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

I have a either a kanter or merrit waterpump ,I think kanter; which worked just fine ,I had a hot problem that didnt go away untill I did EVERYTHING on your list ;new radiator core to rule out internal leaks ;new headgasket to make sure exhaust gasses werenrt getting into the cooling system ( there a test for the water which cheks for carbon monoxide) ;,there was a rock like thing at the back of the heat distribution tube so the rear cylinder wasnt getting cool hot water fixed but still hot ,i replaced my hoses ,changed the thermostat ,set the timing (it was way off ) cooler! ,you name it ,
some oddball things that kept her on the warm side ;
my vacumb advance unit on the distributer had an old hard diaphram ,replacing this takes about 15 minutes ,can be done with the distributer on the car ,you have to kno if your a delco remy or autolite kind of guy ,its just tricky reaching the small hold down screws ,requires a really stubby flat head screwdriver and a little bitty box rench for the vacumb line ,BIG difference and got cooler !
,also the radiator cap was worn ,it looked ok but ...I bought a new one ,it leaked so I made some rubber gaskets for it and now its a snug fit; cooler !
I gaped the plugs right ,got cooler!
I got a huge 6v battery (fork lift;napa 7212 i think ) this didnt make it coooler but ended the hot start mess
I replaced the ignition points with a pertronix 6v pos gr and got a 6v alternator and some good plug wires ,cooler!
now she never gets hot ( but for sure will overheat tomorrow because I said all of this ,good luck

Thanks Steve. I'll try the distributor advance job soon. That's one thing I haven't tried. I'll also see about getting a laser temp sensor gun to check things.