4door!cutlass

When i got the car didn't have a shroud,has a 4 core radiator.using a flex fan.i tried a clutch fan but it didn't. help.no problem in cool weather,but in the summer time i can't drive it in city traffic .
What can i do to fix this issue.

rustyroger

Make sure the water pump and radiator are in good shape, and fit a shroud.


Roger.

oldcutlass

What temp is it reaching in traffic?

caddy

^^^^What he said... I had same problem, air was not being tunneled in...

joe_padavano

I've never had a cooling problem. Also, unless the impeller has fallen off the shaft, there is no way the water pump is causing a cooling problem. Despite this, it's usually the first thing people replace. The normal water pump failure mode is a bad front bearing, which destroys the seal, which causes a massive leak. You'll see the leak long before the bearing fails completely. If it isn't leaking, it isn't causing the overheating problem.

Is the engine overheating at idle or at speed? If at idle, it's typically a lack of airflow through the radiator. If at speed, it's usually a radiator that's either too small or plugged. I had one radiator where the tubes on the bottom third were plugged, which caused an overheating problem at speed. You could tell by touching the radiator with your hand that the bottom wasn't even hot, despite the boilover. Easy fix.

Throw the flex fan as far away as you can. They are crap. Get a GOOD quality fan clutch and matching fan. Be sure it isn't a reverse rotation clutch and fan, by the way. Get a good shroud. Also, be sure the air can get out of the engine compartment, which is just as important as getting it through the radiator. Finally, be sure your engine is tuned properly, including initial timing and carb jetting. Retarded timing and/or lean carb can cause overheating. Use manifold vacuum on the advance, not ported vacuum.

garys 68&72

Might consider a cooling system flush, cheap easy, might clean some of the 40 years of gunk/scale in the radiator.
Get a shroud.
Get a good fan clutch, thermo if available, and original style fan. The one you have is junk.
If still hot in traffic and/or with AC on, add an electric puller fan.

rustyroger

I have come across '70s Nissan models (UK spec) with impellers worn down to stumps with consequent cooling system troubles.
It's fair to say I have never come across this on any American built car. Doesn't mean it can't happen though.


Roger.

66luvr

The blue 66 with 455 runs 180* on the highway, a little over 200 in traffic. I think I have everything Joe mentioned covered EXCEPT making more room to allow air to exit the engine bay. I really don't know how to attack that problem. Was that why the 66 442 had those vents on the fenders?

BlackGold

Since most replacement water pumps use a stamped steel impeller whose design is obviously optimized for cheap manufacture, not water flow, it wouldn't surprise me if they are less efficient at low RPMs and cavitate at high RPMs. So in that respect I would think a water pump could contribute to a cooling problem. But I have no data to back this up. Given a choice, I'll take a factory water pump with original cast iron "turbine" impeller.

Joe, I'm curious how you propose to make sure that hot air can excape the engine compartment. I completely agree and have always wished Olds put some "gills" in the fenders to evacuate the hot air. But apart from that, what are you suggesting? I'm especially concerned about this in light of the OAI hood's ability to create positive pressure in the engine compartment (and don't try to tell me the seal is good enough to force it all down the carburetor).

Having said all this, I remain convinced that most people's cooing problems are caused by gunked up tubes in the radiator. And the only way to fix this is a recore or replace, not clean it out.

4door!cutlass

Ok.i had a cluth fan on it but it still ran hot,and it went out so i put the flex back on. so if I'm cruzing the temp is fine but in stop an go traffic and at a stop the hand will rapidly move to 220 and continue to rise if i just sit in idle.this happens in worm to hot weather.
i noticed that,the radiator has worm and hotter spots like cooler at the bottom .
i also noticed that the radiator fins were pushed in and i would. say 30 %.so i straightened them out and flushed it out and a good. amount of trash was in it.it isn't hot enough to see if that stops the problem.
the reason i posted was because i herd that 455s have a tendency. to run hot.

BlackGold

Yes, 455s [which are 40 years old with a 40-year old radiator and improper fan and bad state of tune] tend to run hot.

oldcutlass

You need more air directed in through the radiator and/or a larger radiator.

z11375ss

Be Cool radiator with twin electric fans fixes most problems. See the pic in my sig. It runs 180 in 100 degree heat, in traffic. I bet your radiator is gunked up.

68oldscutlass

Hold the laughter but I had a flex fan on my 68 and it would be fine around town and actually overheat on the highway. That blew my mind!! Well of course the Olds spins the other way then Chevy and my flex fan was not for an Olds. It was pushing the highway air away! Not that this helps you but figured I would throw it out there in case it did.

mike8162

I had this problem back in the eighties with my 69. My original water pump began to leak out of the weep hole. I replaced with a rebuilt unit from the parts store. I was given a pump that I believe was a non A/C pump. The car ran real hot after that so I compared pumps and the numbers were different and the rebuilt unit had the X casting where the old one had the O. Won't get into that, I think it has been beat to death. Well, anyhow I had the original rebuilt and my problems disappeared. Not saying this is the problem your having (not sure you have an air car)but I just thought I would throw my story out there.


Cheers, Mike

oldcutlass

Sorry, but the only thing that turns in reverse between an Olds and a Chevy is the distributor. The engine rotates in the same direction and the firing order is the same.

steverw

Its also possible the water jackets in the block get a bunch of crud built up in them too decreasing the amount of water in them, I literally cleaned almost 2 lbs of crap out of my water jackets AFTER the block was vatted and cleaned at the machine shop. Almost all of the water passage openings were clogged up when i pulled the heads off. I dont know how much this might effect it but i know my block is clean now.
Get a fan shroug so the air can be channeled properly through the radaitor.
LOL or get a fan shroud they work better than a fan shroug!

rustyroger

I think you have answered your own question. Your radiator core is shot.
Cold spots are a classic symptom of a clogged radiator, almost certainly not worth trying to clear out, and it has external damage as well.
Unfortunately it is an expensive cure, but bite the bullet and dig into your pocket to get it recored or replaced and get a proper shroud as well, and one gets you ten you're engine will run at it's correct temperature.
Don't be tempted to remove the thermostat as a band aid cure, two wrongs don't make a right!.


Roger.

4door!cutlass

4door!cutlass

Wow,thats a trip.so a olds turn clock or counter clock .

4door!cutlass

Thank u for your wisdom,i will know what's what when it gets wormer.my temp gage stopped working so that's the first thing to replace.

ELY442

Take the thermostat out and drive around without it see what happens.

4door!cutlass

4door!cutlass

Tried that last summer,didn't change anything

MDchanic

Because your radiator's blocked up, you don't have a fan shroud, and you're using a flex fan.

- Eric

billmerbach

Val online had this stuff its a radiator flush you fill your radiator up with this detergent stuff and run it about a week and drain it you'll be surprised the stuff that empties out of your radiator lol

brown7373

A flush may remove a lot of crud, but likely not all. Years ago, radiator shops would "Rod Them", which was removing the tanks and actually pushing rods the same size and shape as the passages through the core to really clean out the deposits that do not come out with a flush. I compare it to a touchless car wash. No way it really cleans the car unless it just has minor dust on it.


How much of the radiator remains plugged? 10%, 20%? Think that might make a difference in efficiency?

Koda

The next step is a recore with the original tanks (after the rodding mentioned above)

twintracks

Even if you get all of the crud out of the radiator, it will likely start to leak at the bottom where it is rotten.
Listen to the sage advise, and get the radiator recored. Add new hoses, and thermostat while you are at it.
If your car does not have one, I'd also recommend adding a surge tank.