Radiator boils over

Dear Mike , I would like to add my two cents worth as well to perhaps help to solve your problem . Yes, the water distribution plate under the side cover might be eaten away btu , I would also suggest that water might be blowing out of the cap or even the overflow for several reasons , 1. the gasket on the cap might be worn and causing a leak ;2. the ignition timing could also be retarded ,as suggested earlier ,3. The biggest problem that I've had with my '33 and my '31 was that they had no thermostat and this has a general tendancy to allow the water to circulate through the upper hose in too high a volume and this in many older cars causes the throwing water problem ! I would also very strongly reccommend that you get a thermostat that is in the range of ;151-160 degrees and, not the higher temperature ones . I think that if you check with ,Tom Hannaford ,of Then and Now Automotive at ,447 north Washington street , Weymouth , MA , 02188-2910 , or phone him at 1-781-335-8860 , you can get the correct thermostat from them , I got several for my Auburns and, He also does one hell of a good job rebuilding fuel pumps as well ! I hope this helps you , it did on my cars

Hi Michael, I might ask you why you use antifreeze? Water runs 15 degrees cooler than antifreeze. And if it gets on your paint, no problem. You will need to use a water pump and anti rust lube. with it. I also use a 160 degree stat with a !/16 hole drilled in the base to help filling. This is on a big eight in a L-29. I also use .001 of piston to bore clearance for each inch of bore. That equates to .003 for big eight. The water side cover must have the water distribution holes. I run 3 1/2 hours to Auburn on the enter state and the temp is 160 to 170 degrees regardless of ambient temp.
CORDially Mike

AuburnAutoCo wrote: 31-33's are supposed to have a water distribution "plate" ( about 1/4" high, with various size holes in it) welded onto the back of the side inspection cover (plate on generator side of engine held on with 32+ screws). These have all but rusted away over the years due to corrosion inside the engines.

After fighting overheating issues for a few years, including radiator recore, block flushing, re-ringing engine, rebuild waterpump, etc., etc., putting the water distribution "plate" on finally solved the problem.

This was printed in the club newsletter last year, with a dimensional drawing of the plate. Made up a new cover with the distribution plate on the back. Hole sizes get smaller the closer to the water inlet. Same piece was used on L-29 engines as well.

I have tried to find the article from 2005 regarding this plate and have had no luck. Anybody know which article this was in?
Thanks

Mike: I have owned my Auburn 8-98 for almost four years now and have always suffered from overheating and coolant loss until recently when I had my engine rebuilt by John Forsythe. Since re-installation of the engine, I find that my temp usually runs between 140 and 160 degrees depending on speed and traffic. I also run a thermostat as well as a home made restrictor in the upper hose. This seems to eliminate coolant loss from around the radiator cap. I also allow the system to seek it's own level after finding that keeping it completely full almost always seemed to cause some coolant loss. Another thing that I do annually is to flush the system with one (1) cup of powdered dish washer soap for at least 30 minutes after which I thoroughly flush the system and refill with a 50/50 solution of coolant and water. Good luck. lloyd riggs, walnut creek, ca.

After an experience years ago w/overheating and not being able to find cause, I put car on a dyno and found that under load the lower radiator hose was collapsing. You may want to put wires in hoses to prevent collapse. JMM

I spoke to Jay Engler yesterday. He had two suggestions in this regard that solved this problem with radiator boil overs. He suggested doing two things to solve the problem : first insert a spring into the lover hose to maintain patency and prevent it from collapsing. Keeping the hose open will help the fluid exit the radiator and not tend to boil over. Second, he suggested putting a restrictor in the upper hose line, like a 3/4 inch restrictor to limit the incoming pressure (coming into the radiator) He devised a method to install such a restrictor and he has had very good success after doing both of the above. I hope that I accurately stated Jay's ideas and certainly hope that this will help others that have experienced similar problems. MA

AuburnAutoCo
Could you post in which number this article about the Water
Distribution Plate was published?

31-33's are supposed to have a water distribution "plate" ( about 1/4" high, with various size holes in it) welded onto the back of the side inspection cover (plate on generator side of engine held on with 32+ screws). These have all but rusted away over the years due to corrosion inside the engines.

After fighting overheating issues for a few years, including radiator recore, block flushing, re-ringing engine, rebuild waterpump, etc., etc., putting the water distribution "plate" on finally solved the problem.

This was printed in the club newsletter last year, with a dimensional drawing of the plate. Made up a new cover with the distribution plate on the back. Hole sizes get smaller the closer to the water inlet. Same piece was used on L-29 engines as well.

I don't think the GU engines have this feature.

Do the 1931-1933 Auburns have a water distribution tube behind the water pump? The 1934-1936 cars have a long brass tube that runs the length of the block. There are holes in this tube that direct coolant to the hot spots internally in the block. Very often this tube and the block around become plugged and full of crud. Some engine rebuilders tend to leave this tube in when the block is cleaned because they are sometimes very difficult to remove. So even though there is a new radiator core, a rebuilt waterpump, timing and fuel mixture are on the money, the car still over heats.

I totally solved a cooling problem on a '35 Auburn by advancing the timing. Have you checked yours? I was advised by one of the experts to advance it as far as possible without causing a kickback during starting. Which is about 10 degrees BTDC in my case.

after driving 3 auburn a total of over 35,000 miles and 23 years i guess i have a few comments. first i agree with mike , they seek their own level. from what i've experienced a themostat is not necessary unless you drive in extreme cold. even then 160+ is hard to maintain. this winter i drove 350+ miles in one day, 15 to 20 degrees and with a '180 stat and the radiator over 1 half covered i could barely get 160 @ 65+mph. as to hot weather 180 is easily maintained wih a good radiator, 160 'stat and 60 mph. the gauge will surge to perhaps 195 at a stop sign after a long run, then drop to 175 most of the time. i always use a thermostat (180) and i'd like to use a 170 , but their hard to find. tight fitting gaskets made from rubberized cork work best, be sure overflow line is clear.happy motoring, mm

With long distance driving my "new" 8-100 doing the same, WITH thermostat. I have added one more GASKET ring under the radiator CAP.
No more overflow whilst running since then. Be sure to have long hose connected to your overflow outlet.
At speeds between 55 to 60 MPH, and the head temp at 180-190, the water temp at inlet radiator is 210. Believe me, I installed new calibrated dash temp gauge and additional at rad. inlet.

While I can't fault what Pete told you, and it is generally accepted that the thermostat is necessary, I found the opposite with my 8-100A. I had had the car for about 6 years, driving it to Auburn every year, and most years quite a bit locally. Only the hottest days would get the temp gauge up over 190, and once I began letting the rad find its own level (i.e. not overfilling it), had few problems with the cooling system. All this time, I never checked, but assumed there was a thermostat.

When I pulled the head for a valve job at the end of the 6th season, I found I did not have any thermostat, nor was there any type of flow restrictor. I agonized over the thermostat for a while, but in the end put it back together the way I found it, except for a Gano filter in the upper hose to catch debris. I suppose this restricts flow in a limited way. We are in our 9th year together now, the temperature still runs the same 175-185 degrees it always has, and I quit worrying about it some time ago.

A good friend, who may weigh in here at some point, has tried everything, and I mean everything! Even tho his old rad had been cleaned and flowed pretty well, and after trying everything else 2 or 3 times, he eventually put in a new core. His car still runs hotter than he'd like. John Forsythe once told us, that in his experience, some of these engines just seem to run hotter than others for some inexplicable reason.

So, is the advise about the thermostat good? Yes it is. Am I going to put one in my car? No I am not.

There you have it Mike.

You MUST use a thermostat. Mine did the same until I put in the stat; I assume you have cleaned the rad. Pete

I own an Auburn 1931 898-A and have had it for nearly three years. It is a really nice car but despite all attempts I find that the radiator will boil over after the engine has been running for a time. Thermometer usually in the 180-190 range and despite having the radiator flushed it still happens. I have been told that these old cars all tend to do the same and that the radiator should not be over-filled. I just know that after driving my car that I wind up having to wash the vehicle to remove the dried antifreeze before it erodes the recent paint job done in Garrett. So, while not expecting any miracles, are there any tips or thoughts to minimize the radiator overflow. Much thanks. MA