She still runs hot though. Only time will tell.
@Fender1325
“I also noticed one exhaust manifold bolt was missing”
If I were you, I’d take a closer look
In my experience, if an exhaust manifold bolt initially appears to be missing, a closer look usually reveals that the bolt is in fact sheared off
These are studs with nuts, right? Or are they bolts?
I think theyre all bolts. That bolt very well may have been sheared off, but that specific one has the other side of the hole visible and I didnt see a bolt in it, or feel the head on either side.
I’ve come to the conclusion that the only way to get the heads out is to undo the Y pipe and the cross under pipe that attaches to the driver side manifold. That way I can lift out the heads with the manifolds still attached.
Don’t worry to much about the water in the yet. I had flat head cyl Jeep motor that I had rebuild and ran only to brake it in. It sat out side with just cover over the truck that it was in. It had antifreeze in it. I pull the oil plug out after I checked the dip stick because it was way over full. Clear water came out in the amount of about 1 gal. I also had boat that would do it to. Change the oil and not run it and I would have water in the oil in the spring. Never had any problems with those motors. If you have water coming from the cooling system I would think the oil would mix with it and show it.
Also don’t be afraid to pull the heads and just clean them up and clean out the block. I have done this many times with great success. I even took the head off a 53 Chevy 6 cyl truck motor that was stuck. It took me 3 hrs with pry bar rolling the motor over after I beat the pistons free to get it to turn over when we pull it down the road. I used a wood block on top of the pistons and hit that with a 2# hammer. (50-50 trans fluid and KO) After I pulled down the road and the motor was good and free. I pulled the oil plug and using dish soap and a hose. I wash it all, inside and out. Some fuel oil to wash out the water. I put the head back on new points, cap and rotor and it ran fine. The things you could get away with on the old motors! LOL!
Hey I like it! I dont have an engine crane to yank the whole thing out but if I do pull the heads I’ll try and clean them out good, maybe with a power washer or something.
For anybody interested - I had my fiance shoot a quick vid of me riding it down the street and back
Thanks for the vid - that Caddy looks great driving down the street.
Thanks! Sorry the video isn’t higher quality but hey, thats all we’ve got.
You will have more in the future. Too bad those plain jane cars got in the way of our view.
Fender1325 I just wanted to thank you for bringing back memories of my long passed Grandpa and his 1952 Cadillac sedan. I remember him driving it like he stole it! The exhaust was not that loud but the intake sucking in all that air was WHOOOSH! As a 6/8/10 year old I was always impressed. Good luck on your project. I hope you can complete it.
Looks even better when moving and those wide whitewalls do it justice. You’ve got a pretty straight running and driving old sled so you’re already way ahead of the headache game that revolves around old cars.
nice…
@sgtrock21 Thanks for the kind words. That carb really does suck in a lot of air, especially when you take the air cleaner off and somebody revs it - makes a woosh like you said.
@ok4450 I assure you its worse in person than it is on youtube hahah.
Thanks wes
While you don’t have to replace the exhaust, you might enjoy how it sounds with a new system.
The exhaust is pretty rotted out. Theres not even a full connection to the muffler (which is pretty shot anyhow). Hence how it sounds, which I kind of enjoy, but I’m sure having little to no back pressure doesnt make the engine the happiest, but right now thats the least of my problems
Still the overheating, right? Do I remember that you had a shop rod out the radiator?
Yes. The shop apparently acid washed and went through it and gave it a clean bill of health. I think the rust lies in the engine itself
You could still add an electric fan to the front of the radiator and that should eliminate any overheating issues. It might require reversing the wire polarity so the fan will run backwards seeing as how it would be pushing and not pulling air but that’s not a big deal.
Even if it does have a few rough edges I still like the car and my reaction to seeing it pass by would be “COOL”!
Cool! Too right. It’s going to be quite the head Turner, like something from a museum. OK, it may not be top of the line, but it’s still a Cadillac from a time that still meant something. You should get a retro sports coat (a bit loud) to wear while driving. Add a pair of good old Wayfarers and you’ll look like an old Hollywood character actor.