overheating. I think I have that right. Good point about ignition advance, it will run hot with retarded timing.
     
    dan griffin likes this.
  15. Rickybop
    Joined: May 23, 2008
    Posts: 9,605

    Rickybop
    ALLIANCE MEMBER

    La la la la la la la la...

     
  16. verde742
    Joined: Aug 11, 2010
    Posts: 6,267

    verde742
    Member

    don't know much about Hemi's
    BUT could one or both head gaskets be installed upside down?

    blocking a coolant hole?
     
  17. deathrowdave
    Joined: May 27, 2014
    Posts: 3,518

    deathrowdave
    ALLIANCE MEMBER
    from NKy

    I helped a buddy chase this issue on 351C for a year or so . If you google 351C will see a brass insert in the block under the TStat . He had the block cleaned and the brass restrictor was lost . This is to limit the amount the TStat opens and thus causing the coolant to bypass the radiator . I know nothing of how the coolant flow is on your engine , but I feel it’s something simple . I have a friend runnin a Hemi in a 34 coupe . You can not make it run hot . Another thing to look into that has been susgested is the vacuum advance on the dist . Early Fords used this advance heavily to advance timing , if yours is busted you are drivin a cool lookin boiler .
     
  18. I have a Mopar performance electronic ignition, so it does have a vacuum advance, but that is one thing I haven't verified was actually working. Definitely worth checking!
     
    Moriarity likes this.
  19. Yes...when I had the shop put a bigger outlet connection on the flow tested before and after. It supposedly increased the flow by 20%, but no idea how it compares to a stock Hemi radiator. I also have a 56 desoto in the garage with a 330 hemi and it is a much larger radiator.
     
  20. They are now $12 at the local hardware store, so yes I will soon be playing with one!
     
    Boneyard51 and 46international like this.
  21. Thank you for confirming, I've had several people that hemis just don't run hot. So I think when I find it it will be something simple. Or something stupid I did.
     
  22. thorpe31
    Joined: May 4, 2011
    Posts: 164

    thorpe31
    Member
    from nor-cal

    As much as I agree and those doctors do have a shingle that says “General Practice”. They work on us while we’re running.
     
  23. expavr
    Joined: Jul 28, 2006
    Posts: 78

    expavr

    For a frame of reference I’m running a supercharged 392 Hemi in my 33 Chrysler coupe using the OEM radiator tanks and a 2 tube radiator core the same size as the OEM core’s dimensions. Cooling is provided by a Flexalite Black Magic 3300 CFM electric puller fan with shroud and a 55 GPM Meziere 300 electric water pump mounted on the Hotheads Chev Big Block water pump housing. The coolant is a 50-50 water/antifreeze mix. The thermostat is a 190* Chevrolet part. At 65-70 MPH the temp gauge reads 180-190*. I agree with what others in this thread have said that the pusher fan on the front of the radiator presents a physical restriction to airflow thru the radiator and depending on the blade design may actually slow or disrupt the airflow at higher vehicle speeds. Do you have enough room between the water pump and the radiator to mount a puller fan? I would consider making that change with as high a CFM unit that will fit in the space. If you decide to make that change I would also recommend that in addition to the thermostatic control offered by the fan manufacturer you wire in an on/off override switch.
    Les Williams
     
    firstinsteele likes this.
  24. sdluck
    Joined: Sep 19, 2006
    Posts: 3,185

    sdluck
    Member

    Sidewinder electric fans have offset motors
     
  25. Boneyard51
    Joined: Dec 10, 2017
    Posts: 6,440

    Boneyard51
    Member

    That will be the best $12 you ever spent. Those guns can be used to help diagnose many different problems in many different areas, not just automotive.



    Bones
     
  26. Rramjet1
    Joined: Mar 13, 2018
    Posts: 226

    Rramjet1

    Been running a Sidewinder in our 50 Chevy Convertible with a ZZ3 motor for at least 5 years and it works great. Just not enough clearance between short water pump and radiator to get a large CFM fan in.
     

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  27. rockable
    Joined: Dec 21, 2009
    Posts: 4,429

    rockable
    ALLIANCE MEMBER

    I chased my tail on my 41 Plymouth and found that I had a shroud that was restricting flow. Now, in have a puller fan mounted on the radiator and nothing else. It stays cool at speed and at idle. The guy at Champion told me that when he encounters a problem like yours and mine, 95% of the time it's airflow.
     
    Jibs likes this.
  28. Been delayed too long, but finally felt like another round of troubleshooting (aka taking another butt kicking). After procuring a digital temp gun, I got the car nice and warm. The radiator was dropping the temp by about 30 degrees. This is at idle in the garage. When you hold the rpm up over 200, the temp would increase on both ends, but was still dropping around 30 degrees. This made me think coolant flow at first, so I redid my lower radiator hose configuration one last time to completely eliminate that possibility as I had a somewhat questionable fabricated 90 degree bend going into the pump. Now questions about the lower radiator hose flow path anymore, but this didn't help.

    Next, my dad had talked to a guy with a 392 in a 40 ford that claimed to have had the same problem and said it was solved by adding water capacity. He showed him where he had an auxiliary tank in line wit the lower radiator hose. I didn't suspect this would help, but dad was convinced enough. So I decided to try it as an experiment and if nothing else , prove a point. So lacking anything better to make a small pressure vessel out of, I dug an old muffler from the grain truck out of the scrap heap. Spent a day cutting it open, bead blasting the rust, shorting and welding up the old pin holes. It held about a gallon, and I put it in line with the upper radiator hose and gave it a test run. At first this seemed to help...but much as expected it eventually began to climb in temperature. It just took about 25 miles this time instead of 15.

    Next test was removing the pusher fan as suggested by people here. This ended up not being the quick 15 minute job I thought it would be, as I had to pull the radiator out. But got it off and went for a spin without the fan. Initial results are promising! I drove about 25 miles and never went above 195. Then when I turned down the gravel road to get home I like to drive slower and it heated up fairly quick to 220...but I don't have a fan at this point, so hopefully that is the issue. So a much larger puller fan is on order and should be here soon. I probably need a few more miles and a warmer day than my last test drive to confirm if that is the fix. It will be over 100 this weekend...so if it works then, i will know for sure! More to come soon...
     
  29. Sandgroper
    Joined: Jan 20, 2019
    Posts: 307

    Sandgroper
    Member

    I think you are on the money now. Mine ran at 220 at highway speeds when I bought it, puller fan on radiator and cooled off 190 at idle. Was driving me nuts until I realised PO had reversed wires on fan. Simple fix, doh.
     
  30. OLDSMAN
    Joined: Jul 20, 2006
    Posts: 2,422

    OLDSMAN
    BANNED

    The water pump helped but still wasn’t right, I installed a new triple pass radiator no help there. I’m going to put the fan further into the shroud and install a heavy duty fan and see if that helps
     

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