312 auto engine temp

[outcruisen]

Guys.. Finally finished the rebuild and had the car registerd to be driven on the roads down here in Australia.. Now we are mobile, and never having had a Y block before, I am trying to find out what is considered "Normal" operating temp.

Currently I am running a 160 degree thermostat, but the car seems to want to sit on 180 when driving down the road (On a day that is confortable T shirt weather).. then goes up to around 200 in reasonable traffic or successive sets of stop lights. The enging is at +.060 and has new rings bearings cam and heads. Also running factory auto trans, but running through a small trans cooler mounted to the lower front of the radiator, which is also new.. The car does come back to just on the 180 when we get moving.

Guess trying to find out from old school Y blockers what "Normal" range should be..

Seem to be having no fuel vapourisation issues now I have removed the glass fuel filter and placed a plastic 2 inch spacer under the carby (600 vac secondry Holly)..

Any info would be much appreciated..

Cheers

[JimNolan]

Outcruisen,
    I've had 239's, 292's and 312's. The 312 punched out .060 is going to run hotter than normal. If you haven't got a Griffin Aluminum radiator now, you will later. It'll probably be after you try cooling shrouds and electric fans but eventually you'll get one. You also can help yourself by using a five to seven blade fan and keeping your fan blade within 3/4" of the radiator. Jim PS Cooling shrouds and electric fans will help but it's similar to the German and Japanese philosophy of fixing a problem. If you had a pump seal that leaked on a machine, the Germans would engineer two or three design changes to the pump housing configuration. The Japanese would make a seal that didn't leak.

[outcruisen]

Point taken.. Just sent an email to Griffin to see if they will ship internationally to Australia..

What size radiator did you run in the +.060 Y Block.. Guess asking if it was a 2 row, 3 row etc?

Cheers

Mark

[JimNolan]

Mark,
   When I owned the 312 was back when. When I found the advantages to the Griffin radiator was when I put the FE blocks in the 57. I'd paid $650 for a 3 row CoolCraft Opti-Flow reproduction out of California that wouldn't keep the temp down. I also had a 312 radiator that I had recored for about $350. I'd bought an electric fan and screwed with it until the fan blade got loose and eat a hole in the radiator. I had an ABS fan shroud that the top actually melted enough to drop down and hit the fan during a Gulf Coast Cruise when I was stuck in traffic. Those were expensive endevors too. I finally listened to a guy on this website and got a Griffin Aluminum radiator. When it came the holes were drilled in the right places and it fit perfect. I think it is a two row, the three row was too thick for the FE Block ( the FE block sits futher forward that the Y-Block ).
   I run a 160 degree thermostat and my water temp stays at 160 degrees most of the time. If I'm stuck in traffic and have to sit for a long period of time the temp may go up to 170-180. During the Columbus meet when we were sitting in the staging lanes in 105 degree temperature I let my engine run to keep the engine from heat soaking. It went up to 170-180 degrees while the guys around me were seeing 220 degrees on their engine. (One of the guys is a member of this website). That guy also runs a lot more HP than I do, that will cause more heat too. The only problem I had at Columbus was fuel vaporization. It don't matter how cool the engine is if the temp around the engine gets too hot. Next time I sit in the staging lanes I'll pop my hood like everyone around me were doing. I'm not a Griffin Radiator salesman but I could be. Jim PS Griffen radiators aren't cheap, but neither is the alternitive.

[shopratwoody]

FWIW My 429 cools fine with stock style rad with a mod type core.

[outcruisen]

Shop.. What temp does your engine run at on the freeway.. Then in traffic?

[shopratwoody]

It runs about 180 most of the time. It'll warm up to 195-205 cruising the Fairgrounds
for 1/2 hour or so. That's with the ol 4 blade. I'd like a 5 blade, just got to find one.
No schroud either. Didn't come with one from Ford either.

[Zapato]

shoprat look at Chrysler products in the u-pull-its, I found a 7 blade fan in an 80s Cherokee V8, really pulls a lot of air. I also find it hard to believe that a mildly built 312 couldn't be kept cool with a stock cooling system in top shape.

Zap-

[outcruisen]

Zap.. Just trying to find out what "Cool" actually is?

180 might be normal, just never having had a y block before I am not sure. I also have a strange feeling my mechanical sun pro temp gauge may not be showing correct temp, as when the gauge was showing 190, my work calibrated temp gun was only showing the engine block at 173..

The water dose not seem to boil, or fuel vaporize in the carby, so might just be fine..

Cheers

[Ford Blue blood]

Did you use teflon tape when installing the sender?  If so remove and put good ol non-teflon pipe dope on it and see what you get.  Use the heat gun an read the temp of the top tank, the lower tank should be a few degrees cooler if all is well.

[JimNolan]

It would be a good idea to make sure your ground strap from the firewall to the engine is making good contact. I usually put the battery ground to the engine (for the starter) and then I use a good ground strap from the firewall to the engine to handle the body grounding. Jim