After a long battle over a friends estate I recently picked up a 1950 Ford Crestliner that has been sitting in dry storage for 10 years. Got the car home last month and got it running, driving and stopping with minimal work. Changed the water pumps and hoses due to a few small leaks. Car runs like a champ but gets real hot after about 10 minutes. Highway driving does not help. I pulled the thermostats thinking they may be stuck. Same problem. All i can think of is a blockage in the radiator somewhere. Any other thoughts or ideas?
For starters, take the radiator to a shop and have it boiled out and leak tested. After that long the tubes are probably solidly blocked . Then put a 50/50 mix in and see if your pumps are circulating coolant by looking into the top of the radiator. There is probably some blockage in the block as well. What did the old coolant look like when you drained it ? Don
My dad had drained it but he said it was clean. He also said the water pumps were not junked up, so I am assuming its the radiator.
Do'es it blow water out the tailpipe ?? You could have a crack between the valves The flatheads were bad about this .
If you can verify that water is circulating you might try filling it with white vinegar leave it in for a few days and run it a few times. Cleans out a lot of bad stuff.
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