59AB Cooling System Advice Needed from the Experts (not an overheating issue)

[rick r]

Had the same problem on my 8BA. Foaming is caused by worn water pump seals. When running, the inlet side of the pump is under av slight vacuum. The worn seals allow air to be sucked into the system, causing the foaming. When the engine is shut off, there is no vacuum being created and the seals re seat, thus no coolant leakage. If you want more info on the subject, e mail me at [email protected] or call me at 705 439 2567 or 705 934 4434(cell)

[anothercarguy]

Originally Posted by rick r

Had the same problem on my 8BA. Foaming is caused by worn water pump seals. When running, the inlet side of the pump is under av slight vacuum. The worn seals allow air to be sucked into the system, causing the foaming. When the engine is shut off, there is no vacuum being created and the seals re seat, thus no coolant leakage. If you want more info on the subject, e mail me at [email protected] or call me at 705 439 2567 or 705 934 4434(cell)

Thanks for the reply...my waterpumps have about 500 miles on them. I'm hoping that's not enough miles to wear them out.

[JWL]

It seems irregular that the 7 lb. cap would pass such a quantity of material at the temperature values reported. Until the cap sealing is actually verified It seems suspicious. Verifying means an actual test as used in service.

Further, surely the amount of coolant being installed will give proper indication of whether or not a large quantity of air is present in the system. If there is a question about thermostats hampering the fill or interfering in any way just remove them for a proper test.

[anothercarguy]

Originally Posted by JWL

It seems irregular that the 7 lb. cap would pass such a quantity of material at the temperature values reported. Until the cap sealing is actually verified It seems suspicious. Verifying means an actual test as used in service.

Further, surely the amount of coolant being installed will give proper indication of whether or not a large quantity of air is present in the system. If there is a question about thermostats hampering the fill or interfering in any way just remove them for a proper test.

When I take the rad in next week, I'm going to ask them pressure test the rad and cap as a unit, as well flow test the core. I don't think the thermostats were causing air pockets as I've drilled an 1/8" hole in each (around the rim) as an air bleed. The block and rad fill and drain without any surging and gurgling.

With the coolant at or below the bottom of the upper radiator inlet tubes (needed it at this level to perform the CO in the coolant test with engine running), I drained 4 gallons of coolant from the block and rad. I estimate that it would take another couple quarts to bring it up to the level I first filled and operated.

My current theory, after speaking with the guy that followed me down the highway (he said that it would puke only at the top of the sustained climbs up the hills), with the engine working a little harder, it gained a bit more heat (as confirmed by the 5-10 degree increase in temp on the gauge). This caused the air in the aerated coolant (due to the filler neck being about 2" too low) to expand and build pressure sufficient to overcome the rad cap and flow into the coolant recovery tank. Ultimately culminating in too much coolant in the tank and flowing out the overflow of the recovery tank.

Another possibility is that the rad core is unable to flow at the rate the pumps are capable of pumping at 2600-2700 rpm. But the fact that this was only happening at the the top of the sustained hill climbs seems to bring in a the engine working as a variable.

So, my current plan is to have the rad checked and modified as discussed above (and in previous posts). I do want to continue using antifreeze/water mix as the coolant (I like the anti corrosion properties, I like the increased boiling temp and of course the anti-freezing qualities), but I'm going to use some sort of Water Wetter product (maybe Redline) as an additive. I understand that the way this type of product works is that at a molecular level it allows the molecules to more tightly bond together making it more difficult for aeration to begin as the coolant is heated. I don't have any experience with this type of product, but it isn't an expensive experiment.