Reproduction Parts for 1916-1964 Chevrolet Passenger Cars & 1918-1987 Chevrolet & GMC Trucks
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Been working on a 1940 Chevrolet for quite a while now and am close to the end. The engine would run hot from day one. (Not driving, in the garage.) I have not had it on the road yet. Had the original radiator recored but not sure how good a job it is. Have the radiator it came with but it was from a truck engine and not the exact same. They both had the same results. Engine was full of sediment and a lot of rust. Since there was so much wrong with this car that I have been slowly fixing, I pulled the trigger and had the engine rebuilt. A great local shop. Now when it runs, engine temp will slowly rise and rise and rise. Have an fan installed in front of the radiator and just now ran an huge fan in front of the car to see what will happen. Has a 160 degree thermostat. I tired it with and without the thermostat. Exact same issue, just took longer to rise with the huge fan. New water pump, all new hoses. Running a 50/50 mix of antifreeze. Timing set. Should I get a brand new radiator that I know has no issues? Have I overlooked anything? Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks for any help!
The first thing I would do is to drill a tiny hole in the thermostat to let any trapped air out. If you do that and the overheating still occurs you should verify it's actually getting that hot using an external IR thermometer. If the sender and gauge are accurate and it is actually getting hot you likely still have plugged cooling passageways in the engine. Hot tanking or baking an old, severely corroded engine is often not enough to fully clean it out. I'm sure others will have additional/alternate ideas. Good luck.
7046 old site posts
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1938 Master Business Coupe
1953 210 Sedan
First question I ask is: What do you consider HOT? Then: Is it high coolant temperature? Where is it measured?
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What you are describing does sound like your radiator needs attention. I also think your engine, with the fresh rebuild, would generate more heat until it is broken in/ rings seated.
I had a new core put in my 39 rad and used the original tanks and it cured the overheating problem. I do remember a post on the old site talking about the 40's running hotter from the factory when new. You might try searching the old site.
Dave
Lots of discussion on the "old" forum. Do a goggle search of 40 chevy cooling problem VCCA.
7472 old site post
Just a heads up...Tiny mentioned to drill a tiny hole in the thermostat to help let any trapped air out. Yes, I also have heard of this many decades ago. BUT, remove the thermostat and drill that hole at your work bench. I mention this just in case someone who has limited knowledge of working on vehicles reads this thread.
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