Heating

[Eric S]

I read something recently on a french FaceBook discussion group about the water pump on little birds.
It was said that OEM water pump had a failed design and needed to be modified by adding a spacer A432 designed by Christopher Ames from Paragon Technology.
I don't have any heating problem on my 56 but was just wondering...

Also am I right in thinking that just removing the thermostat will help in cooling, increasing the coolant flow?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q0N9MYW7ND8

[Eric S]

This question seems to have been un-noticed here!?

[simplyconnected]

Removing the thermostat is a mistake. The cooling system has a balancing act going on where too much flow does not allow the radiator enough time to exchange heat. Too little flow is even worse.

Make sure your heat riser valve is not stuck shut. Better yet, block off your exhaust crossover with a shim between the intake manifold and the head. That way the heat has no choice but to directly exit through the exhaust system. (I used a cutting torch to eliminate my heat riser valve in our 292 Y-block.)

I believe truck and Edsel Y-blocks use different water pumps (from Ford cars). All models wearing a Y left the factory with the correct pulley and spacer. Now, we are into aftermarket for 'custom' applications. - Dave

[Eric S]

Dave
did the Y engine is known for over heating. Over here, they seem to have heating problems that's why they use this custom spacer. If someone is making a custom spacer, there is a need for it?
How can we tell if we have the correct spacer and pulley on an engine?

[jopizz]

If your car is not overheating why do you want to modify it and add an aftermarket part. I don't remember any major overheating issues when these cars were new. If there were Ford would've issued a TSB to fix it. If a modified spacer was needed they would've changed it back then. Any overheating problems now are probably due to wear and tear on the engine. This part looks like a band-aid to fix bigger issues. Your spacer and pulley should have a part number on it. The spacer is B5SZ-8A510-A and the pulley is B5S-8509-B.

John

[simplyconnected]

John, it's the same problem everyone is having with their classic gasoline engines. They were made to burn leaded gasoline but there is no such thing anymore and they took out zinc and phosphorus from our oil. FE engines have the same heat related problems burning unleaded gasohol.

I think of all the ways owners have customized their cooling setups including; dialing back ignition timing, adding shrouds, electric fans, oil coolers, etc. The correct 'fix' is to build your classic engine using the same components that modern engines are made with. Y-block guys are totally dependent on John Mummert for aluminum heads and intake manifolds while FE guys can buy Edelbrock aluminum heads and intakes across the counter at a much more attractive cost (than Mummert's offerings). BTW, both heads are made in the Edelbrock foundry and both include bronze valve guides, stainless valves, Viton valve seals and helicoiled bolt holes. Roller cams are available for FE engines but NOT for Y-Blocks because of the odd lifters in a 'Y'. Roller cams allow the use of common motor oil without ZDDP because roller tappets are not flat.

I run both engines in my classic Ford cars, a 292 Y-Block and a 390 FE. Without prejudice, the FE is less constrained insofar as aftermarket offerings because there are tons of FE engines out there. To put things in perspective, Y-Blocks are small, about 300 cubes, and they should be appreciated as such.

Want more HP? Get an FE that hovers around 390 to 427 cu in. They are cheaper to build and easier to find components for.

The idea of a different fan spacer is to correctly place the fan in a shroud. I don't mess around with mechanical fans that were never designed to allow the car to sit at idle speeds for extended periods. My radiators wear an electric fan in FRONT, pushing cooler, more dense air into the cores. Electric fans come in their own shroud. I cannot think of a single modern vehicle without an electric fan. They don't overheat. - Dave

[Eric S]

I don’t hany plan in fixing something that is not broken. As I said to start with, this just arose on a T-bird facebook group and I wanted to find out if this was solving a real problem .
The spacer will bring the fan closer to the radiator but I understood that the thicker pump blades were moving more coolant.

[MOONRNR]

When FORD put the Y-BLOCK into the BIRD, they had to extend the FEAD (front end accessory drive) as the engine sat back as compared to the PASS CAR install. FORD used a WP spacer to move the WP forward to align the drive belts. The problem was they used the PASS CAR WP and the impeller did not reach far enough into the spacer/front cover to move coolant efficiently. This is the main cause of the overheating in the BIRD. There was also a design deficiency in the font cover volute that impeded correct coolant flow.

This spacer will alleviate that problem and there are also aftermarket WP's available that have an extended impeller to move the coolant more efficiently.

[MOONRNR]

I don’t hany plan in fixing something that is not broken. As I said to start with, this just arose on a T-bird facebook group and I wanted to find out if this was solving a real problem .

The spacer will bring the fan closer to the radiator but I understood that the thicker pump blades were moving more coolant.

The PARAGON SPACER (will not move fan position) replaces the BIRD OEM spacer and improves coolant movement due to the poor original FORD design. The front cover has a machining flaw (WP mounting volute) and the BIRD water pump (same pump as used on PASS CAR) is moved outwards with the spacer as opposed to the PASS CAR and TRUCK. Circulation is poor as a result due to the WP impeller not being completely within the front cover WP mounting housing.

There are also WP impellers available to let you retain your original WP casting, especially if you are concerned with matching numbers.

READ HERE - https://thunderbird.us/

The front cover volute casting also has to be cleaned up to ensure proper coolant flow.