Thank you for your help in advance. I just completed installation of a 1966 327 motor in my 55 Chev 2dr. Added anti freeze and water and more water and all the time thinking this is too much. It was, I have anti freeze and oil mixture leaking from the front of the motor I think from the pan gasket, and the dipstick, please no dipstick jokes, shows more than full. The water level in the radiator did not reach high enough to reach the upper hose. Before I tear the motor down what should I be looking for. Thanks
yes , check the intake gaskets...i had that happen to me once on a 350 chevy. the gasket had a small tear in it
More info- Took the intake off, dry as a bone. Water never reached the intake. Also, the motor wasn't running at all. Never started it. All the leaking happened just from filling it. Would intake and/or head gaskets leak that bad if they're not under pressure? Wondering if I'm missing something obvious...
Aluminum intakes have corroded due to electrolysis and can spill coolant back in the valley,I've seen Mercruiser small blocks crack in the lifter valley from freeze damage
The water didn't make it as high as the intake when I was filling it. This is confusing me. Intake is totally dry, so it leaked somewhere while I was filling it BEFORE the level reached the intake.
Your never started the motro or cranked it... is there something wrong on the hose mount on the front bottom part of the motor like a crack or something. just thinking out a loud here
Check that block for cracks! I had a Chev pickup given to me that ran great no issues, I decided to do change out the antifreeze in it and change the oil. So I drained the water, had a buddy filling the radiator as I started to change the oil, once I cracked the oil plug all that was coming out was water... Needless to say the block was cracked and that motor went to the big scrap yard in the sky. Pull the intake and look, it doesn't take much of a crack to ruin a good block, never know if someone filled it up with straight water right before jack frost came around. My 2 cents anyways
I thought about that, but wondered if a cracked block would leak that bad without running? I hope that's not what it is....
Big Mac.. Try a pressure test on your cooling system. OReillys auto parts has a test kit you can rent (deposit returned when you return kit...FREE). Replace intake and all hoses. Pump up the cooling system and watch gauge for falling pressure. Could be head gasket, intake gasket or the dreaded crack in block. Did you have the block magna fluxed? I had a SBC with a crack in the lifter valley.
Please take a picture of the motor including the intake. Many years ago a friend borrowed my car for a day. He said that it over heated and added water. When I got it back I found water in the oil, typical milkshake. I asked him where he added the water, he pointed to the oil fill tube. I was pissed, but accidents happen, or sorry stupidity happens. Not saying this is what you did, just want to see the motor and intake we are dealing with.
It was built a long time ago, greased up and wrapped and stored in a storage unit for years. No real detail on the history. I didn't magnaflux it before putting it in as I didn't build the motor, just bought it as a complete set up. I did change the intake manifold though, so that may provide a clue? I'm really hoping this isn't a cracked block. I'll post a pic of the motor shortly.
cracked block...... sorry. if it was a head gasket you would be able to fill up the radiator even if the head gasket was all but missing. wait i know this my be crazy but does it have head gaskets in it?
Decades back, my first motor build (355 chevy) I used steel shim head gaskets. The crankcase filled with water long before the radiator ever did. Tons of anguish and a set of Fel-Pro blue head gaskets later I was up & running.
I hope this 327 isn't .060 overbored. Sounds like a heck of a leak! Sounds like a busted block to me, there is no place for water to get in the crankcase except maybe intake gaskets leaking into the lifter valley or like was mentioned a bad intake. But you said the water never got that high! Busted cyl bottom ? Lippy
Im in for intake gaskets .Did you run silicone around water jackets .Or as mentioned steel gasket .Check torque on manifold Waterpump? and check all hoses and also is it wet inside car passenger side .heater core? Also freeze plugs check
Thanks for all your suggestions and help. I am seeing a little water in the back of the lifter valley on the pass side, thinking maybe head gasket. I am going to pull that head in a few minutes. I know it is not a cracked block because I am not mentally capable of accepting that ppssibility at this time. It may be a cracked block tomorrow or even after dinner but not right now. I will let you all know what I find. Thanks again
This is why you should never put anti freeze into a fresh engine. Always fill them with plain water to run them in then drain some water and add antifreeze. Oil and water don't mix too good but, anti freeze and oil is even worse. The headbolts in a factory small block Chevy go into water. Use Permatex's High Performance Thread Sealer (it's White)on the head bolts. You can put a little thread sealer in the bolt hole also before you put the head on. That way the ealer that is on the bolt doesn't get wiped off as it's going through the head. I don't think that the bolts are the problem but it's a tip for when your puttin' it back together. Smokey
Hopefully it's just some shim head gaskets that didn't get a good coat of copper seal. Also, I always start 'em up and get the heat up a couple times and re-torque the heads (even with perma-torques) before adding water and/or coolant. Just feel the end of the head to determine how hot it's getting. I know this ain't the easiest way to do it, especially when you factor in the fact that you also have to be polishing the cam in, but then maybe I'm anal about my hot rod motors. I've put some stockers together and glued the valve covers on and never had a fault, but it kinda felt funny, like walking out of the water closet without flushing, seemed like I forgot something!
More info.... Pulled the head, small amt of water in the lowest part of the valley (toward firewall), looks like it is a head gasket. Curious, why is there a super small hole in the gasket for one of the water passages, yet the holes in the head and block are about 10 times the size? Could I have the wrong gaskets? Thanks again for all the help!
Find or borrow a straight edge - time to check for warp or a bow on those heads;the small hole was designed for a purpose , probably steam venting or slowing the flow for that area for heat exchanging
exact same thing happened to my brother with a 402 BBC, kept filling and filling and well, you know.....anyways, teardown revealed a lifter had grenaded into the water jacket. edit, I see now where you were not running the motor, we were and filling it right after start up, dunno if that made ours go to hell or not.
I hate that part of building a car! Nothing in the cyl.? Seal the bolts and use felpros and try it again. Can't believe a cracked block either. Why would someone rebuild a motor with a cracked block that would have shown up before the rebuild. Good luck and let us know.
A friend once couldn't wait to run the fuel lines for a freshly rebuilt 350. Instead he decided to run it on starting fluid just to hear it run. Instantly cracked a main web. Swallowed all of the coolant in about a minute.
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