Yeah...it's been a while since I posted. I have been elbow deep in Beetle stuff lately and have not given the F-1 the love it needed. Amazingly enough, as bad as last season ended, this season started off great. The old Effie only needed a thurough carb cleaning. Anyways...this year my goal is to focus on one issue and eliminate it rather than attacking 15 issues at once. I tend to lose focus quick.

I know I have talked about this on here before, but I wanted to start a new thread on it to focus on my cooling issues. I am running a mild 289 and a stock radiator, no hood. The engine runs good and smooth. Last year I was showing signs of an electrical draw so I tightened down my grounds after shutting the truck down last year. Those issues appear to be gone this year so far (so I hope I solved that riddle). I have given the engine a light tune up this spring...mainly to read my plugs. They are all a beautiful tan color meaning I am not running as lean as I previously thought. There is also no differences when compared to different cyl numbers meaning no ignition system failures or abnormalities, no stuck valves...etc. I have an electric puller fan that runs off of a thermostatic switch. I have the temp dialed down to 160...so it pretty much always runs. Yeah, I know, it can burn the motor in the fan. It's a cheap replacement. I would rather burn the fan motor than run the risk of overheating. I also installed a stock temp thermostat.

My problem is at idle the temp creeps up. It does not stop rising at any point. It's not a fast increase, but last year my season was cut short because a near overheat while letting the truck idle for 5-10 minutes in the parking lot. I know there can be discrepancies with mechanical gauges, but it was showing physical symptoms of overheating like pissing coolant out of the overflow tube, the upper radiator hose was boiling...

I know I have radiator issues. There are at least 6 plugged veins in one area. They had rotted away so we crimped and sealed with JB Weld. I did try to flush it a little, but I was gentle with it so as not to cause any other problems. I have no leaks at this time, nor have I since sealing the offending veins. I still feel the issue lies in the radiator. If I recall, some folks on here mentioned a Dodge radiator that fits right in, I was kind of thinking something slightly different depending on what other ideas I get from here. I recall in the previous thread I thought it was an issue with the cap and how much pressure it held which I still feel to be a part of my problem...just a smaller part than I had thought.

So...to the point. I am looking for alternative radiator solutions. I am going to mount the radiator in front of the stock mounts to gain a little more room between the engine and radiator...perhaps more electric fan(s) or a flex fan/stock fan with shroud. I cannot afford the aluminum radiator that is made to fit these trucks...I need to keep the whole repair around $200. Someone before mentioned a Dodge radiator...I looked and they are all very wide. Maybe a little more information on those, or any alternate solutions? My friend with a '49 International KB recently got an aluminum radiator that looks awful similar. I am going to test fit it to see how well it fits...that may be the solution.

 

I have a 289 in my '52 F-1 also. I bought a stock replacement radiator that came with the donor car. In my case, it was a 1968 Fairlane. I added a Fexilite electric fan with shroud( comes as one unit). I came with the thermostat switch, but I wired it with a manuel switch. I got it from Summit Racing. Seems to keep her cool.

 

One thing that would help a whole lot would be to put the hood back on, along with any rubber seals. With the hood off and the radiator not sealed around it, most of the air is bypassing the radiator. Air will take the path of least resistance and a radiator has a lot of resistance compared to free air around it. Any parts store with a radiator supplier catalog ought to be able to look up sizes to see what might fit. I know a Miata has a small but efficient radiator that's inexpensive since it uses plastic tanks. Might look at other imports in the U pull yards as well.

 

AX, I don't really see where the hood makes a huge difference. I can see it making a difference when driving, but nothing huge. The truck temp sits at 190 when moving...my issues are at extremely low speeds (<5mph), or idle. I am also aware of how to look for a radiator, and I am also aware Speedway sells cheap aluminum radiators.

I was fishing for people that have had this issue, and fixed it...and what they did to fix it. The radiator may only be 3% of my problem...it may be 100%...I'm not quite sure yet. Maybe I have to piece it together and find each part of the solution as I go...thus making threads on forums pretty pointless in my opinion.

 

Usually temperature increases at idle or at low speed is a result of not enough air movement. I'm sure having the hood off is contributing some toward this too, but a fan too small or not enough blades, a fan too far away from the radiator, lack of a shroud, and open spaces on the sides, top, and bottom of the radiator where air can go around may also contribute. If you are not running a thermostat, the temperature may also creep up because the water isn't staying the radiator long enough to cool properly.

The Dodge radiator you want is for a mid-70s Dodge D-100 pickup. It is not a bolt-in but will fit with a little fabrication...

 

Sorry, but asking a question on a forum is particularly worthless if you reject the answers because they aren't what you want to hear. Good luck solving your problem.

 

Are you running your distributor vacuum line to the manifold port on your carb?


Lance

 

I have a stock temp thermostat that works...opens and closes.

No vac advance. Only mechanical. All vacuum outlets are plugged, idle is steady at 900RPM's.

And Ax, I am not tryin to be a dick, but I still don't see how having a hood makes any difference whatsoever when I am standing still. At speed, yeah...I am sure it does make a huge difference cause it forces whatever air that goes through the grill to go through the radiator. When I am not moving, letting the engine idle, what difference does having a hood make? It's not about hearing what I want, it's about hearing things that at least make sense...and I can't see how that would make a difference when I am standing still? I really cant.

GreatNorthWoods, I have been worried about the air movement since day one. I put the biggest electric fan on that would fit. It straps right to the radiator. The rest of the radiator is open...meaning no shroud, no fan. My puller fan is mounted near the top of the radiator...I think it's a 12" or somethin close to that. Do you think it would help to install a pusher fan towards the bottom of the radiator on a toggle? I could leave it off while driving and flip it on when I get into some slower moving traffic or if I plan to let it idle for a few minutes? Just a thought...I know pusher fans are less effective, but maybe the extra air flow would work?

 

Just curious, why do you only run mechanical advance?

 

I did have an overheating problem with my 289, but as I stated in my earlier posts, installing an electric fan with shroud ( built as one unit) has solved the problem. Putting on the manual switch is a big help because as Great North said, by the time the thermostat kicks in, the radiator is too hot to be cooled off. I keep my eye on the temp gauge, when it starts to rise OR when I come up to a stop light or traffic, I turn on the fan. In warmer weather, I keep it on all the time.
Also, check the timing on the engine. Advanced timing will cause the engine to run hotter than normal. That was part of my problem. You mentioned the radiator you're running is partly blocked up. That can't be a good thing. You don't have to get an expensive trick radiator, just one that is new or in better condition. Good luck, the hot weather is comming soon.

 

Directing the air thru the radiator is much more critical standing still than at speed! At speed there is an abundance of air movement being forced thru the radiator. When standing still the only air moving thru the radiator is from the fan, if you allow free air in the fan will pull it from the path of least resistance, from around the radiator rather than thru it.
Try this: with the truck idling and the fan running, hold a tissue paper streamer in front of the radiator and see how much air is being pulled thru the radiator. Now hold the tissue at the rear of the radiator to the sides and above the fan and see how much air is being sucked in from the back side around the fan, Now temporarily cover the engine compartment completely with some cardboard to simulate the hood and seal it to the fenders and front air deflectors with tape. If there isn't a seal between the lower grill opening and the bottom of the deflector there should be, tape a cardboard one there as well. Now do your streamer test in front of the radiator and compare to the first test. Still don't believe the hood makes a difference?

 

I doubt it. I think a pusher fan would only impede air flow further. Sometimes a small gap (1/2 to 1 inch) between the radiator and the fan will help. Other than that I'm out of ideas....

 

Ax...No...because no part of my truck's hood actually seals tight to anything. The best "seal" as it were is between the radiator and the inner fenders. I still have all the sheet metal beside the radiator, and it is tight to the bottom. Also, the fan is tight to the radiator (perhaps I neglected to say that before, sorry). I will do a streamer test tonight to see, but I still don't exactly see how a fan that is tight to the radiator, pulling air through it...is supposed to pull air through metal on the sides? It makes no sense to me. Perhaps I am not seeing exactly what you are saying...or something and I will learn a little from this test. Nevertheless...if your thought process prooves true, why do so many cars from the 30's run around with no hood or sides with no issue? I really believe my problem lies with lack of air flow from the fan I have...or getting that air flow to pull through the whole radiator instead of a 12" circle.

Lance...because that's what I have always used. Every mild to wild engine I have built used a mechanical advance dizzy with no issues. Stock builds I will use a vacuum advance stock dizzy. Timing was set last year somewhere between 8 and 10 degrees advanced. I usually double check all of that prior to the first run of the truck for the year, but I haven't gotten around to that yet. I have a checklist I run down to double check everything...plugs, wires, floats, fuel pressure, timing. tighten all brake lines, grease front end...etc...

GreatNorthWoods...I kind of thought the same thing. Pusher fans are no good...but I am at a loss. I had thought about mounting the radiator further forward which would allow me to use either more electric puller fans and shroud them a little better, or use a stock fan or flex fan with a shroud. I suppose the main reason I have not done this yet is because I am not sure if the stock radiator itself is sufficent or would be with more air flow. The temp holds right at 195 while moving with no issues at all...which leads me to believe if I could get enough air movement through the radiator it would be fine sitting at idle. Maybe if I move the radiator an inch or two forward and mount a second puller fan towards the bottom?

Make no mistake...I greatly appreciate all comments and ideas. I am beyond frustrated with this...so I am sorry if I come across as an ***. I have racked my brain over this for over a year. There are just too many questions left unanswered for me to do anything with it yet. If I can run the stock radiator effectively with another fan...I will. I would actually prefer to. I don't think that having 6 veins plugged would render the radiator useless...but I am not sure. I do know it reduces it's effectiveness...but by how much? 6%, 10%? Is it enough to make a difference? I could see if I had a dozen or more veins plugged it would cause issues, but with so few. Or, should I just save my coin and buy an aluminum or other aftermarket radiator? Or find a stock radiator and try moving it forward with a second puller fan? These are some of the ideas I had that I was looking to see if someone has done it, if they work, and how well they work.

 

FordmanF1,

It sounds like your radiator isn't helping you much as well as a few other things.


The reason why I asked about your distributor is because many times hooking a distributor advance (I realize you have a mechanical distributor) line up to full manifold vacuum can help with an overheating situation. C9 (RIP) explains this very well in the link below (post #19)

Ported or manifold vacuum? - THE H.A.M.B.

 

That really is a good read. I wonder if changing my timing wouldn't have a positive or negative effect on my current issue?