Just got done installing my new 302 this past Saturday after spending about two weeks on it. It runs great, with the exception that it is overheating. We are still diagnosing it and trying to find the problem, but in the meantime I have another question. While the motor is running and for a couple of minutes after I shut it off, smoke somes out of the valve cover breather cap and I was wondering if that is normal? I will post some pictures here in a little bit.
An idea on the overheating - make sure your radiator is flowing well. I've made this mistake before. Flushing is cheap.
OK. Does it make any difference now that I've run the motor a few times and the fluid has circulated through the motor?
how long has it run??? If hasent run for very long.(I am guessing it hasent been driven yet)you may have an air pocket in the cooling system that needs to be burped out.Are you sure the radiator isnt plugged up???
It has been driven a quite a few times and each time it got up to temp or over. I'm not sure about the radiator, it's the original one. I'm just not sure now if I should just try to flush it and see if it gets better or just upgrade to an aluminum one.
After 30+years my original radiator was quite plugged up even though it looked like new(scale deposits in bottom of core tubes)I put a new 3 row in it and alls right with the world.So It could be the source of your problems.you dont have any funky aftermarket pullies on the engine that underdrive the water pump do you??
Also ... if you are using a newer motor and the water pump that came with it, the pump would be reverse rotation. If you bolted up an old V-belt pulley set-up to it, it would be turning it the wrong direction. That change came in some time in the 1980s.
Are you using a shroud? If everything is mentioned above is fine and you still have overheating problems, you might think about adding an electric fan. There's a good Taurus fan write-up or you could also use an aftermarket fan and controller (that's what I have and it works great!).
I've actually got a brand new stock water pump, the stock fan shroud, and a 16" electric fan with an adjustable controller.
One thing no one has mentioned is that 'fresh' engines run much hotter than normal while breaking in. As an engine breaks in and all the bearings and rings settle and seat, the engine has less and less friction, therefore less and less heat. If your rings have not seated yet, you could see some blow by from the valve cover too. I don't know if these are what you have going on, or not, but somethings to keep in mind. The rings should seat within 500 miles though, IMO... If the problem persists, you might have a small mistake from the build causing a big problem. Examples: *Head gaskets installed wrong direction. *Rings installed in wrong position, clocked wrong, upside-down, bent, etc... *Mis-packaged rings or bearings! This is why folks blueprint. (I got 'std' bearings in a -.020" container once!) *Thermostat installed backwards... don't laugh. (Can you do that with a Ford? Some engines you can, really skrews things up!) *Not so much a heat maker, but the wrong oil can actually keep the rings from seating. Must use 'dino' oil, and light weight is best IMO. Some folks recommend straight 30. Thick oil will cause added friction/work for the engine, and might affect heat. ???
I had read about the thermostat being installed in the correct position as well as the head gaskets and I made sure they were put on correctly. Thanks for answering my questoin about the blow by and for the suggestions. I will keep an eye on it and see if it starts to cool off some. Otherwise, I guess I am looking at a new radiator.
Do you have a mechanical fan, and the electric is just auxillary? Or is the electric fan your only fan? The electric fan may be your culprit if you don't have any other. For a single electric fan to stand alone, it must flow substantial CFM. Also, some are reversable. If it is wired to push, when it should be pulling, for example, it will not do it's job well. EVEN WITH a belt driven fan. Edit: Give some details... Does the car run hot no matter if it is on highway/open road, or in traffic? If it runs cooler when traveling open road, 40+ mph, then you are not getting enough air flow. General rule of thumb. If it can overheat while highway driving over 40 mph, then there is another issue, often radiator. Then again, hopefully it's just fresh engine heat.
