T/A Performance makes headers for 455 Buicks also. Last fall a plain steel set was about $450. Shipping was $50. I bought a set for my hot rod project as Hookers were WAAAAY more that I could budget for this. Fit and finish seems excellent, still building so I don't know how well they will perform on a running car though.
still overheating...
- Thread starter Dana Bennett
- Start date
Dana, sounds alot like how my 77 was until I replaced the water pump and put on a high flow sport cat. I also had an oversized single pipe systme installed. Put some life into the power as well. The car used to throw alot of heat through the floor board.
Tom Hoczyk
PCS Past President
My experience
The above writers all make valid points. My '76 S&S Victoria has a '69 472 engine in it. (I was told the original engine was run with very little water and cooked itself to death, got replaced by Uncle Charlie Butler.) I have an actual temperature gauge in this car. I have taken it to PCS in Kingston and Cadillac/LaSalle in Kansas City, both on very hot days, especially coming back from Kansas City, 96 degrees. I can't remember what gradations are shown on the gauge, but I DO know that after a while of driving, the needle will get slightly into the red and stay there as long as you're driving. This is with the a/c running. I believe it will be slightly lower when I turn the a/c off. Anyway, my point is simply that I had two choices. Drive the car, or not drive the car, with the needle getting into the red. I chose to keep driving, and if I didn't have the gauge, I wouldn't have known any different. It drove just fine, and still does. One of these days, though, if I'm desperate to spend money on a car, I'll probably have the radiator either rodded or replaced. My radiator guru says that rodding ought to do the job. If nothing else, I hope this makes you feel a little better, Dana. I look forward to seeing you again in Hudson. Tom
The above writers all make valid points. My '76 S&S Victoria has a '69 472 engine in it. (I was told the original engine was run with very little water and cooked itself to death, got replaced by Uncle Charlie Butler.) I have an actual temperature gauge in this car. I have taken it to PCS in Kingston and Cadillac/LaSalle in Kansas City, both on very hot days, especially coming back from Kansas City, 96 degrees. I can't remember what gradations are shown on the gauge, but I DO know that after a while of driving, the needle will get slightly into the red and stay there as long as you're driving. This is with the a/c running. I believe it will be slightly lower when I turn the a/c off. Anyway, my point is simply that I had two choices. Drive the car, or not drive the car, with the needle getting into the red. I chose to keep driving, and if I didn't have the gauge, I wouldn't have known any different. It drove just fine, and still does. One of these days, though, if I'm desperate to spend money on a car, I'll probably have the radiator either rodded or replaced. My radiator guru says that rodding ought to do the job. If nothing else, I hope this makes you feel a little better, Dana. I look forward to seeing you again in Hudson. Tom
Gonna say that rodding out a radiator is much cheaper than rebuilding a motor. Running hot only shortens the life span of tyhe motor.
Fought a overheating problem for weeks on a newly built Stock Car engine we were racing years ago. Even to the point of pulling the heads to replace the Head Gaskets.
Then lo and behold a fellow competitor came buy and asked if we'd changed water pumps? No. Put a new one on and Voila!! Upon opening we found the impeller had fallen off the shaft.
Dana Bennett
PCS Life Member
just a small update...
I have gotten the 180* thermostat but have not yet installed it as other things have been being worked on plus the car is actually stored at my girlfriends house rather than mine so limited in time that I spend working on car, if it was here I could at least do a little bit more and a little bit easier.
while another job was being done i looked at my exhaust manifolds, I thought they were cracked but I guess I was mistaken (well, REALLY cannot see drivers side as it is covered with that heat shield) but I DID spot something that is DEFINITELY a PROBLEM!!! while looking at the passengerside exhaust manifold and wondering how hard it would be to remove the bolts I suddenly noticed something just didn't look right at the last cylinder, BOTH bolt heads are MISSING!!!! I felt inside and just the heads are broken off but I'll bet that is one place that I have a leak!!!
which brings me to another question....
are exhaust manifolds just flat bolted to the heads OR is there a gasket of some type between the head and manifold???
just over two weeks to go, with a hope and a prayer my car (although unfortunately NOT very pretty) WILL be in Hudson!!!
Dana.
I have gotten the 180* thermostat but have not yet installed it as other things have been being worked on plus the car is actually stored at my girlfriends house rather than mine so limited in time that I spend working on car, if it was here I could at least do a little bit more and a little bit easier.
while another job was being done i looked at my exhaust manifolds, I thought they were cracked but I guess I was mistaken (well, REALLY cannot see drivers side as it is covered with that heat shield) but I DID spot something that is DEFINITELY a PROBLEM!!! while looking at the passengerside exhaust manifold and wondering how hard it would be to remove the bolts I suddenly noticed something just didn't look right at the last cylinder, BOTH bolt heads are MISSING!!!! I felt inside and just the heads are broken off but I'll bet that is one place that I have a leak!!!
which brings me to another question....
are exhaust manifolds just flat bolted to the heads OR is there a gasket of some type between the head and manifold???
just over two weeks to go, with a hope and a prayer my car (although unfortunately NOT very pretty) WILL be in Hudson!!!
Dana.
Bill Carlin
PCS Life Member
Exhaust manifolds were originally bolted to the heads with gaskets, and then, at some point, they started bolting them on without gaskets. Some gasket kits still come with exhaust manifold gaskets, and it is a choice to use them or not. If the mating surfaces are not machined perfectly flat, then the gaskets will help to eliminate leaks. Personally, I like gaskets, but I hate doing exhaust manifold work. Fixing the head bolts is more important now than an exhaust leak. I suggest that you consider not rushing to get the car to Hudson, and concentrate on getting there yourself and having a great time. Why run the risk of not getting there at all if the car breaks down? I would want to have a few weeks of driving the car locally before taking it on the road for a extended trip.
Hi, I have been away for a while on other interests, but I'm back, and maintenance and repair are my primary interests, so I hope I can offer some help from time to time.
These cars as designed and built should not overheat. GM and other manufacturers have very demanding requirements and tests for the engine cooling systems, so if you have a chronic overheater something is wrong. GM if I recall required a car to not overheat if it was parked with its front against a wall, idling with the air conditioning on, in high ambient temps.
Water pumps: sometimes they have impellers which are pressed onto the steel shaft, and they either get loose on the shaft, come off the shaft, or become so corroded they won't move the coolant. Sometimes engine blocks get the cooling passages so full of crud and rust that there is not much coolant flow, particularly in the rear of the block and heads, and sometimes flushing as normally done won't get it. Radiators become clogged internally; also the fins can lose contact with the water tubes due to corrosion or damage and this inhibits the heat transfer as it all demends on the fins. Fan clutches can lose their effectiveness: be sure the fan clutch is really powering the fan when the unit is hot. Retarded ignition timing really can heat things up. A plugged catalytic convertor or exhaust system won't help. Is the temperature gauge really right? Never assume the instrumentation won't lie to you, 'cause it will. Sometimes cooling systems can air lock if they are not filled with coolant carefully, and the engine will overheat because the coolant is not flowing. You can try running with a less than 50% anti-freeze mix as this will increase cooling ability a little, but itf this is necessary something is wrong because it was designed for 50% antifreeze. You should not run without a thermostat, because running too cold is as bad as running too hot. Is the thermostat a good one? Sometimes the new one you bought is no good and you assume it is because it's new. Heat it in a pan of water on the stove and watch it to see if it opens all the way. Be sure the bottom radiator hose is not sucking together. Watch out for cracked heads or blown or leaking head gaskets, of course.
I hope this gives you some things to think about while diagnosing your car.
These cars as designed and built should not overheat. GM and other manufacturers have very demanding requirements and tests for the engine cooling systems, so if you have a chronic overheater something is wrong. GM if I recall required a car to not overheat if it was parked with its front against a wall, idling with the air conditioning on, in high ambient temps.
Water pumps: sometimes they have impellers which are pressed onto the steel shaft, and they either get loose on the shaft, come off the shaft, or become so corroded they won't move the coolant. Sometimes engine blocks get the cooling passages so full of crud and rust that there is not much coolant flow, particularly in the rear of the block and heads, and sometimes flushing as normally done won't get it. Radiators become clogged internally; also the fins can lose contact with the water tubes due to corrosion or damage and this inhibits the heat transfer as it all demends on the fins. Fan clutches can lose their effectiveness: be sure the fan clutch is really powering the fan when the unit is hot. Retarded ignition timing really can heat things up. A plugged catalytic convertor or exhaust system won't help. Is the temperature gauge really right? Never assume the instrumentation won't lie to you, 'cause it will. Sometimes cooling systems can air lock if they are not filled with coolant carefully, and the engine will overheat because the coolant is not flowing. You can try running with a less than 50% anti-freeze mix as this will increase cooling ability a little, but itf this is necessary something is wrong because it was designed for 50% antifreeze. You should not run without a thermostat, because running too cold is as bad as running too hot. Is the thermostat a good one? Sometimes the new one you bought is no good and you assume it is because it's new. Heat it in a pan of water on the stove and watch it to see if it opens all the way. Be sure the bottom radiator hose is not sucking together. Watch out for cracked heads or blown or leaking head gaskets, of course.
I hope this gives you some things to think about while diagnosing your car.