Dodgy49

The car had been sitting outside in Florida for 35 years, I’m just a little suspicious of the overall state of the fluids. It runs and drives but it seems to be struggling at speeds above 40, looking for input and insight.

I have read I need 3 pints of 10w or ISO 32 oil for the fluid couple, and 3 pints of SAE90 for the gearbox. I am looking for suggestions as to how to flush those two components before adding new fluids.

Joe, I asked the original owner how it ran for him, I even gave him the assurance that if it did run hot I didn’t care I just wanted to know so I can see what I need to look at. His claim was it ran about 180.. and it does if I’m moving. So based on several mentions here it’s more than likely an air flow problem. I have a cardboard mock-up for a shroud and hope to have it end of next week..

9 foot, sorry for the slow response, I haven’t found the serial number yet, (hadn’t looked yet) I was able to move the radiator up about an inch and the fan blades are below the bottom of the top tank, and in the fins, it is better at idle and drops right off at 25mph. So there is still a flow problem, I will start mocking up a shroud.

I am looking for a good way to make smoke with the engine running. Once upon a Tim I had a vacuum line to a transmission fluid bottle that when the line was opened would make smoke. I find later on that smoke may or may not have been a low level nerve gas. I am scheduled in a parade and want to have some fun. Suggestions for fluids, sea foam? Clean it while having a laugh?

Ok this is the thermostat configuration. I’m thinking it’s an internal bypass. The engine was out of a 50 Wayfarer... not sure if it was original, but it was running that was light years ahead of the engine the car came with. The bubbles were just coolant moving around they stopped after a cycle of the thermostat

Busy coupe That’s a good tip, I wouldn’t have necessarily thought of that. Greg, once I start driving it I’ll adjust as you have mentioned. All good things to look at

Ok I have found the problem. I flushed the both the radiator and block. I attached a sock to the outlet of each and started against the flow. The had radiator had a little bit of grit in the radiator , but the block was clean. I removed the thermostat and reassembled everything. Filled with water and ran it. Ran hot again. Put a box fan in front of it, came down a bit, brought up the RPMs and the temp readily came down. So the three tube radiator and the mid-alignment of the fan isn’t drawing enough air at idle. So im going to get a new thermostat (just cuz) and look for a 6 volt radiator fan. Thank you everyone for your input.

Sser2, I’ll check the lower hose today. Torqczar, Yes there is flow at temp, if I rev the engine the level drops a bit then comes back up as the rpms drop. The bubbles are larger and clear. I’ll have to check both hoses this time. Just thinking aloud. The fan is not parallel to the radiator it’s 3/4 inch on the bottom and about 1/12 at the top. In addition to all the things mentioned I may add a box fan in front to see if that helps. Thanks for your replies I know this is a worn out subject

What year, what engine, positive ground? 12 Volt? 6 Volt? Has there any wiring done? (Assuming positive ground) If you run a jumper from the negative side of the battery to the negative side of the coil. See if it starts then. it may rule out a switch problem. (Or check voltage on the negative side of the coil while cranking)

Ok I have read the tech sections, I am a little freaked out and I don’t want to blow this thing up. I checked the thermostat 160 degree. Did the hot water test it did open. it’s installed the correct way, pellet toward the block. I Added a 1/8 bypass hole (which I used on my bomber race cars) used a turkey fryer thermometer at the radiator fill. Newer aluminum three tube radiator. Stock guage reading 212, fryer reading 190 -200 very slight downward trend. But the overall trend is hotter not cooler. I am running in the garage at an idle and some higher revs. This is the same equipment the original owner of the engine was running in his Wayfarer with no issue. At the lower temps I could see a cycle of the thermostat but the temp just kept climbing. I have a time lapse that shows the fryer at 200 but it’s much to big to load here. What do ya think stuck thermostat?

Ah!! All good things... thanks

The 49 Coronet has a 3:90 rear gear, BUT it is in rough shape. I have a 3:73 rear end out of a 50 wayfarer, in good shape. The only differences I can find are the ratio and drum size. The Coronet has 11” drums where the Wayferer has 10” drums (but they work) RPM calculators show a difference of 100 Rpm at the same speed. I’m going to swap the rear end BUT I am curious as to what you guys think. I’ve never driven the car aside from around the block, but if the 3:90 is worth a rebuild I can start getting parts together and still keep the project moving forward.

Sorry guys I forgot to mention they are a vinyl. I’ll look into the armor all products and see what they have.

Hey folks, So the original seats in the Coronet are in mostly fair to good shape but are dirty, dry, and brittle. Is there a wax, lotion, balm, whatever that will rejuvenate the material? I’m not expecting perfection but these poor things need some attention and I don’t want to clean them with something that will do more harm than good. Thanks