Engine Health Question - 1965 300HP

[Mark P.]

I took mk 65 300HP for a 300 mile road trip this weekend to see how it would perform on a long trip. I have had the car 6 months but probably never drove it more than 25 miles at a time. I drove 150 miles yesterday to my destination and returned today. It will be judged for the first time at a chapter meet and I wanted to give it a good road test.

It was only driven about 500 miles during the previous 5 years before I got it. I have changed the waterpump, fan cutch, coolant, carb, M/C and tires since I have had the car. The engine has all OEM components and does not have A/C.

The engine might have been rebuilt about 20 years ago I believe. It runs fine. It has a 180F thermostat.

After 3 hours of driving today in 85F temperature the temp guage was reading about 180F most of the time. This was at speeds of 55 to 75 mph. When I started climbing (up to 3,000 feet above sea level) or drove in stop and go traffic the temp sometimes would climb to about 195F. Is this normal ? The oil pressure was about 38 lbs and the RPMs were 2,700 at 70 MPH. I think I have a 3:55 ring and pinion gear. Does the RPM's and oil pressure seem normal ?

The radiator is not original but is aluminum I believe. I was thinking of replacing it with a correct DeWitts radiator. Would that help prevent the temp from going much above 180F ?

I probably burned about 1/4-1/2 quart of oil on this trip.

Overall, does the engine seem pretty normal and not that tired ?

[Dick W.]

Re: Engine Health Question - 1965 300HP

Don't fall into the trap believing that anything over 180 will hurt your engine. As long as you are not losing water, 220 will not hurt your engine. Besides mid year temp guages are nortoriously inaccurate

[Joe R.]

Re: Engine Health Question - 1965 300HP

Well, a half of a quart of oil is a lot cheaper than an engine rebuild so if that's all the distance you are going to drive, forget the oil consumption as a problem.

As for the temp. pulling hard with that rear end and rpm's you should be turning is not a problem.

Your engine is not 100% but do you want to spend a few thousand to make it correct?

JR

[Mark P.]

Re: Engine Health Question - 1965 300HP

I don't see a need to rebuild it. I just want to get a sense if the oil pressure and temps are OK.

[Michael A.]

Re: Engine Health Question - 1965 300HP

I don't see a need to rebuild it. I just want to get a sense if the oil pressure and temps are OK.

Mark
Whatever you do, don't rely on your temp gauge on the dash. If you're really interested in what temps you are running, invest about $100 in an infrared temp gauge (check the archives for recommendations of which one to buy). You can point it at the thermostat housing when you're dash gauge says 180F and get a real reading of what temp you are running. You can also point it at the upper radiator hose and lower radiator hose, when it's good and hot and you're sure the thermostat is open, to get a reading on the temp drop across the radiator - a good indication of how the radiator is doing it's job.

All that being said, if you drove it 150 miles and it didn't show signs of overheating, you are not dealing with a critical issue. Just don't base your judgment of what is going on with the engine on the dash gauge!

As for oil pressure, I'll leave it to the real experts on the TDB to offer a qualified opinion.

Good luck with having your car judged. Let us know how it goes.

Cheers,

[Mark P.]

Re: Engine Health Question - 1965 300HP

I have an infared thermometer and my gauge seems to read pretty close within a couple of degrees usually, If my guage is 180F then the hose near the thermostat housing is like 183F.

It was a nice feeling to have my confidence shift from wondering if my car was going to make it to now I feel pretty comfortable about the 100 mile trip to the Chapter meet.

[Timothy B.]

Re: Engine Health Question - 1965 300HP

Mark,

The specs for the oil pump pressure are 45lbs. at 2000 RPM. The guage could be a little inaccurate or the crank/rod clearances could be closer to the .003 spec. I would not worry about the oil comsumption.

[Brandon T.]

Re: Engine Health Question - 1965 300HP

Mark,

The specs for the oil pump pressure are 45lbs. at 2000 RPM. The guage could be a little inaccurate or the crank/rod clearances could be closer to the .003 spec. I would not worry about the oil comsumption.

In my experience even though you have a 180 t-stat in it's common to see it shoot a little over 180 it should open at 180 but you might see it over shoot a tad before starts to come down.

sounds normal to me.