| mhconley | -- 04-27-2021 @ 6:33 AM |
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I very recently inherited a '28 Model A from my father. He bought the car in 1950 when he was 16 years old and restored it after he retired. He did all the work himself in his garage. He built a 59A flathead V8 for it and had problems with it overheating from day 1. The engine is bored 5/16" with a stock stroke. All internal components are new. He spent many, many hours trying to fix the overheating without luck. The car has a "high capacity radiator with Evans coolant and a 2300 CFM electric fan" and still overheats. He also had a second "59A block with fresh 5/16" bore and cam bushings." The car is located in Kanab, UT but will be shipped to me in Cape Coral, FL. I would like to have the overheating problem fixed. The car also has a small gas leak from somewhere around the gas tank. I am looking for a flathead V8 expert that could do the work, preferably in southwest Florida but anywhere between Utah and Florida would work. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks, Martin This message was edited by mhconley on 4-27-21 @ 10:46 AM
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| 37RAGTOPMAN | -- 04-27-2021 @ 8:48 AM |
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hi Martin I think the hood is the main problem. or could be That engine gives off a lot more heat then the MODEL A ENGINE, I would also wrap the headers with exhaust wrap, I would remove the hood and see if that would make a difference, if it does take the hood sides off and try it again, just leaving the top of the hood on, the heat has to escape , My 2 cents 37Ragtopman
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| supereal | -- 04-27-2021 @ 10:06 AM |
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The photo shows the coolant outlets on the heads plugged, and the radiator unconnected, so it not possible to determine how the system is set up. I am assuming that you are not trying to run the engine that way. I am not a big fan of electric fans (no pun), but there are several places to check. How is the fan operated, perhaps a thermal switch, and where is the sensor placed? Is the fan actually pulling air through the radiator? There are two types of fans, push and pull, and I have seen the wrong ones installed. The engine is beautiful, and I am sure you are anxious to see it on the road,
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| 42wagon | -- 04-27-2021 @ 10:20 AM |
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It is not clear to me how coolant is supposed to circulate back to the engine. I see bottom hoses that feed coolant to the radiator and then what? How does coolant get back to the engine without the top hoses?
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| mhconley | -- 04-27-2021 @ 11:24 AM |
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I have not seen the car recently. I am flying to Utah in late May. The photos of the engine were taken by my father during the build. I'm sure he connected the heads to the top of the radiator. Current photos do indeed show hoses between the heads and the top of the radiator. Header wrap is a good suggestion as is running it without the hood to see if that helps. I am looking forward to getting it running. Martin This message was edited by mhconley on 4-27-21 @ 12:29 PM
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| pauls39coupe | -- 04-27-2021 @ 6:44 PM |
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V-8 to Model A conversions are a tight fit. The lower radiator hoses make some sharp bends. Be sure the lower hoses are not kinked or restricted. The Mallory distributors can be tough to time correctly. Check to be sure it is not too far advanced or retarded. Be sure the fan belt is tight enough to drive both water pumps. The offset alternator can leave the belt loose on one or both water pumps. Lastly I assume by 5/16 you mean the engine was bored 1/8 inch over stock. That can be too much for these old engines as the cylinder walls may be thin from rust on the water jacket side. You have a good looking car and engine. Let us know if you solve the overheating problem.
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| srg | -- 05-01-2021 @ 11:16 AM |
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I have a 37 Ford with a 59AB engine, sharp heads, two 97 Stromb's. My car ran 200 degrees plus. I had the radiator cored and did not put the prestone anti freeze in it. I put one bottle of wetter water in and filled it with distilled water. It runs 170 degrees now.
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| 1931 Flamingo | -- 05-01-2021 @ 12:57 PM |
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That's probably because you had the rad re-cored. Paul in CT
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| pauls39coupe | -- 05-01-2021 @ 9:29 PM |
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Good point. I had a stock Model A which always ran warm, hot if you got up to 45 MPH. Changing the radiator cured the problem. Now it seldom goes over 160 even on a hot day. The radiator should be filled just to cover the cores. Over filling will cause the excess to puke out the overflow.
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