Re: water/antifreeze

Posted by su8overdrive On 2012/12/31 17:22:28

The above gents give good advice, and i agree especially with Mssrs. Bumble, post # 4 above--tho' it's better to never start an engine unless you're going to drive 20 miles and get the oil hot enough to avoid sludge, varnish and carbonic acid--- and Cole, #9. A car has to be exposed to two consecutive nights of a hard freeze, 30 or below, to risk a cracked block, but why take chances? The radiator will expand slightly, but if cold enough, and the slush hardens, your block won't give.
Antifreeze is wretched stuff, toxic, but sweet and deadly to small children and pets. It also leaves a film on cooling system passages inhibiting heat transfer, according to a Chrysler engineeer writing in the Auburn-Cord-Duesenberg newsletter years ago, and breaks down after two years even in an unopened jug. Conventional green antifreeze should be drained and replaced every two years.

But unless you live in Siberia or Duluth, you don't need a 50-50 mix. Check the chart on the jug for the lowest expected temperature in your region. And use ONLY soft water, never distilled, which is ion-hungry and leaches minerals, like solder, from your cooling system.

Thankfully, in the greater SF/Oakland Bay Area, we can and do get by without antifreeze, just soft water and a quality rust and corrosion inhibitor like www.no-rosion.com which i'm a big fan of and if you order some tell Jay Ross a black '47 Super Clipper in Walnut Creek sent you. When i find a good product for our survivors from a company that goes the extra mile, i believe in spreading the word, otherwise we're stuck with naught but generic crap for modern Kleenex cars. Running straight water also lets you advance your timing another notch for performance and fuel economy.

Any car will run cooler with just straight water and a quality rust inhibitor, than with antifreeze, all else being equal. Doing so is vital in race cars with their tiny frontal area, tho' they may put a teaspoon of the stuff in their system so they can get away with their antifreeze sponsor decal.

If your friend's car's been neglected awhile, it can't hurt to pour a couple pints of kerosene and two pounds of Arm & Hammer washing soda (NOT baking soda!) in the cooling system, drive for a dozen miles, then flush with a garden hose. Run a coat hangar or piece of welding rod in the opened drain plug at the left rear of the block to get any loose sediment out. If you suspect decades of deferred maintenance, he may have to remove the radiator hoses, thermostat and back flush away.

You didn't mention which model your friend's Packard is.
If it's been awhile, it's a good idea to check cylinder head torque warm if iron, cold if aluminum, and the manifold bolts and nuts. This was part of a complete tune up in the day.

Your friend sounds like a newbie, so assure him so long as he keeps oil and water in his lubed, tuned Packard and regardless of its thorough engineering, drives it like the old car it is, not a Taurus, Camry or Accord, he'll be able to enjoy it for perpetuity.

For newer cars with air conditioning, even in Scottsdale or LA in August, you need to use 15% antifreeze merely to keep the heater core from freezing.

To a grand, healthy, relaxed 2013 to all here gathered on the finest automotive website for the world's consistently finest production car, 100 years since Packard's fabled 525-ci Six was renamed the Model 48 for its third year, a model that as much as any cemented the Company's name in the automotive firmament. And why aren't we hearing from any 1911-15 Six owners?