Hey guys! I know, another overheating thread.. I get it but I couldn't find an answer in previous posts so I apologize in advance. I bought a 51 ford a few weeks ago and been driving it a few times a week around the neighborhood. I notice after a 15 minute or so drive that my breather is smoking. The og gauge never gets above half way. I decided to get some new stats. I bought 180s, went ahead and got some new water outlets, bought a radiator hose dress up kit and installed everything. While I was at it installed some new SW mechanical temp gauges. Also changed the oil and the filter. I refilled the coolant and prepped everything to get her started again. I read that I should burp the cooling system so I started the car with the radiator cap off. Let it get up to operating temp. It got to 180 and I expected the stats to open up and the coolant level to decrease so i can fill it, but nothing happened. I waited a little longer and it got up to about 190 and still nothing, I went inside to grab a flashlight and when I came back into the garage there was a fountain of coolant flowing out of my radiator and the engine was smoking. Antifreeze everywhere!! Shut it off and proceeded to clean everything up, pissed off to say the least. Should I have not been running it without the rad cap? Do you think the stats failed? What would have caused the coolant to fly out like that? Should I be worried about my block? I'm new to all this and have been trying to learn on my own. I'm really freaking out, hope I didn't just destroy my motor. Any advice is appreciated!! BTW found a guy, local here in Denver from a shop called go cat or something like that and talked to him about it. The guy said nothing but a cracked block would cause this... I'm hoping the guy was wrong!! Thanks!!!!
Did you put the thermostats in upside down by mistake? Did you buy the correct thermostats? Remove the "stats" and put them in a pot with boiling water and see what temp they open at. Just for the heck of it remove the new thermostats and run it without them again to see what happens. I doubt that you harmed your engine.
No man I don't think so, they were "spring" side down. Buddy of mine said to fill it up again and run it with the cap on lol says I should never run the thing without the cap on.
I usually do the same thing and burp the system except make sure the coolant level is just above the fins in the radiator. Then when the thermostats open you'll see the flow and you can add to the radiator. If you filled it to the top and fire it up it's going to push a bunch out. Your engine is probably fine
That's what I thought but this stuff was flying everywhere and it got really hot. I think I'm going to test the thermostats in some boiling water and make sure rheyre opening up. Seems unlikely that they'd both fail but who knows.
I may be wrong, but I seem to remember some very bad things about the "Go Cat Speed Shop" in Denver. I would be very careful in dealing with his guy. A quick "Google" check seemed to bear this out. Check this thread out : https://www.fordbarn.com/forum/showthread.php?p=1776009.
Not too sure, just really getting into this. I figured I'd start by making sure the thermostats were in good shape and get some gauges I could trust.
Well, if the only symptom was a fumy, smokey oil breather and the guage was okay, I would not jump to a coolant issue.
I always drill a couple of 3/16 holes in the thermostat plate whenever I install a new one. Takes the engine a little longer to reach temperature, but I always know I have "some" flow.
These engines manufacture rust. Lots of it. It will eventually start flaking off in the block and wash up and clog the radiator tubes. If you haven't had the radiator professionally cleaned (rodded) I would highly recommend you do so. About the thermostats: Sadly, these days new does not mean good. Try to find USA made 'stats, maybe Stant if you can. Contact CWMoss.com and see if they can help you. To test the 'stats, put them in a pan of water and using a meat thermometer bring the water up to temperature on the stove. The 'stats should start to open at, or near, temperature and stay open at roughly the stated temperature. Cracked exhaust valve seats are another common issue. As for getting heavy rust out of the block passages I'm afraid the only way is to pull and strip the engine and find a place that can boil the rust out. If you have that silly 3 blade fan, get rid of it and find a 4-blade number that will cover as much of the radiator as possible without hitting something. Never run straight water in these things. Antifreeze and a can of anti-rust replenished once a year. Best of luck with your project. Edit: As hotrod jack said, the holes let a little coolant circulate and eliminate steam pockets in the block. I do it and recommend this.
Thanks for the advice! Would expect the coolant to be spewing out of the radiator from simply leaving the cap off or do you think bad thermostats could have contributed to that? Would you recommend 180 or 160 thermostats? According to the previous owner the radiator was "cored" a year or so ago, it looks original but definitely looks like it's be gone through recently. I appreciate the advice, this is all new to me.
Well the radiator cap always felt hot, never spat anything out though. Like I said, no idea what I'm doing, trying to learn on my own as I go. I figured I'd get some new thermostats just to be on the safe side but didn't help much hahaha the thing was running alright before. I guess if it ain't broke don't fix it. Lesson learned
Thanks man, do you go through the trouble of burping it or do you just throw in some coolant and take it out for a drive?
Yes, but it's much faster because you don't have to wait for the engine to get up to temp...the thermostat is technically already open...and the "burping" of air in the block's water passages (cavitation) starts happening right away.
I'm a Ford guy, but it's been a bunch of years since I've had a Flathead. An engine's optimal operating temp is 180-190 degrees, so a 180 is always a good choice. I had a 302 in my old "32 Ford with a 160 stat in it...and had a hard time getting/keeping it up to a good operating temp...switched to a 180.
Dan1982 you make me laugh and at the same time, cry. Laugh because what happened to you happens to the best of us. And cry because not everyone has a buddy named Kevin to help guide him thru stuff like that. The short story as mentioned is the coolant heating up, stats opening, air being displaced. Don't over think it past the point of all cars have one. If you followed a modern car fill procedure, it would be very close to yours with a flat head. The burping, How to “BURP” Bleed Air Out of a Cars Cooling System - Easy DIY process for ALL makes - YouTube
I had a good buddy named Nick that always helped me with these things but lost him to COVID two years ago this November. I'm just trying to figure this stuff out as I go man lol I appreciate the link. Will check it out!
So being that my first attempt at burping the coolant system completely failed, I'm a little scared to do it again there was a ton of coolant to clean up. Would it be ok to just check the thermostats, if they work re-install, fill the radiator, put the cap on and just drive it, checking the levels and adding daily as needed? Or is burping absolutely necessary?
Couldn't you fill the radiator. Start the car with the cap on. Run it for a couple of minutes. Shut the car off and check the level. Top it off. Start the car again with the cap on. Let it come up to temp. Shut off the car. Let it cool. Check the level again.
Fill the radiator with only water until the top fins of the radiator are just covered. Don't fill the radiator to the top of the opening. If you do the water will overflow as the engine reaches operating temperature. Remove the radiator cap and start your engine. Leaving the cap off allows the air trapped in the system to bleed out. If you don't do this the air trapped in the radiator will push the water out, as you experienced. After a the engine warms up you should see water flowing across the top of the fins in the top tank of your radiator. After the air bleeds out you may find you need to add a little bit more water to cover the fins again. Reinstall the cap and go for a ride. Keep your eye on the temp. gauge. Also, be sure to use the correct radiator cap and make sure your radiator hoses are not collapsing restricting the flow of water. If things don't improve, the next step is to flush your radiator. RE: antifreeze: do not mix ethylene glycol (the green stuff) with the modern coolants (the pink stuff). Do a Google search on this topic. One more thing. READ everything related to engine overheating posted here: https://www.fordbarn.com/forum/search.php?searchid=29349129
Remove the radiator cap and start your engine. Leaving the cap off allows the air trapped in the system to bleed out. If you don't do this the air trapped in the radiator will push the water out, as you experienced. After a the engine warms up you should see water flowing across the top of the fins in the top tank of your radiator. After the air bleeds out you may find you need to add a little bit more water to cover the fins again. Reinstall the cap and go for a ride. Keep your eye on the temp. gauge. Also, be sure to use the correct radiator cap and make sure your radiator hoses are not collapsing restricting the flow of water. If things don't improve, the next step is to flush your radiator. RE: antifreeze: do not mix ethylene glycol (the green stuff) with the modern coolants (the pink stuff). Do a Google search on this topic. One more thing. READ everything related to engine overheating posted here: https://www.fordbarn.com/forum/search.php?searchid=29349129[/QUOTE] That's the procedure I followed only with coolant. The gauges both read about 200 when the water just geysered out of the radiator. It was uncovered the whole time. Once it shot out everywhere I shut it off. I assumed that because I installed the 180 thermostats that at about 180 it would open up and I'd see the coolant flowing and just monitor and then fill but by the time it spat out everywhere it was already really hot.
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