Packard Forum Index » V-8 (1955-56)

Hi Don, thank you for your response. My car does not have a/c. But I had thought it would be a benefit to the 359 L8 with an aluminum head to have the most max cooling as possible. In fabricating a new rad I was looking to do a thicker core. I will rethink. Your friend Andy at the Studebaker National Museum is sending the blueprints for part #455036 and #446509(a/c). Great call. I was thinking of a fan with more blades as well. I will also rethink that.
TC

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I have a multi-blade flex fan in my 1954 aluminum-head Patrician which I am going to soon replace with a stock fan. It works well and keeps the engine cool (a bit too cool in my opinion) but the main reason I'm replacing it is that it's noisy. That is, you really can't hear it when driving but with the hood open, the fan has a distinctive creak over the sound of the engine itself.

You may find the same issue of running too cool if you use an A/C radiator in a non-A/C car so why not just re-core your stock radiator? Unless you do a lot of slow desert driving, a thicker fan will not be necessary.

Hi Don, can you shoot me a picture and part # for your multi-blade flex fan? Cheers, TC

I'm still looking but the only photo I've found so far was of something else with the fan barely visible. I'm sure I have one somewhere but the car is 550 miles awau so I can't just go take one until I'm there next.

Hi Howard, Happy Thanksgiving. I have copies of the blueprints for the radiators for my car. The OEM (455036) for mine and the one with a/c (446509). Quick question, this might have been answered in previous forums, my radiator cap is 7 psi, the blueprints and shop manual say 13 psi. There was definitely a reason mine is 7 psi. Do you remember why?

TC

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7 psi was the postwar standard up until 53. At that time due to more reports of coolant being lost thru the overflow after a high speed run they went to a 12 and also made those retrofittable to the 51 and 52 models if needed. From 53 on it was mostly the 12 and 13 psi caps although a 7 was still available until 55.

They also changed thermostats with the change to the 12 psi cap going from the bellows type to the capsule type. It was found that as radiator pressure increased the bellows type did not open completely or even reliably at the stated temp. A larger diameter fan was also made available for warm climates or cars which had the coolant overflow problems. A larger radiator, multibladed fan, and a 12 or 13 psi cap was standard on AC cars.

Hi Howard. Thank you for your previous information. Quick clarification so I don't blow things up. My 54 359 L8 runs great. I had some seam leaks on the bottom outlet and top inlet on the rad in the summer. When replacing the hoses on the 66 year old rad a jughead decided to use a mallet. My regular mechanic sorted out. Recently though I noticed tiny leaks on occasion under the top of the rad tank. The stop-leak would probably work but I have a Gano filter that would get clogged. I obtained the blueprints for my oem rad with the thoughts of fabricating a new aluminum rad. In the meantime I switched the 7psi rad cap with a NAPA 13psi cap and no more tiny leak. Seems dubious? Vendors sell 7psi caps. The 51-54 manual shows for 54 12psi caps for all. The forum xref shows the 13psi option. I am not sure yet if my thermostat is a bellows or capsule type. I have some 180degree capsule thermostats that I haven't used yet. The temp gauge was perfect with the 13psi cap while idling in the driveway for 1 hour. Does this mean all is ok? What lead to 359 aluminum heads melting and is a capsule 180degree thermostat ok?

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The thermostat is probably a capsule type as Packard switched to them exclusively in 54. I don't know if Napa sells a 12 psi cap so that might be the reason others have crossed to the 13. Packard also has a bit of ambiguity because in the parts book they mention a 13 as the high pressure option while the service articles refer to it as a 12.

Several run 160 degree thermostats so the water can start circulating a bit sooner to give a bit more room before overheating could become an issue. If your car is not overheating then your 180 should be fine and the higher temp should give more for the heater to work with in the winter.

I cannot explain why a rad leak is seen at 7 but not 13 either. Logically it would be the other way around but seeing any leak at all and I think your radiator may be on borrowed time. Some say aluminum cools better and others say copper is still the standard. I do not know which is best but several have had a place in Alabama make custom aluminum radiators. They have them for some 30s models but nothing later than 48 postwar. Price seems fairly comparable with a copper recore using original tanks and mounts being in the 6-700 range while custom aluminum including new tanks and mounts etc is a bit more.

Merry Christmas ! New radiator, take a look. Hope it works. Thoughts are welcome.

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Nice radiator! Griffin Radiator in South Carolina, very reputable company.

Will be looking forward to a report of how the car cools with the new rad.