I had my 57 Fairlane out a couple of weeks ago and the car overheated. It had been sitting a while and I ***umed the thermostat was sticking so I replaced it last night. I still have an overheating issue. I'm now thinking waterpump? Is there an easy way to check the pump? Wait till the thermostat opens and see if I have flow? Thanks in advance. Allan
I had an overheating problem with a '57 T Bird that I had never encountered before. Turned out that the vacuum diaphragm in the distributer was bad (split) and throwing the timing off when on the freeway. The hint was a slight pulsing in the power when driving. I fixed or checked a lot of other things before I finall found the problem. Charlie Stephens
Very odd for a Y block to overheat. Those real thick cylinder walls insulated the water jackets real well. The best way I've found to check a water pump without it overtly falling apart or gushing water is to hold a wooden handle to the pump and put the other end to your ear. Believe it or not you'll be able to hear inside and tell whether it's working or not. If it is a new problem, I'd start with the timing and go from there. A dry rotted vacuum line could easily be the culprit
Thanks for the replies. The engine is a 292. The vacuum line from the intake to distibutor is a hard line and looks fine. The vacuum line to the wiper was leaking at the fuel pump but that shouldn't effect vacuum for the timing would it? I fixed the leak and ran the car for about 20 minutes. The gauge seems to be registering higher than it used to...... just under "hot". I checked the engine with a heat gun and got the following readings: At thermostat housing: 234F At water pump: 163F Top of rad: 211F Bottom of rad: 163F ......... Those numbers don't seem so bad? Thanks again Allan
I like to check with a heat gun all over the radiator, you're looking for hot spots that might indicate a clogged radiator.
Basic flow check can be remove the radiator cap when cool and watch for the water flow action in the top tank.You can also tell real fast when the T stat opens by a hot flow of water all of a sudden. I have never seen any Y block water pump not flow due to impeller failure but have had many water pumps loose seals and front bearings.
Well...... Pulled the Fairlane out of storage and still have this problem. I did check that the vacuum advance is advancing the timing...... correct amount, who knows, I noticed I don't have a timing mark on the harmonic balancer although the timing mark plate is there. In summary here's what I've done: - confirmed vacuum advance is advancing timing - have adjusted timing, but with no timing mark, who knows! - have coolant flow through the radiator - no vacuum leak between distributor and carb - new thermostat This problem came on suddenly, had never had the problem before. I posted heat gun temperatures above.... are those high? Any suggestions? Thanks in advance. Allan
Overheated as in "dumped out water from the overflow tube" or did the gauge go way up? (maybe your gauge is wrong) your temps appear to be correct... Mine is not running right now (redoing the fuel hoses) to compare temps. I "lost" my timing mark too, the outer ring on the balancer spun...had to replace the harmonic balancer.
When it overheated the first time, it was spewing coolant. Maybe I've got a sending unit issue and a thermostat issue........ and I've only fixed half the problem? Thanks Allan
You said the car had been sitting awhile. Did you check the radiator cap itself? You can also check the water pump for any seaping. Just use a little inspection mirror to look in the hole under the shaft. If it looks wet or had any signs of seaping, the seal may have gone bad. A cooling system pressure check would help chase down any other leaks. If everything is tight, then you can look into clogs and lack of flow. Hope this helps!
Allen, Last summer I had a similar issue with my dad's 56 Y block. It overheated after about 10 mins on the road. Turned out the radiator was clogged up. The radiator shop filled it and said its supposed to fully drain out the bottom in about 3 seconds. Dads was taking about 12. Do that test to see what you get. See ya next trip to STL!
A bit of an update. If anyone has a similar issue, it turned out to be a sheared impeller in the water pump. Kind of strange as they're supposed to be almost indestructible. Case closed.
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