Thread: Cooling issue in my '35 Ford

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Shroud plus put in a 192 t-stat, that will give the water more radiator time to cool down.

Thanks, will try the t-stat first, no room for a shroud.

Originally Posted by lbroknwing

Thanks, will try the t-stat first, no room for a shroud.

Can you post a couple of pictures of your installation so we can see what you're dealing with here?

Originally Posted by lbroknwing

Thanks, will try the t-stat first, no room for a shroud.

Pics would be great - - - you can modify or make your own shroud, if necessary.

with over 400 HP it never overheated I'm Thinking like Bob. The rad. is 4 core and the same size as the stock opening. using a belt driven flex fan

Pictures sure would help. Also some measurement of the distance from the back face of the radiator to the nearest components (other than the fan).

When you say that it gets hot at idle, are you in gear (assuming an automatic)? Does the automatic tranny have a cooler in the radiator? Is the Walker radiator intended for the 350 installation or is it a modified flathead radiator? North Carolina doesnt get that hot. What brand of puller fan are you using? What brand of "premium" water pump"

I dont think that an oil cooler will help much, if any. What you need is air flow over the entire radiator surface. Without a shroud, the fan pulls air thru a donut shaped section of the radiator surface.....making your effective radiator very small. When you get up to speed, the air pressure on the front of the grille/radiator forces air thru the entire radiator....thus it cools with an entire radiator but not with a donut radiator. Shrouds are pretty easy to fabricate that can clear most accessories on the front of the motor. There cannot be air leaks around the shroud where it meets the radiator. The clearance from the tips of the blades should be minimized but allow the engine movement. The fan tips should be just inside the shroud. Belt driven fans pull more air but also take up more room. Dont be excited about CFM ratings too much.....the ratings are a sales tool.....mine is bigger than yours type stuff. Ratings are influenced by pressure and temperature so they can cheat pretty easily. I encourage you to take a fresh look at a shroud.....there must be a way to get one into the open area.

On my vehicle, I have a problem with the transmission oil temp at slow speeds...so I have tried oil coolers with fans, finned coolers, multiple coolers, etc to no avail.

mike in tucson where it is warmer a tad than it is in North Carolina

If you have room for a fan then you should have room for a shroud. Without a shroud you are going to continue to fight this problem. As previously stated the air needs to be pulled through the radiator not around it. You can fab this up your self to suit your dimensional requirements. I would do this before I spent any more on radiators or fans or oil coolers. Fix the real problem first.

Originally Posted by robot

What brand of "premium" water pump"

Do not overlook this suggestion. It was my cure for an exact operating symtom like yours. My pump was a generic brand polished aluminum water pump. It would over heat anytime the car slowed down like comming off the freeway. Turned out the impeller was spaced a long distance from the pump body causing almost no coolant flow at idle and slow speeds. A Flow Cooler brand pump cured all of my problems. My '32 has solid hood sides, and no louvers in the solid hood top. I never turn the fan on, unless it's an extended stop light or a long line into an event. It runs at 180 all day.

Sorry guys I read this as 53 ford must have been a senior moment

Oh yeah - water pumps!! After a less then stellar experience on a built 351W, decided I needed something better for this engine/car then the NAPA used previously so I'm using a Stewart's water pump. Not cheap, but my engine has never run hot with a Stage 1 : Stewart Components - High Performance Automotive Cooling

But - I sure would see about fitting a shroud first. Easy to build if you can't find one commercially available.

How much advance at Idle? Are you you using port or manifold vaccum? Will make a big difference on idle temps.

I am a tech at Evans cooling and I want to explain something abot radiators.......Copper/brass are good radiators and they do dissipate heat very well. Downside is that they are not made of all the same metal. They have brass tanks that are lead soldered to the cors. The lead solder holds heat and dissipates it slower than the copper/brass. Plus copper/brass radiators usually have 3/8" wide tubes inside the radiator, which is not that big compared to aluminum.
Aluminum radiators start at 2 rows of 1" tubes and can be gotten bigger...1.25" or 1.50" wide tubes depending on how much power/heat the motor makes. So 1 row of aluminum tube flows more coolant that 2 rows of copper brass. Plus aluminum rdaiators are all one metal and can dissipate heat more evenly plus they are lighter.
Hope that helps..............we at Evans try to help with any cooling problem just call.

Thanks everyone for all your suggestions. I am going to take some pictures and TRY to post them. If I can't figure it out, I'm sure my 12 year old grandson can!