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I’m bleeding the cooling system on my 88 302, and it seemed fine so I put the cap on. It’s not building pressure, the thermostat opened I think. The upper hose is hot. When I shut off the truck I hear water flowing. I don’t see any leaks at all. I put the cap on when it was at operating temp
Your local big auto parts store should have a cooling system pressure tester for rent. Hook that up when it's cold and pump it to about 13 psi and see if it holds pressure 13psi for about 5 minutes.
Inspect your radiator cap to make sure the gasket isn't cracked and the suction valve isn't hanging down, loose. You should be installing the radiator cap when it's cold, and then warming up the engine. You can feel the pressure in the system by squeezing the upper radiator hose.
Ok, it’s a brand new cap, it’s good shape. I’ll shut it off come back in an hour and then I’ll test pressure. I’ve been squeezing the hose it’s been soft. If I still can’t get it to build pressure I’ll go rent the tool