Octania

So... did you observe the hose collapsing ?

If so, how exactly did you do that? Share, so that others may learn!

timothypaul

Yes. I did exactly what you said. Started the car, let the engine get to normal operating temp. Then just pulled back on the throttle cable.

You could just see the hose suck in.

timothypaul

:-(

Just drove it to work and it overheated. Got to 230 before it shut it down.

timothypaul

Any body have any ideas. :-(

MDchanic

I have to wonder about how well that aluminum radiator is working.

Sounds like the water pump is working fine.

- Eric

timothypaul

I was just reading 455 running hot at idle? thread and see stuff about the fan clutch.

My fan spins free when car is cold, and also when the car is hot. I let it heat up to 180 degrees. When car is idling the fan is spinning.

Its an A/C car, with the A/C disconnected.

Is this correct?

Thanks...TP

MDchanic

The fan should be turning when the car is idling, and if it is hot, or if it has just started, it should blow back your hair.

When the car is off, if it is hot, it should take some effort to turn the fan - it shouldn't spin.

- Eric

timothypaul

Hello Olds enthusiasts

Today I lost my breaks and drove through my garage door. Not too much fun.

I have had to fill the small chamber of the master cylinder often but the larger chamber is always fine. I'm am wondering what may have happened. I've checked the wheel cylinders and can not find a leak. As well as the proportioning valve. I have no clue where the leak is. But if the larger chamber has fluid why would I lose the brakes?

Ty. Tim. :-(

80 Rocket

You said the engine was rebuilt. Does it have Speed Pro forged pistons in it? If the machine shop who rebuilt the engine set the pistons to the specs on the box (way too tight) this explains your cooling problem if everything else checks out. They need at least .0045" piston to wall clearance, not the .0025" or whatever they recommend.

I've seen many an Olds motor fall victim to this.

timothypaul

Oh. The cooling problem was fixed by replacing the fan clutch.

My issue now is the brakes.

MDchanic

Okay, not to "break" your chops (any more than your garage door...), but

Are you saying that you kept driving a car that was losing brake fluid, without fixing, or even diagnosing the problem?

One side of the M/C reservoir going down, while the other side either goes up, or stays the same, with no leaks, equals a bad master cylinder.

The small reservoir at the back of the M/C is for the rear brakes, and the large reservoir at the front is for the front (disc) brakes.
If the rearmost reservoir is losing fluid, the fluid is going out the back of the M/C and either down the front of, or into, the booster (in manual brake cars, it sometimes is absorbed into the sound padding and carpet under the driver's feet).
If the front reservoir is losing fluid, it usually goes into the rear reservoir.

In your case, your master cylinder was in the process of failing, and, in fact, the rear circuit did fail, leaving you with front brakes only, which you didn't notice, and then, when the front half of the failing master cylinder finally gave up, there weren't no more brakes left to be had.

Did your BRAKE warning light go on at any time?

Hope your car's not too dented up.

- Eric

timothypaul

Well. Not feeling to bright at the moment. Yes, I was driving the car under all those conditions.

Because the vacuum is so low, I just presumed that's why the brakes were bad. The Master cylinder never even crossed my mind. I looked all around the wheel cylinders and could never find anything.

After your post, I checked and there is fluid going down the power booster.

I put a new master cylinder on this morning. I bench bled it. It seems to still be leaking there also. Could something be wrong with the power booster?

Of course I snapped a brake line while doing this, just to give me something else to play with.

:-(. TP

MDchanic

If the M/C is leaking, bring it back - it's no good.

- Eric