Flathead engine assessment
 

I recently bought this '47 that has been partially restored, however the engine (and maybe the trany) need some attention. Since the previous owner passed away the records are not real robust. I need some advice on how to assess the health of the engine and/or what books or websites to look at.
Also, does anyone know about the "made in Canada" and other nomenclature on the engine head? Does anyone know what the numbers mean on the head? Any help would be appreciated. Thanks.

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>>>the engine (and maybe the trany) need some attention.>>>


Nice. The first bit of attention is finding out if it runs & drives.

Re: Flathead engine assessment
 

Before you start dumping tons of money on it, run it and drive it first, to find out any problems. It looks like a nice car. Do the easy stuff first like doing a compression check and making sure brakes are ok. Change the oil when engine is hot and change spark plugs when engine is cold.
Check all fluid levels.
Well done.

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https://www.fordbarn.com/forum/attac...p;d=1632863091

https://www.fordbarn.com/forum/attac...p;d=1632862696
1947 Mercury Convertible - very nice choice. Congratulations.

Re: Flathead engine assessment
 

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Those are nice heads, I used them on my 99a engine, good chamber volume.good for fuel economy
Lawrie

Re: Flathead engine assessment
 

Do a leak down test, to establish a base line.

Let it set idling and see if it over heats.

Take it out for drive around the neighborhood,and see if there are any issues. If there are none, then try the highway, for high speeds, all the time watching the temperature.

When you get it home from the drives, turn it off and let it set for 10 minutes, then try to start it again.

Enjoy it, you have a nice one!

I can't see where you are located, but try to take it to a car show and talk to people.

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THAT IS A GR8 LOOKING MERC !!!!!!! Enjoy it. x 2 on what Merc Cruzer said.

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C7RA may be a prefix for a Canadian cylinder head that was designed in 1947 for a C69A type engine. The 7RA seems to denote a truck type head which would likely have a bit less compression but I'm not real familiar with a lot of the Canadian parts. The 1948 truck engines were all of the 8BA family but had a lot of 7RA castings on them here in the US. The cars kept the 59A engines till 1949 here in the US.

Canada made all of their own engines and engine related castings since they had their own foundry. The C59A was the first post war Canadian 239 cid engine but they changed to the C69A engine somewhere in 1946 or 47. It has insert connecting rod bearings which Ford USA didn't use till the 8BA came out in 1948.

If the car has USA origins then it may have had one or both cylinder heads replaced, The Canadian VINs were different that Ford VINs so it should be easy to tell where the car was manufactured.

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It's hard to believe that someone would go that far with a Beautiful restoration and not pay close attention to thje engine's innards. As said, do a compression test. Hook up a good quality mechanical oil pressure gauge. The results can't really lie for the internals. Then do a Vacuum test. While I am by no means a professional machanic, I have been working with and studying the vacuum gauge with so many lessons learned in the last few years. And Really, let's just say it needs an engine....... Not cheap, but That's a weekend bolt in. The car itself looks gorgeous. My money says you are fine as is. Do the aforementioned idle/ hi speed tests and take it from there.

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Hi all. Well after some vacations, replacing all the coolant hoses and repairing the radiator I am focusing on the health of the engine. I replaced the plugs which yielded much better starting and running. Since my temp gauge is broken I put in a Bosch mechanical gauge on the passenger side to monitor temps. I tested it in boiling water prior to installing and found it to be about 10 degrees low. When the engine warms up, the 160 degree thermostats seem to open at the right temp which I verified with an infrared thermometer on the sensor housing. Interestingly, the right side warms up much faster than the left. Measuring temps on the sensor housings and heads shows that the left is about 15 degrees cooler than the right. Any thoughts on why this is?
I did a compression test and found that cylinders 1,2,3,4&8 were 120 psi; numbers 6&7 were 118 psi and number 5 was only 90 psi. My friend said those were good numbers but I am interested in hearing your feedback on this as well as why #5 was lower than the rest. I have not done a vacuum or oil pressure test yet. Thanks for your help and comments.

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Put it to a road test, that will tell you if its going to heat and by all means put even a temporary mechanical oil gauge. I am with GB on this one, nobody would have such a nice car and not have done the engine right. I would not worry about a compression test especially since apparently the car has been setting for a while. Putting it under a load is the best thing to do. What kind of trans problems do you have? If it pops out of second gear, that's fairly common but not a requirement to immediately pull the trans. It does not appear to have a Columbia, and from what I understand most Merc's had a 3:54 gear in the back so it should roll down the road well. Where are you located, some hills are in order to test it out.

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Yes, all good advice. I'd runn it for a few days at good load. say 2500 RM down the interstate for a ew miles. One thing that you can look for is a rich mixture, this is bad for rings and is usually overlooked. And an AF meter is a good investment, but the color of the exhaust pipe can tell you allot.
Gramps

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Those are some fairly healthy compression numbers. Drive it some more, and re-check the readings.

Most flatheads run a little warmer on the right side than on the left. DD

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Beautiful Mercury, best if luck with it

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Well my considered opinion is that it’s all trash and I would be more that happy to eliminated all the frustration and heartache much less the considerable fortune you are going to invest in it. Even the paint and color is less than desirable. I’ll haul it away for for you! ;).

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Thanks Jim!!! Are you always this generous or only at this time of year?