QWKDTSN Posted January 6, 2003 Share Posted January 6, 2003 My upper radiator hose has popped off of my thermostat housing twice in the last week and barfed out all of my coolant. I recently moved my electric temperature sending unit up from the head to the thermostat, as this is what most everyone else has and I was wondering if I was seeing inaccurate readings before - 210 to 250. With it at the thermostat I see 180 while driving, climbing up to 210 when stopped. Today I was at a light and all of a sudden the dreaded sound of steam as my coolant went everywhere. The hose was on there tight, too, that's for sure! I'm wondering if this could be a pressure problem? I have a catch/return tank and a 1/8 hole in the thermostat (180 deg) to get rid of all the air in the system, something that was plaguing me before. I have a Taurus single speed fan ghetto rigged directly to the battery that pulls plenty of air, and the radiator is sealed off on the sides so no air can slip by. I just wish I could drive and enjoy my car without having to babysit it and stare at the temperature gauge all the time! It's getting to where the motor is breaking in and I need to start tuning the carburetor for optimal performance, but I have to baby the car around because of the heat. I'm pretty sure my timing is on (~10 deg), but am wondering if my jettting is off. I have a 650 CFM double pumper with stock jetting - AFAIK it is running ok - maybe a little lean? Should I up the jets a bit? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pop N Wood Posted January 7, 2003 Share Posted January 7, 2003 The radiator cap is what regulates the pressure. If you blew a hose on overpressure, then replace the cap. But I doubt this will correct your overheating at idle. What type of radiator do you have? For that matter, what engine? Also the Taurus fans are 2 speed. Do you have it on high or low? Tried flushing the radiator lately? Also make sure to use the proper mix of antifreeze and water. Straight water will corrode your aluminum engine parts and doesn't lubricate the water pump. I also like checking the thermostat by placing it in a pot of water on the stove and seeing what temp it opens (and opens fully). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
QWKDTSN Posted January 7, 2003 Author Share Posted January 7, 2003 Sorry, forgot the important stuff. It's an iron headed 350 with 9:1 compression and aluminum air gap intake. The radiator is the Howe all-aluminum and I think my cap is 16lb. The Taurus fan is 1 speed - i pulled it out of the car myself and there were several others that were the same - I think it is from an older car but there are only 2 leads, one black and one orange. I flushed the coolant the first time the hose blew, i keep it a little under 50/50, with more water than coolant. I would be adding a bottle of water wetter ASAP but I keep losing my coolant I haven't checke the Tstat by the boiling water method but I can feel that it does open by squeezing my hand around the upper hose - before 180 there isn't much pressure and right after I can feel the water start to pulse through the hose. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VRJoe Posted January 7, 2003 Share Posted January 7, 2003 Are you sure the water pump is OK? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
QWKDTSN Posted January 7, 2003 Author Share Posted January 7, 2003 Yeah, it's a brand new aluminum Weiand... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tim240z Posted January 7, 2003 Share Posted January 7, 2003 Steve, Have you checked to see if your lower radiator hose (suction side) is collapsing? That may be the problem if it doesn't have the spring inside the hose to prevent that. Tim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
QWKDTSN Posted January 7, 2003 Author Share Posted January 7, 2003 I'm pretty sure it's not... There's no spring but I haven't seen any signs of my hoses collapsing. it's a pretty stout hose. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Anonymous Posted January 8, 2003 Share Posted January 8, 2003 Well let me put my 2 cents in and maybe we can figure this out. Time the car at 38 degrees total advance,thats timing it at about 2500 rpm's,that should cure the the timing up,next take out the thermostat and either leave it out or replace it with a 160 degree one,the carb is great in stock form so that will not be the problem. Now here is the hard part,weiand makes aluminum pumps that flow in two dirrections,one for V-belt systems and one for serpentine style,I had a small prob. like this way back when I installed stock alum.vette pump on my V8 landcruiser,idle would show signs of heat but do good on the move once I changed to serpentine all is good. What I would do is remove thermostat and leave it out,install a remote thermostatic fan switch that you can get at kragens for 16 bucks in the radiator and it will work as a thermostat turning off and the fan as you set the desired temp,it is fully adjustable,any ?'s just ask. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Modern Motorsports Ltd Posted January 8, 2003 Share Posted January 8, 2003 What I would do is remove thermostat and leave it out I wouldn't recommend removing the Tstat, they're easy enough to test and you do want your coolant circulating withing a certain velocity range such that it resides long enough in your radiator that it can scrub off enough heat to aid in cooling the car.....too fast and the heat can just build up. Have you tried a different rad cap and do you have an ordinary reasonable or lower PSI cap? Your rad overflow should blow (you do have one right?) prior to any hoses etc blowing off. I assume your upper water hose has a lip on it that you place the clamp in front of so it has the lip to stop the clamp from sliding off (all I've seen have this). sorry I can't help guess at what's keeping your car so hot, is it quite a healthy Taurus fan? ie. a later model unit? I'm not sure what rad you have, is it a stout aftermarket unit? Mine won't hit 180 highway cruising alone.....takes city driving or hard driving to do that. And I assume your belt is plenty tight to give you proper rotation and pulley's are all sized within normal ratios. Good luck! I had a gremlin with cooling for a long time that drove me nuts...(it was my old/cheap camaro rad, inadequate!), changed it to the Griffin and all cooling issues disappeared. Now I need a new Griffin (or similar) as mine was overly flexed in an accident like a pretzel a few years back/then straightened out/epoxied/last a while but leaking now so I just want to replace it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
QWKDTSN Posted January 8, 2003 Author Share Posted January 8, 2003 Before I address all the other suggestions made here (and some great ones they are, thank you very much guys) I am curious about the total advance setting - is this set with the vacuum advance plugged or unplugged? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
z ya Posted January 8, 2003 Share Posted January 8, 2003 Vac advance always plugged when doing total timing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A. G. Olphart Posted January 9, 2003 Share Posted January 9, 2003 I once had a hose blow on my Corvair - solved the problem by tossing that pretty/shiny/SMOOTH chromed thermostat housing. It pushed the hose over the lip even though it had tight 'aircraft style' clamp. An ugly/rough cast iron housing kept things dry until I sold the car. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
80LS1T Posted January 9, 2003 Share Posted January 9, 2003 Are you sure that your fan is hooked up correctly? and not pushing air through? This could be the reason that it only overheats when you stop or go slow. When you are going fast the speed of the air coming in can over come the fan but when you slow down it can't so they cancel each other out. Just a thought! Guy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike kZ Posted January 9, 2003 Share Posted January 9, 2003 I would but that spring back in the lower rad hose. All lower hoses have a spring in them for a reason. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BAlford Posted January 10, 2003 Share Posted January 10, 2003 From time to time someone posts this problem. Why do you beat your head aganist the wall. I had the same problem and solved the problem this way. http://www.waskomtexas.com/zcar/re_car/engine_cooling.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BAlford Posted January 11, 2003 Share Posted January 11, 2003 I guess I am just stupid. I know all of you are smater, younger and pretter than I, but why do you make it so complicated. If the car is running hot it needs more cooling capacity. While you are trying to figure out some high-tech answer I am driving a COOL car. http://www.waskomtexas.com/zcar Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
80LS1T Posted January 11, 2003 Share Posted January 11, 2003 Hey now no need to get all fussy! It might not be the cooling capacity although it is a possibility. Just because it solved your problem doesn't mean it will solve his. By the way that idea with 2 heater cores in the air damn is quite the creative set up! Very tricky! and Very Cool!!! That's my $.02 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Anonymous Posted January 11, 2003 Share Posted January 11, 2003 well I'm surprised that no body caught the corvair joke,unless it had a V8 like my old one. 455 olds front wheel drive turbo 400 in the back,sweeeeet.I have no probs with heat and I'm running a stock 240 radiator w/a V8,I run the **** out of it with the Nitrous and still no probs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pyro Posted January 11, 2003 Share Posted January 11, 2003 A few years ago when I was using the factory radiator on my V8 240, my engine would run 245 sometimes but it never popped off a radiator hose. Maybe you have a bad head gasket which is adding pressure to your cooling system. When a cooling system is over pressurized it will release coolant through the radiator cap and then over heat. Just something else to consider. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
QWKDTSN Posted January 11, 2003 Author Share Posted January 11, 2003 I am kinda just thinking of getting a better fan... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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