Packard Forum Index » Post-War (1946-54)

how much coolant would I have to let out of the system to remove thermostat housing. I dont want have any of my shop cats gone from drinking the coolant. its a 48 custom with 356 CID. thanks in advance CC WELL think i found the "elusive" overheating problem. never overlook the OBVIOUS. THE CONNECTION AT THE SENDER WAS DISCONNECTED imagine that ive owned the car for over 10 yrs. dont remember doing that. hope thats the answer feel kind of foolish. CRS strikes again CC

I'll chime in. I would drain a gallon and then loosen the top hose clamps and see if any more coolant leaks at the thermostat housing and hose connection. If it does, drain another quart or more until you get no more leakage. Then cover the drain pan containing the coolant so the kittys do not get into it. Sounds like you have had a bad experience with coolant sitting around uncovered. Regardless of the amount drained the important thing is to cover the container.

You are not saying why it is necessary to remove the housing, new thermostat, leaking gasket, something else? We would be interested in knowing and might even be able to help you further on this job.

(o{}o)

OH It is running " normal to hot " on the gage. drove it home to so cal from Albuquere ,ran normal. was in july across desert. via Page AZ . got home after acouple years decided to check thermostat YIKES wasnt one went to NAPA got one installed went along few years then started this over heating problem.just getting it up and running after cleaning gas tank and installing a rebuilt fuel pump. dont have the vim and vigor I had 10 years ago and 81 doesnt help either CC

Thermostats often get blamed for high engine temperatures. Probably the only time they are to blame is when they stick closed or only partially open. There is a brand of thermostats that are designed to stay open when they fail. I have one in my 55 Clipper. I think they only come in 180F and higher ratings.

You most likely have other things causing your engine running "normal to hot". Does it run normal when in motion and then goes to hot when idling for a few minutes?

(o{}o)

temp gauge shows normal at the beginning of run goes to hot after warmup then returns to normal and repeats "normal to hot" syndrome. I suspect thermasta. any other opinions are wecome!! CCt

Thermostat is a good first place to look. You can test it out of the car. Place it in a pan of water along with a thermometer on your kitchen range and watch the operation as you bring up the heat. It should start to open near the rating temp and be fully open at the rating temp. It should stay open until you cool it down. Watch the operation on the cool down too.

(o{}o)

It's good to use an infrared thermometer on the block. It keeps the gauge honest. They're only about $22.
My gauge reads warm soon after running as well, even though the temperature is fine.
More sorting for a later date.

Dear Rj:

Just drain a couple of gallons from the radiator.

However, as noted elsewhere this anti-freeze and animals stuff is baloney. Especially cats which have no sense of sweet.

I worked in a place with dogs running around and cats and they ate everything in sight, but never touched the anti-freeze. Even rats don't touch it. I don't know about bears nor skunks. But I don't care. I think because bugs end up in the stuff that some nutcase decided that it's delicious for everbody. And for some screwy reason nobody ever mentions that a child could drink the stuff.

For some reason people with crazy ideas seem able to triumph over intelligence. That's the world we live in.

Another easy thing to check on your erratic temperature readings while you have the radiator drained is to remove the temperature gauge fitting from the cylinder head. The bulb of the gauge tubing needs to be immersed in the coolant flow. Being located at a back corner of the head, it may be covered in rust build up. Make sure the hole is clear and both are clean. The condition of the hole may also give you and indication of the rust build up in the cooling system.

(o{}o)

I rebuilt the gas line for the temperature gauge a 34 Chevrolet last week - the fellow was putting it back in the dash when the old line fatigue cracked on him. I spliced a new line in and tested it by putting the bulb in boiling water - it registered 190 degrees max. I was concerned that I had let some of the gas escape, so I put a new line in with the same result. I realize that Packard gauges have to be better than Chevys, but the moral of the story is test the little boogers before you take the indicated temperature as gospel.

I've had temperature gauges bounce all over the place before after I'd changed fluid. This was caused by having air bubbles/pockets in the block. Drilling a small hole (1/16" will work) in the thermostat before installing it will usually cure the bubble problem.