I have a 69/70 Ford 351W, built with a tight .30 over for my 54 Ford. I am having issues with the setup and require a drivers side inlet for the water pump. I bought a CW rotation V Belt waterpump from Ford Motorsports with part number: M-8501-G351 (My waterpump pulled with plate removed to show the impeller) And I have the original cam gear cover that is essentially the same as this FMS repro: M-6059-D351 And I am not sure I have the right waterpump for my application. My car, when idling after a bit, will heat up to 200-210 then the thermo opens and it drops immediately down to 180. When I pull my radiator cap and watch to as the thermo opens up, the water cavitates and violently bubbles up out of the radiator, not flow in a smooth fashion. This is what led me to believe that we had the wrong pump or that the impeller was not pushing the water correctly. Can anyone educate me on this? All the stock Ford impellers I have dealt with on previous cars were a straight pinwheel style. The impeller above looks backwards to me as if it should cup the water not fan it...if that makes any sense. The specs on this engine is a tight .030 over, stock compression, with 30 weight oil and stock cast bottom end. The only time this engine has seen was during the cam break in and a few stints around the block. So it is a new block with not even 20 miles on it. I just need a confirmation of how the water flows and if what I see with the waters action and temp(for a new engine) is normal.
That waterpump and front cover setup looks right. The waterpump is centrifical and as such creates a vacumn in the center and then slings the water outward to the blade tips and out the passageways through the front cover and into the engine. This looks like the situation you have. Double check that and if you find it O K pull the thermostat and eliminate that from the mix. Good chance you have a stat hanging. Also check the flow from the lower hose. Insufficient water supply will cause the syptoms you describe.
When looking at the front cover, I don't see the same number of bolt holes as the water pump has. The pump looks like the later 80's & early 90's type to me, as I have one on a 351w that is reverse rotation, but the pumps from the front look the same. The year 302 you note, originally used a cast iron pump with a steel plate on the back. The cover you show looks like the ones used for the cast iron pump. I'd say , you have the wrong pump.
I'm thinking that you should have the early cast iron pump...like was used in the early Mustangs in the late 60's/70's....I forget when the aluminum pump appeared...
The two bottom holes on the pump is where the plate bolts up to. The aluminum pump does bolt to my cover, has a bolt for every hole and I have no leaks. Also I am sure that I have the Clockwise rotation and am using a V Belt setup, just an alt, crank pully and fan pulley. If anyone knows which car had a drivers side inlet for a 70 351W, I will gladly use it.
What would cause an insufficient water supply on the lower hose? I put the thermo on the stove in some water, it works fine...or at least it seems to. I was told that Ford has monkeyed around with different flow directions...old sbfs were flowing to the bottom up through the top and the newer engines flowed up top to the heads and then down through the bottom. I guess that is dictated by the type of cover or is it the impellers rotation?
wrong pump, go to summit racing look at the aftermarket pumps, you have the choice of left or right on lower hose. david
A kink in the lower hose, or a partially plugged radiator or a half open thermostat will restrict water flow. Ford really did not monkey around with flow directions. The V- belt and multi serpantine belt drives were standard flow (which is to say turn the same direction as the engine). The single serpantine drive with the smooth water pump pulley were reverse rotation by necessity. I still believe you have the right pump and cover setup. The telltale sign is the position and shape of the "D" shaped water passages in the timing cover. Do they line up with the back of the water pump properly? By the picture it looks to me like they do. Your pump impeller looks right as well. The back of the blades when turn the same direction as the engine rotation sling water outwards which looks like what you have here.
Also make sure you don't have trapped air in the system. If you do it'll cause problems like you're experiencing. You might have to burp the system by removing the water temp sender if perhaps the top of the engine is higher than the top of the radiator. Cooling problems can be trickey.
I will flush the system to make sure there are no air pockets. And the hoses are not kinked either. The D ports do match up, I made sure of that (the image is not a reverse just to clarify).
like mentioned above, somewhere... look for a late 60's early 70's 302/351w truck or car water pump. It will bolt to your TC cover and have your drivers side inlet you are looking for. All ford WP after 65 are going to be Cast Iron with the backing plate. Only a few early SBF ('62 221-63. 64/65 260 and 289) had the stock aluminum WP which used the TC cover as a back to the pump. Here is Jegs part # for a Drivers side inlet. 555-51041 Hope this helps.Later Ryan
and now for the shitty news. are you absolutely 110 percent sure you put the head gaskets on correctly? I had this same problem once on a 302-I got in a hurry and put the passenger head gasket on backwards- there is a top and a bottom- and it did exactly what you are talking about. apparently there is a steam hole on the backside of the block that gets mighty bitchy if you happen to block it off. I have since noticed that fel pro ford gaskets have "this side up" printed on one side.
i would pulll a plug out of the intake and fill it with water fords are real famous for trapping water in the block we have fought it so much on the race car that we put in a petcock in the intake so no wrenchs when filling with water
Lux Blue, I did think about the head gasket but am sure it is on correctly. I will try the cap trick mentioned to see if there is some bubble of air hiding. I have access to a pressurized cooling system flusher (from a friend) that I was going make sure it was all wet inside. People in town have told me that once it loosens up it will idle cooler, I just am troubleshooting the water nonsense now. As mentioned above, I do have the right pump...for an aluminum. Once it breaks in say over 1000 miles if it does not cool down, then I will switch with a stock cast iron from a 70s van or whatever that one on the Jegs link was.
I think they say "front" because if you put them on backwards, the coolant hole between the block and head is at the front instead of at the back...so coolant does not circulate back thru the block, then up to the head, and forward.
The Jalopy Journal
