'52 Ford Customline w/ v8 flathead

Blu Dice

Blu Dice

Senior Member
Got this car last Nov - only has 35,000 miles on it and it looks it too. Runs great, good oil pressure, doesn't vapor lock, runs cool ---- until now. It's building pressure and pushing coolant out into the overflow tank I installed. Has new cap, no leaks, both top hoses are hot, I can see coolant flowing in the radiator, and it has thermostats that I'm pretty sure are working. Does not get hot out on open road or in town traffic, but does start to warm up over normal if parked and left running. Cools back down once you start driving again. Pressure pushes coolant into the overflow tank and once parked and turned off vacuum returns it into the radiator.
So where do I start first - pull heads and look for bad gaskets or cracked heads, water pumps, or pull radiator?
 
Was the overflow tank a recent install? And, did you add more coolant right after that? Seems like the system is doing what it's supposed to do and you're not over heating in the summer weather.

I think pulling the heads, water pumps, and radiator might be a little pre-mature, given what you're likely to find.

Dick.
 
How high are you filling the radiator? It should be slightly over the core, not near the very top.

Coolant needs room to expand when hot.
 
I would flush out the radiator. I had a similar, but more dramatic, cooling situation on a 53 sedan. The car had sat for a long time and I got in running well. It cooled well at first after the tune up. After a couple hours it started running hot. Turns out that when I had the engine sped up for the first time in years it pumped all the crud from the block into the top of the radiator and plugged things up. I got to take the radiator out again and back flush it with a garden hose. I also back flushed the engine at the same time. The car again ran cool.

Long story short, I'd pull the radiator since it is pretty easy and flush the radiator and engine.
 
Yesterday drove on open road 55-60 mph for 30 miles about - coolant went into overflow tank - filled it and blew it out top overflow tube. Start of trip coolant was about a inch over the core - after coolant is below the core and it looked a little foamy. Seem like the car is fine driving in our small town, but does this when I get it out on the highway.
 
If my 53 ran that cool I would be happy sounds normal to me, is ambient temp higher now than you first bought it, that would cause the problem
 
Sounds normal to me. Maybe I don't understand the problem. Put an S10 overflow tank on mine so I could always see the level in it. I don't run any pressure on my radiator. Removed the lower seal on the cap but kept the upper one for the filler neck. When it is cool it pulls the coolant out of the tank. When it heats up it pushes the extra coolant back into the tank. The radiator stays full at all times. Never offers to overheat even on hard pulls with a heavy load. (F1). I thought this is the way it is supposed to work.
 
No body on Ford Barn believes me, but your problem is probably water pumps. An old flathead engine builder told me that worn pump seals will allow the pumps to suck in air around the shaft when the pump is operating. Even though the system is operating under about 4 psi., the shaft side of the pump is under vacuum. Had the same problem on my 8ba. Spent the summer trying to figure out what the problem was. On the advise of the above mentioned, I rebuilt the pumps. Problem solved. Truth or Fiction ?? That's my story and I am sticking to it!!! If any Barners want to discuss the subject further, my e mail is springgrange@personainternet.com
 
This is a stock '52 with 7# cap. The results from driving it yesterday and a cooled off engine and radiator - the coolant is well below the core - can't see how far below it is. Pressure blew out an alarming amount of coolant. Could a cracked head or gasket cause this? Plugged up radiator? What should I try first?
 
Process of elimation is the next thing, I have been fighting overheating problem all summer .Answer some questions, first thing does the water bubble? Next is there oil or scum in the radiator? Check thermostats to see if the are woking. Check radiator t see if it is plugged? Thats a start.
 
Drained coolant - nice and green - drained out very well from radiator - no water in oil - pulled plugs all have carbon - top hoses ok not collapse - will remove bottom hoses tomorrow. Has 160 thermostats - what does majority run in your car?
 
If one of the thermostats was stuck close would it cause the problem I'm having. Reason - when I removed the top hoses from the radiator there was coolant standing in the hose above the thermostat on the driver side but none on the passenger side - this is after I drained the radiator of course. I thought this was odd.
 
takes me back many years to when i was 17 with my 52 ford conv kept filling my radiator to top and wondered why it kept running out till somebody wised me up , and i do rem the temp gauge going up when parked idling...
 
Well I flushed the block and radiator the best I could - going to throw on new 180 thermostats, upper and lower hoses - fill it with water and see what I got.
 
I replaced all the hoses and replaced the thermostats with 180s - filled with water and road tested. Pulled cap while hot & running after a strong run and coolant was about a inch above the cores. This morning checked the level after a night of cooling off - level is barely below the cores - so I added enough water (a cup) to make it level to the cores and will see what happens tonite after going to the Friday nite cruise in. I'll also put the over flow tank back on and hook it up it see if it catches anything.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top