I used a unknown running flathead in my latest build and have about 1200 uneventful miles on the car. This motor is tight , starts east idles perfect and runs fantastic. Hardly leaks a few drops of oil over a week or two sit. And doesn’t get much above 100 degrees when warm. Maybe the custom radiator? IDK but it’s just been perfect. Anyway reason for this post is because I’ve wanted to drive one of my Hot Rods from Indiana to Las Vegas for Viva. I asked a close friend to go and he already bought the VIP ticket for himself so now it’s On. The weakest link I’d imagine is the motor due to I don’t know anything about it while the rest of the car is new. Newly built and everything looked at or rebuilt. So I did a compression check and all cylinders are between 90-95. Now my big question is. This thing gonna make a 3600 mile round trip? A lot of this trip would be hours and hours of driving at 2800 RPM’s. Driveline is top load 3 speed 40’ Banjo. Im just afraid of breaking down and some hillbilly turn me into a lampshade. Any positive and negative inputs appreciated.
Seems to me it’s been running without issues for awhile, may as well stretch its legs. The 100 degrees though, no plans for thermostats?
From your description,,,,it sounds like the engine is perfect ! I wouldn’t worry about it,,,,,,although anything can go wrong,,,,,even on new cars . Just keep a good check on fluid levels,,,,,,and use AAA if an emergency comes up . And besides,,,,,you have a lot better chance of running into a thunder storm and having water running out of your doors ,,than any hillbilly you might run into ,,,LoL. Tommy
This is a question I get asked almost daily at work. Sadly, there is no definitive answer. If I could predict things like this, I would not be in the truck repair business.
Life is full of what if's it might brake down and you have to repair it then it might not and you will have a great time. live life and leave the worries at home. I have rode motorcycle's all over this country, and have great memories, some were caused by having a brake down. go have a great time and enjoy life while you have the health and time to do so.
You should do a few large trips and see how it does. Truthfully I would just jump in it and head for the show as it is a great looking car and wouldn't worry about that flat head at all
No cell phone, no radar detector, no roof, no fear. Just you and a friend, AAA, a VISA with a high limit and the open road calling. What could go wrong? I say go for it.
Would you have been so hesitant when you were 18, 19, 20 years old? If you were, by all means don't go. I can't remember the number of times I headed out somewhere with nothing more than gas money and a gas station road map because I wanted to see for myself what was out there. Ralph Waldo Emerson said it best, "life is a journey, not a destination". If the freeway frightens you, take every side road you can find. You'll see places and meet people you'd never find otherwise. Who knows, maybe you might be the one to inspire one of those people to do something they would never think of doing if they hadn't met you? Go for it, if you don't, it will be something you'll regret the rest of your life.
Get some pictures on the way. We will wait for ya. If you expect the worst then take a tow strap to get you out of traffic. It is your world.
Is there a roster of HAMBERS or FORDBARNERS that you could contact if you run into problems on your trip?
I'm no expert on flatheads, but are you sure that coolant temp is accurate? 100° sounds too cool even though the consensus seems to be that flatheads tend to overheat. Where's the temp sensor located? Getting the tenp up around 180° could get you better mileage as well as helping to keep your oil clean and sludge free. Running at interstate speeds all day might be a bit strenuous. If you have the time and the patience you might try spending more time on the "Blue Highways". See more stuff, meet more people. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blue_Highways Either way, take lots of pictures and report back here to share the trip with us!
Compression is what it is and usually only very slowly gets worse. A well-known weakness of Ford flatheads cruising for hours at 2800 RPM on a hot day is they can eat exhaust valves and/or crack exhaust seats. If the cooling system and ignition system is new and right, the engine will survive that light load until it won't. At a minimum prep, flush the engine, transmission, rear axle and brakes and use new best quality fluids. Repack the wheel bearings, get a front alignment and new tires, fuel filter, air filter, oil filter. jack vines
I would be looking to take the back roads and plan on lengthening the journey. 2800 is, as others have said, really quite up there for long periods of running- of you've no thermostats that'll create a noticeable temperature difference across the block and that gradient is what cast iron doesn't like. What speed are you doing at about 2200 rpm? That's long distance cruising revs.
Ok then I’m gonna go for it! Got to get interior and a good top on it and figure out why it’s running so cool. Southern route takes me thru west Texas and into Albuquerque. Think some of that elevation is around 4-5 thousand feet at the most. I have a buddy who is gonna meet me in Albuquerque for the final leg. So if the shit hits the fan maybe we have a fighting chance not to be turned into a lampshade. I’m gonna buy my ticket and register the car. Thanks for all the encouragement.
Pipe dream was to take Route 66 as much as possible. May just take my time and do that. As far as the temp goes. Everything is working properly. Maybe try the thermostat route see what happens. 165’s??
pack some tools, and you'll never use them. Carry some spares and you'll never need them, throw caution to the wind and you wont have any problems . leave your tools, disregard the spares and worry about the journey and sure enough the only thing that will go to plan is a rear end assault by a banjo playing hill billy .. Thats how it works
Yup, you'll improve your fuel economy if you can get the engine up to normal operating temperature also. If you've only got a small tank, you don't want too much range anxiety!
Make sure u have some kind of a “tow strap” where someone can at least help u if a breakdown occurs. Banjo rear ends and early ford trans are o.k. As long as you don’t pop the clutch and put the fragile parts into too much stress. Try to carry some pre-cut axle keys and some kind of “puller” if the repair is needed to the banjo rear end.Flatheads Forever!!!
Your compression is ok. 100 degrees is fine If you're not running with thermostats, don't worry about it. A lot of us run with no thermostats in our flatheads especially in hot climates. Don't sweat it. I have never ran a thermostat in any of my flatheads. In fact, unless it was cold outside, I would pull the thermostats out of all of my cars back in the day. (Fords and GM) Do as the others have said on all road trips...Carry tools, points, rotor, belts, tow strap, etc. and be sure to have AAA. It's pretty cheap.
Think about Squirrrel's Rambler go for it. You will meet a hell of a lot of great people in that part of the country.
I drove a 1961 Y block powered F100 that I purchased in Medford OR for $900 in about 2007. I drove it down to San Jose and loaded it with parts and headed east on the I80 until I reached the US50, they tell me it is known as the lonliest hwy in the USA. The guy in San Jose who sold me the parts begged me not to go that way and gave me a 5 gallon water can. After driving the F100 for a couple of hours from Medford, I quickly realised it used 1 quart of engine oil every 3 hours. So, I purchased box of quart oil bottles in San Jose and left. Made a great center console arm rest actually. Religously, I stopped every 3 hours and topped up the oil. The motto is slow and easy and do regular stops and checks. They were right it is pretty quite out those parts on US50. In some respects it was a better trip as there was no real heavy traffic to kinda push me along and plenty of nothing where it was easy to stop. I drove right across CA, NV and UT with out incident to the I70 and then on to Boulder CO. That darn truck at traffic lights could white (smoke) the interesction out if the light change took too long... Smoke was the rear main seal leaking onto the exhaust pipe. Kinda scary at the time, but now it has become great memory and a feature road trip in my life time. It is the unknown and the willingness to take a risk and have a go. Its nothing compared to what our early pioneers had to face, so go for it I say...
I have a quick top frame I need to put together and chop for it. And need to do the interior. I have been having so much fun driving it I put off the interior. But now I’m motivated. Thoughts on side curtains?
Good quality synthetic gear lube or grease is realistically a 100k service item on a road car. I would not waste my time greasing bearings or flushing a transmission unless there's a specific reason to think that needs doing (e.g. never been done since you owned the car). Do an oil change, check pad wear and fluid levels and get driving.
Great car; if it was mine ,I'd have to take a trip somewhere. My wife and I rode all over the 48 states. We only rode the super slab to get around major cities; the rest was on state 2 lane roads. If you have a navigator, atlas and some replacement electrical parts you should be good. Have a safe trip.
100 degrees isn't too cold for water temp? Your cooling system is definitely in good shape! I'm curious how you know its only 100, and if that's the real case, I would think you'd like to see that higher with some thermostats for engine health and performance.
Extra parts. There used to be a time when an extra pump is required. But if you’re running the new bearing pumps they should be good. Take some ignition parts with you. Preferably condenser, points, generator. I’ve never seen a flathead stay at 100 degrees when the outside temp is above 80 when running at highway speeds. That doesn’t compute. Double and triple check your gauges. Good luck and have fun. Here’s a used flathead that made it from Ohio to Cali. https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum...2-roadster-to-la-roadster-show-part-1.377711/
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