when bad luck turns worse.

[170-3tree]

Well I had the fairlane out a few times a few weeks ago. it was running smoothly, Idling smooth accelerating consistently. Was still having a heat issue. It's getting pretty darn warm, then starting to run like crap, at idle, at speed, just everywhere. Also dying when it got to the extremes of the gauge, but it never pegged. I'm currently trying to figure this out. running the stock radiator, that looks clean and clear, four blade fan, new water pump. I'm looking to find a good quality aluminum or upgrade radiator to replace the stock with and possibly a five-seven blade fan to get more airflow around the radiator and engine. I'm hoping someone can point me in a direction with this issue, probably bubba, as he has a 63 fairlane??

Now the worse. I took the car out last week, it drove amazing, I put in some decent springs on the distributor and got a bit early advance which helped a lot, adjusted the timing to 16*@850-idle. then got the 24* advance in around 2900 rpm. running ported vacuum. I got a bit confident in her and she wasn't getting near as hot as the day before, so I was confident to get on the highway for about five miles. I got up to about 65mph(per gps) and realized its running at a hare under 4k rpm. I gave it a bit of gas to see how it'd handle 72ish for me and when I got up there the engine just stopped... oil light, gen light, solid coasting down to zero.

I pulled to the side, waited a while and tried to start it again, but no luck there. Got a tow to my parent's place and with the 98* weather said eff it for a few days so I can go at it calmer and more relaxed.
I got a chance to work on it today, figured it was the D.U.I. crapping out on me. Everything tested out fine there though. kept the dizzy off and bumped the throttle, no rotation. I pulled the dizzy out and it had twist to it, like aligning to the plug and the gears looked great!! Figure I sheared the cam pin or something now. We started looking around a bit and notice a huge splinter in the timing cover right in front of the cam gear. We cursed and pushed it into the garage. Unfortunately It's still 95* and 95%humidity here so We are taking things slow and getting our ducks in order to try and get as much worked out as possible in one shot.

So in a wrap, I need to tear down the front of my engine and probably the head to inspect for valve and piston damage, to be safe. I also need to find the best way to correct the rpm issue. I want to look for wheels and tires for some of it, but also am looking into a lower than 3.55 rear end and maybe putting together a very VERY inexpensive t-5 swap... But if I do the rear gear I am going to look for LSD on the cheap as well. AND lastly, I'm looking for solutions to my heat issues. I imagine my radiator is a bit over-worked for my build, so I'm looking and it almost looks like a big block or hi-po 302 radiator will fit pretty close, but I'm not sure. If I do a radiator swap, I want to do it right, If possible a decent aluminium cross flow. from the looks of it it's about $150 difference and likely worth the difference to handle these 100* temps as of late. Then the other possibility is the fan, It LOOKS like a few fans will swap on directly, but will it actually help enough, maybe promote airflow to get the hot air off the headers from getting to the intake and carb?

Gerald

 

[bubba22349]

It's getting pretty darn warm, then starting to run like crap, at idle, at speed, just everywhere. Also dying when it got to the extremes of the gauge, but it never pegged. I'm currently trying to figure this out. running the stock radiator, that looks clean and clear, four blade fan, new water pump. I'm looking to find a good quality aluminum or upgrade radiator to replace the stock with and possibly a five-seven blade fan to get more airflow around the radiator and engine.

Hi Gerald, Wow you got your work cut out for you in that kind of heat. If your sure that your gauge is working correctly than it dose not sound like your overheating IE the gauge stays within the normal brackets and is not pegged. Is it puking coolant or boiling over? I run a cross flow in mine I think it was out of a mid 70's Torino or Lincoln it's big, brass / copper unit and cooled very well here is a bit overkill but price was right, we also have high air temps here. Do you have a 2 row or 3 Rad? A 3 row is usually very good for the higher temp areas of the country. Does your car heat up just sitting and idling with hood closed as if it were in traffic? If so than you need to install a shroud for sure if you don't have one, and your idea on the fan grade would be good too. I am a big fan of the clutch type fans a Thermostatic type is best of these when the engine type rises the fan kicks in and starts cooling rest of the time when not needed it freewheels saving you some HP and MPG. Does your car temp starts to drop some as you get the car moving? That would be a good sign that the cooling system is working. If you have a gap between the radiator and the core support you can make some simple filler panels (Alum or steel) to help seal it so that all the air flow is forced to go through the radiator too. If you decide to go with an Aluminum Rad look for one that has two rows of 1 inch tubes these cool as well or better as a 3 row brass / copper core the welded radiators are also much better than the glued (Epoxied) together ones. Hope that of some help Good luck

 

[Xargon321]

this might be a wierd thing but how is you're heater core? mine was plugged and cause the temp on the motor to swing wildly.

 

[170-3tree]

I think the gauge Is a good indicator. But actual accuracy is questionable. It actually gets above the bracket of good but it hasn't actually hit the bar. Ever really. With the last engine it never got to the midway point. And in deep winter sometimes didn't get warm enough to run the heater with any noticeable affect. I have been trying to hit it with an ir thermometer but forget to take it to get hard numbers.

It gets pretty darn hot at idle and when driving it takes more time but still gets right at the maximum level. It will cool down a little bit when cruising but anything else it just keeps on rising.

As for the current condition, it turns out that somehow ssome way, the cam bolt backed all the way out. I recall puttingthe proper torque on the bolt but somehow it backed out. The oil slinger is trash but the pan appears clean. I will still invest on a magnet for the filter and maybe one to put on the base of the pan. We still need to get the head to make sure the valves are in good shape and the pistons. But otherwise it shouldn't be to extreme. Well other than the heat.

So progress is being made. Slowly and carefully.

Edit: it is a two row radiator and appears to be clean but some of the cores are damaged a little bit.

 

[CobraSix]

said eff it for a few days so I can go at it calmer and more relaxed.

Sometimes the best answer!

While I'm not sure about a fairlane specifically, I can't imagine one of the aftermarket companies aren't making a stock looking 3 row radiator for your 6. That, combined with just a new clean radiator makes a HUGE difference.

I have a flex fan for a 6 cylinder, but they are loud and some people have had safety issues with them. I took it off because it was too loud for me but it would pull some serious air.

 

[170-3tree]

I have found a few radiators on dearborn but whether or not they will work with my mounts and hoses I am unsure. I gave thought to a flex fan but have heard the horror stories and kinda shied away from the idea. I guess my current question is what cars should I look for a clutch fan off of? I'm heading to the junk yards to look for an mzr head for my friend's build-up today and will look for possible fans and maybe radiators, but a junkyard radiator might be a bad bet for me at this point.

Also. I will be looking for a rear end. Eight inch. Is there anything specific I should look out for if I would only intend to use the third member out of one??

 

[bubba22349]

I guess my current question is what cars should I look for a clutch fan off of? and will look for possible fans and maybe radiators,

You can look at about any 70's and up mid size or big Ford, Merc or Lincoln and look at the V8's too. Measure the room you have for clearance to your hoses and other parts to get an idea on the max diameter. There where some nice fans that are Aluminum too. Take a pattern of your water pump flange and hub size. There is great interchangeability too so a GM or other unit might work too.

Also. I will be looking for a rear end. Eight inch. Is there anything specific I should look out for if I would only intend to use the third member out of one??

I you can find a Pinto or Mustang II that had a V6 or V8 they had the 8 inch there were some that had about a 3.5 ratio and also a Posi unit. Other than that about any 8 inch 3 third member is going to fit any year. They all bolt in the same and have a 28 spline axle. If your lucky and the tag is still on it than it will tell you the gear ratio. Happy hunting

 

[170-3tree]

Okay we had bad luck running late and hitting rush hour on our way to the junkyards today, couldn't make it before close.
But found that Dearborn has the clutches and I'm assuming you just add whatever fan you please with respect to the mounting and size etc? Then the next question is themostatic or just a standard clutch?

My current setup has about 1.5" spacer between the pulley and fan and about a quarter inch space from the fan to radiator. It's tore down so I can't recall what the space around hoses looks like, but it's fairly wide IIRC. I saw they also have fans from 4 to 7 blades, but no 6 blades, I will likely jump on a seven blade fan. I know It is probably overkill, but I don't want to have heat issues and I want to be confident in a 12 hour drive if the opportunity ever arose to take one.

As far as radiators, I am going to give them a ring and see what they can do for me. They have a standard 2-core unit, but in the description it says that 3-4 core hd versions are available. I decided to not get one from a jy and risk getting one that isn't in great condition, and around here junkyards don't like anything made before '85.

Rear axles, I'm still in the air on the whole subject, rear end vs. t5 swap and what to do for wheels and tires, because I need to get the 13's gone.

Gerald.

 

[MPGmustang]

careful rely'n on the stock temp guage... my cold is 180* and my 'extreme hot it's going to blow' is only 195* so, be careful, I replaced mine with a cheap mech guage that is much more acurate and gives me numbers all for $15 and 20 min's of my time.