Last night I blew the radiator in my 66 Polara 383. I limped it a mile to the gas station and right as I was pulling into a parking space it started ticking at idle. I checked it with my temp gun and the radiator was at 200f and the thermostat housing and block was 210f. I shut it down and got a tow home. Today I filled it up with water and the tick/tapping noise is still there but comes and goes now. It doesn't change with rpm. I'm thinking maybe a cracked head cause it was pouring steam out the oil fill?
Did I fry my engine?
- Thread starter 66Hardtop
- Start date
bluefury361
Old Man with a Hat
200/210 should not be an issue for that short time. Are there bubbles visible in the rad when running at idle? Is the oil on the dip stick milky?
Steam out of the oil fill is not normal, sure its steam, not smoke/vapors?
Steam out of the oil fill is not normal, sure its steam, not smoke/vapors?
69 300 vert
Well-Known Member
If you blew most all the coolant out, the internal engine temperatures could be MUCH higher. If you haven't blown head gaskets, cooked ignition wires, coked the oil you're probably okay. No idea on the ticking.
A mile on an engine at operating temperature and loss of all coolant or water pump is too far. 2¢
A mile on an engine at operating temperature and loss of all coolant or water pump is too far. 2¢
The temps you cited are not hot enough to have killed the engine. If the noise you are hearing does not change with engine RPMs, you do not have anything broken and running around in there. Normally a head will not crack with overheating unless you got the engine a lot hotter than that or you put cold water into an overheated engine. Get a hydrocarbon tester from your local auto parts and follow the instructions to check the cooling system for combustion gasses, if you get a positive test result for hydrocarbons, you probably have a cracked head or a blown head gasket, which is probably what is causing the over heating problem to start with. Is the "steam" coming out of the breather there at start up or only after the engine has warmed up? The engine could just be getting tired and starting to have some blow by. You also could have water contaminating the engine oil which is evaporating as the engine warms up. Check the PCV valve to be sure it is working and the engine breather for white residue, that usually means water in the engine oil. Engine oil will also turn a grey color if there is water present. Run a compression test on the engine, if two cylinders next to each other have low compression, that is indicative of a bad head gasket. If you have access to a bore scope you can also check each cylinder for pooled water on the piston tops, a sign of leakage into the cylinders. You do not want to drive this vehicle until you figure out what is wrong with it. If you have a coolant leak, put some light oil in each cylinder so that the engine does not get "stuck" Check these things and report back.
Dave
210 degrees is where most modern engines normally run with their factory 195 degree thermostat. That, in itself, should be no issue, even if you drove it a while. How much OIL is in the engine and does it smell "burnt"? A KEY indicator of something wrong.
Otherwise, fix the problem, refill with quality coolant to the 50-50 level, change the motor oll/filter for good measure.
If you're concerned about any cracks, just drain the system and refill with plain water. Then drive it to see if there are any overheat issues. PROVIDING that where you're at is still above FREEZING! Reason I mention that is that water by itself might not leak, whereas the coolant mixture with antifreeze will leak. So put the least amount of antifreeze in the coolant mix initially, to see if there are any leaks, first.
CBODY67
Otherwise, fix the problem, refill with quality coolant to the 50-50 level, change the motor oll/filter for good measure.
If you're concerned about any cracks, just drain the system and refill with plain water. Then drive it to see if there are any overheat issues. PROVIDING that where you're at is still above FREEZING! Reason I mention that is that water by itself might not leak, whereas the coolant mixture with antifreeze will leak. So put the least amount of antifreeze in the coolant mix initially, to see if there are any leaks, first.
CBODY67
A few months ago...in warm Florida weather...I raced a pal's Roadrunner from a light (murdered him at the 'tree' and stayed a nose ahead of him) until at the 2-3 shift it kicked all the belts off except one alternator belt.
Soon, the engine was at 250+, with some small amounts of water spraying out of my overflow bottle. Otherwise it was running fine.
I continued for 22 miles at a steady, light-throttle 60 mph to my garage, shut it off and walked away. I tend to leave boiling hot engines alone.
Next morning I went to Napa to get GOOD belts, topped it off with about 3/4 gallon of 50/50, started instantly and ran beautifully. Still does.
Your results may vary.
Soon, the engine was at 250+, with some small amounts of water spraying out of my overflow bottle. Otherwise it was running fine.
I continued for 22 miles at a steady, light-throttle 60 mph to my garage, shut it off and walked away. I tend to leave boiling hot engines alone.
Next morning I went to Napa to get GOOD belts, topped it off with about 3/4 gallon of 50/50, started instantly and ran beautifully. Still does.
Your results may vary.
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69 300 vert
Well-Known Member
Sure sounds like collapsed lifter. Figure out which side, pull that valve cover and check the valve action.
thrashingcows
Senior Member
Yup sounds like a bad lifter, not sure why loosing your coolant and running a tad on the hot side would cause it to fail, but these things happen.
78Brougham
"Chump"
You know you got her REAL HOT when you shut it off and it keeps running. Then.... you got problems.
cbarge
World Famous Barge in a Budget
As a couple others mentioned..bad lifter.
Alright I pulled both valve covers. Everything is nice and tight. Fired it up and noise still there but after letting it get warm the noise got better but was still faintly there. I shut it down after 10 minutes since the radiator is junk.
78Brougham
"Chump"
What weight oil are you running? And how many miles on the engine?
78Brougham
"Chump"
Change the oil and see what happens. Oil is cheap compared to major engine work.
Ripinator
Old Man with a Hat
Yes. With over 97K on the clock, do this with Penn Grade 20W-50 and a new NAPA Gold filter.
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