Glad to hear that your cooling problems seem to be resolved.
I would certainly concur that retarded timing could be a major contributor
however I would have to disagree regarding the "pusher fan" issues.
On AHX12 I use a fan from an early Dodge Caravan
This 4 bladed fan with a fairly comprehensive shroud definitely obstructs
air flow to the radiator but this seems to have no effect at low or high
speeds.
The engine in this car runs so cool that I had to install a thermostat to
get the temperature up over 160 degrees on a 65 degree day and the fan only
comes on for a brief period after the car has been idling for several
minutes.
Installing a thermostat on a 100S head is a bit of a challenge and I ended
up using 2 TR3 thermostat housings to do it.
Although I have never tried running the engine with them removed I believe
the ducting that I installed to prevent the recirculation of air from the
engine compartment made all the difference and would strongly recommend that
as a first step in resolving overheating problems.
Photos will be stripped but I will be happy to forward them to anyone
interested.
Michael Salter
100S (1955)
3000 Mk111(1965)
100 (1953)
AHX12 (1953)
Bugeye (1961)
http://www.netbug.net/blogmichael/-----Original Message-----
From: owner-healeys@autox.team.net [mailto:owner-healeys@autox.team.net] On
Behalf Of M Lempert
Sent: June 18, 2007 10:15 PM
To: Healey List
Subject: Cooling Update, Part Two
It got through ! Must have been too long.
Cooling Update, Part Two. The Solution...
Fired it up and took a drive. While it was only 80 degrees that day, ten
less than the trouble day, all was well. In fact, the temperature was barely
hitting the 160 mark. After some spirited driving, partly to listen for
horrible noises that might indicate a problem with the fan, I pulled into
the driveway and let it idle for several minutes - at least the duration of
four or five stop lights. The temperature rose, but didn't get much above
the 180 mark. I'm pretty happy with that as its better than it's ever been.
In conclusion, I believe the timing did contribute to operating temperature
and I would have liked to know how much, but oh well. I believe the pusher
fan impeded air flow and was more of a problem at speed than help at idle.
The big new fan no doubt draws more air through this thicker radiator at
idle and this I believe makes a big difference. However, I would recommend
the smaller flex fan for most people and recognize that cutting down the
diameter of a fan risks balance issues and more - don't try this at home
yourselves folks.
The one last thing I will do before hitting the long road to Conclave is add
some water wetter as added insurance. I hope to leave Charleston on
Wednesday or Thursday at the latest. As much as I hate it, I'll probably be
taking route 95 all the way north. I'll break in Jersey for a couple of days
before the second leg to Vermont. Anyone else traveling that route ?
There's safety in numbers.
Regards,
Mike Lempert
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