Low-Blow
Senior Member
I bought my 36 Tudor about a year ago. The car is mostly original, including the 21 stud flathead with about 47,000 miles. I brought the car home and began to drive it.
First trip was about 5 miles to the local country store. I came out of the store to find the temp gauge pegged and coolant all over the ground. I trailered the car home and realized that the radiator had a leak. So, I pulled the radiator out and sent it out to be repaired. To my knowledge, they rodded out the radiator when they made the repair. I put the radiator back in the car and filled it with 50/50 mix.
Second trip was a little further (maybe 15 miles). Temp gauge nearly pegged, as coolant was coming out of the top of the radiator around the cap. I noticed that the seal on the cap was almost completely deteriorated. I ordered another radiator cap. I added water to the radiator and was ready for the next trip.
The next trip was about 30 miles round trip. The temp gauge nearly pegged, and coolant puked out the radiator. I have read that the fluid will seek its own level, so I did not worry too much about it. After the drive, I did trap the upper radiator hose and could feel what appeared to be the coolant boiling inside. I did want to see how much fluid loss I had, so I began to add water before the next trip. It took almost 2 gallons.
After getting some advice from a fellow barn member, I added some washing detergent to the radiator and drove it for about 20 minutes. I parked the car, drained the radiator, and flushed it until I got clean water coming out. I then decided to just fill the radiator with tap water tower if it was going to overheat again. I did not want to keep spending money on 50/50 until I can get the overheating issue under control. I also decided to change the oil, as I am unsure when the last time it was changed. The oil was extremely thick (almost sludge like) and jet black. I completely drained the pan, and poured a little diesel fuel in to clean out what residue may have been left in the bottom of the pan. I then drained the diesel, and even ran some additional oil through the pan to make sure I got all of the diesel out. I went back with Valvoline 20W-50 with zinc additive.
I drove the car yeasterday for a total of a 100 miles. The temp gauge never pegged, but did run towards the top of the normal range. Yesterday was fairly cool, as well, with the air temperature only being in the high 70s. I did notice some coolant on the ground each time after I drove it. A buddy of mine down the street wanted to check the compression on the engine. We pull all the spark plugs and tested each cylinder. The pressure readings were almost identical across the board; at about 97 psi. I was told that this is good.
This morning I decided to see how much fluid was lost during the course of yesterday’s driving. I added almost a gallon and a half of water to bring it up to where I had it previously. So, I think my next step is to pull the water pumps and have them sent to Skip Haney to be rebuilt. There are no thermostats currently on the engine.
Literally, as I am typing this, the guy that I bought the car from just sent me a text. He said that he found the battery box cover, And wants to send it to me. During the course of texting him, I asked him if he had done anything to the water pumps. He told me that he is moving, and is going through some old stuff. He actually found the box with one of the original water pumps, along with a new one. It seems that he put one new water pump on, but did not replace the other one. He is going to send me both of them.
I hope I am going about this the right way. I want to be able to drive and enjoy the car, without damaging the block.
First trip was about 5 miles to the local country store. I came out of the store to find the temp gauge pegged and coolant all over the ground. I trailered the car home and realized that the radiator had a leak. So, I pulled the radiator out and sent it out to be repaired. To my knowledge, they rodded out the radiator when they made the repair. I put the radiator back in the car and filled it with 50/50 mix.
Second trip was a little further (maybe 15 miles). Temp gauge nearly pegged, as coolant was coming out of the top of the radiator around the cap. I noticed that the seal on the cap was almost completely deteriorated. I ordered another radiator cap. I added water to the radiator and was ready for the next trip.
The next trip was about 30 miles round trip. The temp gauge nearly pegged, and coolant puked out the radiator. I have read that the fluid will seek its own level, so I did not worry too much about it. After the drive, I did trap the upper radiator hose and could feel what appeared to be the coolant boiling inside. I did want to see how much fluid loss I had, so I began to add water before the next trip. It took almost 2 gallons.
After getting some advice from a fellow barn member, I added some washing detergent to the radiator and drove it for about 20 minutes. I parked the car, drained the radiator, and flushed it until I got clean water coming out. I then decided to just fill the radiator with tap water tower if it was going to overheat again. I did not want to keep spending money on 50/50 until I can get the overheating issue under control. I also decided to change the oil, as I am unsure when the last time it was changed. The oil was extremely thick (almost sludge like) and jet black. I completely drained the pan, and poured a little diesel fuel in to clean out what residue may have been left in the bottom of the pan. I then drained the diesel, and even ran some additional oil through the pan to make sure I got all of the diesel out. I went back with Valvoline 20W-50 with zinc additive.
I drove the car yeasterday for a total of a 100 miles. The temp gauge never pegged, but did run towards the top of the normal range. Yesterday was fairly cool, as well, with the air temperature only being in the high 70s. I did notice some coolant on the ground each time after I drove it. A buddy of mine down the street wanted to check the compression on the engine. We pull all the spark plugs and tested each cylinder. The pressure readings were almost identical across the board; at about 97 psi. I was told that this is good.
This morning I decided to see how much fluid was lost during the course of yesterday’s driving. I added almost a gallon and a half of water to bring it up to where I had it previously. So, I think my next step is to pull the water pumps and have them sent to Skip Haney to be rebuilt. There are no thermostats currently on the engine.
Literally, as I am typing this, the guy that I bought the car from just sent me a text. He said that he found the battery box cover, And wants to send it to me. During the course of texting him, I asked him if he had done anything to the water pumps. He told me that he is moving, and is going through some old stuff. He actually found the box with one of the original water pumps, along with a new one. It seems that he put one new water pump on, but did not replace the other one. He is going to send me both of them.
I hope I am going about this the right way. I want to be able to drive and enjoy the car, without damaging the block.
