Hot Rods Thermostat housing leaking???

Appreciate everyone's response.
One last question to keep this thread/debate going.
What should the order of installation be?

Thermostat in manifold. Then gasket. Then Housing?
OR
Gasket on manifold. Thermostat on gasket. Then Housing?
This thought just came up.

jeff

 

there should be a recess in the intake manifold, for the thermostat to rest in. Then put on the gasket, then the housing on top of the gasket.

 

I have had bad experiences with name brand gaskets lately. The two holes are slightly elongated and it was enough to cause a leak at the bolt holes. I made a template and now I make my own gaskets.

 

I actually had one of those cheap pot metal, O ring housings get eaten away, from the inside. I discovered a coolant leak under my car, and opened the hood to see a fine stream of coolant shooting out from a pinhole in the housing. Corroded away on the inside, in several places.

 

Sounds like you have some serious electrolysis going on there. If you have aluminum heads or radiator, better put an anode in the system.

 

Hello,

Starting from new to over 100,000 miles of So Cal and the rest of coastal/inland California road trips was the goal of a reliable vehicle. It served its purpose of getting me to college 400 miles one way and back many times. But, when I moved back to So Cal, now, it was coastal surf trips and with my new college acquaintance, road trips up and down the coast to San Francisco as many times as possible.

It seemed like our next adventure for a future home was going to be along the Northern California coastline North of San Francisco. Rough, barren, not many folks to bother us or our way of living.
It was a toss up, but the weather was not cooperating with our planned lifestyle. another choice was in the edge of the Mt. Tamalpais forest area.

We put on thousands of miles, that included forays into Baja, Mexico and into the deserts of So Cal. Yet, the 327 ran perfectly and it never needed anything except for gas. Quiet, comfortable for two 20 somethings and a little dog, we could put anything in the back and still have “under the starry night sky” sleeping quarters. It was a reliable form of transportation. It worked well for desert motorcycles + tools and then, later on, a Harley sportster fit in the back, too.

Buy the time we had put on all of those wonderful road trip miles, there was one thing lacking. My wife wanted a car with A/C and we started our search for such a car/truck or van. Little did we know, but around 120k miles, the 327 must have heard our conversations. Yikes!


Jnaki

All of those miles and not one thing wrong mechanically, while only needing gas to get us on our photo travels and back home. but, as it approached 120k, I noticed a slight water leak. Then in the next few weeks, a small squeak started showing up randomly. Finally, it was squeaking constantly and now, I knew I had to replace the water pump. It sure seemed like the 327 was trying to tell us something.

I replaced the water pump and for a complete job, also replaced the thermostat as it now showed a repair was necessary. I had to be careful not to damage the flat surface where it was bolted down. A new thermostat, new gasket and the recommended sealer. No gorilla tightening, but torque wrench clicks made it simple.

It took a while to get the whole thing finished and now, we made a run to Baja, Mexico and some relaxation. But, while we were driving back home, we decided to sell the El Camino and get a car/truck/van with some power and A/C.

So, at 125k miles, a young kid from Dana Point bought it for his adventures of surfing and towing his little sailboat around. Within a month or two, he had painted the bright red a colorful shade of blue.

Thanks for the memories… YRMV

 

And check for a good ground strap from block to frame. Clean the mounting points at both ends to ensure minimal resistance.

 

The modern ones ive come across had always been warped and after some years they also get pitted and leaks.
Try find an old one in good shape, before I used a gasket and permatex but the last 10years ive used no gasket just a thin layer of red silicone, had never had that leakin

 

I don’t use the chrome ones and I don’t use the o ring type. I like polished aluminum housings, paper gaskets and Some permatex. Even on new ones, I slap a 180 grit adhesive DA paper on a flat pieced steel or glass and sand the mounting area until all imperfections are gone prior to install. I have 4 of them on my cars right now, no leaks.

 

Exactly! The chrome Cheap ass China ones are absolute junk. I do the same thing Billy does , no leaks. I have some O-ring and chrome ones hanging in my shop on the wall of shame.

 

This is what I do to all the housings I install. Put the sandpaper on flat steel and move the housing around in circles to take out the high spots. I was amazed the first time I did this with a new chrome housing that appeared flat to me. After a minute of sanding, I looked to see it was only making contact by the bolt holes. After some more sanding it was made right. No leaks.