Ok, i cant get my 58 custom 300 to quit running hot. Heres what i know. The 223 has less than 40k miles. The cyl head was milled and had hardened seats installed. Compression was raised from 7.6:1 to 8.5:1 (not sure how much was milled, the shop that did the work said thats what my CR now was). I had a 15lb rad cap on it, book calls for 12lb so i changed it. Then went to a 7lb. At 55 mph its fine, but the faster i go the hotter it runs. New water pump, radiator was boiled and tested good. Has stock 4 blade fan, and no shroud. I know i need to make a shroud. Running straight water and no thermostat...would that cause a problem? Im pretty much out of ideas. Any help is appreciated.
Run a thermostat, it sounds counterintuative but they do help. My Girlfriend has a 223 in her '54 Customline and it has the same problem as yours. Anything over 60 MPH and she starts to overheat and things only get worse on surface streets. I'd probably go back to the 12lb cap too. One of the biggest things I did to her car that really helped a lot was adding an expansion tank to the cooling system. Not just a puke can a real expansion tank. That helped a bunch. Her highway temps are under control now and it will cruise comfortably at 65mph. Now the only problem is around town but I'm working on installing an electric cooling fan to take care of that. Good luck, hope you get it sorted out!
I will try that. I drive this car 65 miles a day 6 days a week, whats wierd is the air temp amd humidity doesnt matter. Its 60 degrees at 3am when i leave work and its the same story. Will getxa thermostat and antifreeze tomorrow. Thanks for the tips
You bet! Nicki's car does do better when the outside temps are lower but just a little bit. May want to take a look a the your timing too. There isn't a lot of adjustment at the distributor on the 223 but they seem to be really touchy about to much or to little advance as well.
I was wondering about that. I cant set my timing to factory dpecs. Since the compression has been raised, if i set it where the books say, it wont start...its to retarded. So its set by ear. Starts easy, doesnt run backwards, but does detonate over 60 mph and right before i shift gears.
Yep, I'd take a look at the timing then, sounds like that may be where most of your problem is. Do you know if your vacuum advance is working?
Your advance still may not be working right though. Need to check and see if you advance plate is moving in the distributor when you apply vacuum to it. Sounds like the diaphragm isn't ruptured though so it may be ok.
Found out today the head was milled .050". How do i figure out the timing. Since i cant set everything to stock specs (its hard to start and runns backwards). I ordered a thermostat, royal purple additive, antifreeze, amd a new gauge today. Any more ideas since i will be workin on it all day tomorrow? Thanks guys
Oh, snd outside air temp DOES affect it. Had a brainfart lastnight when posting. On a 60 degree night i can tun 75 mph with no probs. On an 85 degree day...55 tops
How do your plugs look are you running lean at all? Also check for vacuum leaks on the line to your distributor to ensure no air leaks. Problem that happens with no thermostat is you will actually have to much flow with not enough time to allow the water to cool in the radiator. The thermostat acts like a restricted orifice to slow the flow to allow cooling. Let us know how this works out.
I don't think raising the compression is going to effect the timing like that, it sounds like there is a tooth off on the dizzy, you need to check tdc and #1 plug wire against the timing mark if its way off then your most likely a tooth off. Kinda odd that these motors run this way now, I'm sure they didn't when new, did by chance is this one been bored, Fords have a habit of over heating when the walls get too thin,I've had them with a slight crack and push water out of the rad.
I agree with CGkidd. You're overheating because you aren't running antifreeze, a thermostat, or a fan shroud. Antifreeze has a higher boiling point, so it doesn't boil over as easily. The thermostat regulates the flow of coolant through the radiator to give it time to disperse the heat, and the fan shroud concentrates the fan's ability to pull air through the radiator. The fan shroud is most effective at low speeds, like around town, so at highway speeds, or if you're running a/c. It isn't the issue. The antifreeze and thermostat are the real issue. On the highway, without a t-stat, the water is whizzing around unrestricted so it keeps getting hotter and hotter. The coolant isn't in the radiator long enough to cool down. You gotta run a t-stat to slow it down. Also, be careful with a radiator cap higher that recommended. The reason they call for a lower pressure is to keep from popping a leak in the radiator. The old style rads will blow a seam out if you over do it.
I never saw an expansion/surge tank on that era Ford with the 6-banger. If the top tank of the radiator is taller than the cylinder head height, there would be little advantage. If a newer/shorter cross flow radiator is in the car, then an expansion tank is a necessity. Bob
Ok, installed thermostat (180) added antifreeze and royal purple ice.. And a numerical gauge. Im running 200 degrees. The car never had a shroud. Im going to try to make one next week. Also gonna go thru dizzy next week. Oh, i also put the 12lb rad cap back on that the manuals call for. Will it hurt/help to go back to the 7 lb cap i had? Both are brand new caps. Thanks again for the advice everybody
For some reason a ranchero calls for a 7 lb cap and the custom 300 calls for a 12 lb cap. Same engine, same radiator
I am having the same problem, I have a 54 Customline, 223, and it is overheating and I can't figure out why, I don't know if it would be the Thermostat or radiator! Is this a common problem for all 223s or what, I hear this so much!?
No, 200 degrees isnt bad...thats what im at after trying what everybody has said to do. It was 235. Doesnt matter anyways, i blew the radiator (yes, a new radiator) i ordered the parts to freshen my 302/aod combo today, got a new v8 radiator for it ive had a while now. Tryin my best to get it all up n goin before the pileup. Thanks for all the help guys, i learned ALOT from you all. Thats why i love HAMB. i will be documenting the swap and all the cleanup/painting for everyone. Thanks again
I hear ya on the 302 AOD swap. Nicki and I are looking into doing the swap on her car in the future. I took some time this week and put an electric fan in her car and it seems to have helped a bunch. She was doing ok on the freeway after getting the radiator cleaned out but still having issues around town. There was a lot of work involved in getting the electric fan on there as there is no room between the radiator and water pump or between the radiator and the latch support bar. I had to move the radiator closer to the motor and trim and brace the latch support bar to squeeze the fan in front of the radiator set up as a pusher. This was not really the way I wanted to do it but there was just no way to get the fan in between the radiator and the water pump. So far temps seem ok but we won't really know anything until our first long road trip. I feel a lot better about it though as today it was around 100 degrees and the water temp was a stable 190 degrees. The fan never shut off but with such a high ambient temp I kind of expected that. I think these little motors are just really hot blooded for some reason but at least now I feel like I don't have to worry about Nicki overheating and getting stuck somewhere!
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