At Wits End - Please Help..
Posted: Fri Dec 04, 2015 2:15 pm
Bit of essential back story so please bare with me.
My dad had a 3.5 in his Capri. Ran well for many years. Then at the same time that I decided to build a V8 defender 110, he decided to upgrade from 3.5 to 4.6.
Long story short we split the bill for 2 brand spanking new 3.9 blocks from Eric Gorr. We got a great deal. If I remember correctly we got both blocks for £600.
Now fast forward to the point that we built a nice pair of 4.6's. Obviously slightly different specs to suit 2 totally different types of vehicle.
The Capri was completed and 1st impressions while driving raised huge grins. Especially as the car uses a 2 litre rear diff! However it soon became apparent that there was an overheating problem. Didn't think much of it. Presumed air lock. Nope. Then thought it was maybe old waterpump. Nope. Then renewed thermostat and sent the radiator away for professional reconditioning. Still not cured.
Starting to get frustrated at this point. Removed heads and had them x-rayed even though water doesn't appear to be getting pressurised. Checked out fine. Noticed that while radiator was roasting hot in the top half, it was cold in bottom half so in a rage my dad removed the recon radiator and cut the the ends off convinced that he would see a blockage in it. Guess what, it appears clear!!
I now put it to the collective to come up with ideas. We are flat out of them.
The ONLY thing I can think of now, and this is total guesswork, is that there is something not quite right with the brand new block. It's the only thing that has changed from the old 3.5 days when the car ran lovely..
The radiator is from an old Audi 5 cylinder. We have been told that it is more than man enough for the job. Besides, if the rad was too small it doesn't explain the difference in temp between the upper and bottom halfs.
My dad had a 3.5 in his Capri. Ran well for many years. Then at the same time that I decided to build a V8 defender 110, he decided to upgrade from 3.5 to 4.6.
Long story short we split the bill for 2 brand spanking new 3.9 blocks from Eric Gorr. We got a great deal. If I remember correctly we got both blocks for £600.
Now fast forward to the point that we built a nice pair of 4.6's. Obviously slightly different specs to suit 2 totally different types of vehicle.
The Capri was completed and 1st impressions while driving raised huge grins. Especially as the car uses a 2 litre rear diff! However it soon became apparent that there was an overheating problem. Didn't think much of it. Presumed air lock. Nope. Then thought it was maybe old waterpump. Nope. Then renewed thermostat and sent the radiator away for professional reconditioning. Still not cured.
Starting to get frustrated at this point. Removed heads and had them x-rayed even though water doesn't appear to be getting pressurised. Checked out fine. Noticed that while radiator was roasting hot in the top half, it was cold in bottom half so in a rage my dad removed the recon radiator and cut the the ends off convinced that he would see a blockage in it. Guess what, it appears clear!!
I now put it to the collective to come up with ideas. We are flat out of them.
The ONLY thing I can think of now, and this is total guesswork, is that there is something not quite right with the brand new block. It's the only thing that has changed from the old 3.5 days when the car ran lovely..
The radiator is from an old Audi 5 cylinder. We have been told that it is more than man enough for the job. Besides, if the rad was too small it doesn't explain the difference in temp between the upper and bottom halfs.
