1964 Newport cooling problem

Hi all. I have recently purchased a 1964 Chrysler Newport. It is all original 1 owner and has around 128k miles on a Chrysler 361. I took it for a ride after topping off the fluids and checking the brakes....It shut off about 20 minutes, and 1 mile from home. After changing the coil, rotor, cap, points (gapped to .017), plugs, and wires, I timed the car and let it run at idle for about 30 minutes or so. It all seemed fine... Took it for a short ride (had wife follow in the Durango this time) and once again got about 1 mile out before it shut down. I checked while it would'nt start and found that I do have spark, so I rebuilt the carb. all seemed fine once again, so I went for a short drive (around my complex this time) and it didn't shut off as before... Yeah! but then it got HOT and shut down ...DOH! I then replaced the thermostat and verified that the hoses aren't kinked, crimped or otherwise obstructed. I refilled the rediator, and as good measure replaced the cap. No change, car starts Idles great heats up and shuts off. Has anyone seen anything like this before? My wife is breathing down my neck over the growing parts list for this car. I did notice an odd throaty grumble (almost like pingin or knocking) coming from the engine after I changed the thermostat, and I noticed an odd sound coming from the water pump. I have no water in the oil. The car doesn't smoke, and I can see no leaks. Any info would be helpfull

Scott

Perhaps the water pump impeller is not pumping (but that alone would not cause the engine to shut off)? You can check the operation of the water pump by taking the radiator cap off, let the car idle, and when the thermostat opens up, see if the water in the radiator is flowing. It should be flowing fast.

Check to see that your fuel line is not touching a hot part of the motor. You may be getting vapor lock, and that would cause the engine to shut off when it gets hot.

The '63 and '64 Chryslers are wonderful cars, and they rarely give much trouble. I've owned one for 19 years.

Pete Phillips

'63 Chrysler New Yorker

Ector, Texas

Thanks,

I checked the fuel line, the only place it gets close to anything hot is at the fuel pump, but it isn't getting hot there. I did check for water flow in the radiator, and it doesn't seem to be moving much, and the input hose on the water pump stays pressurized, even after the thermostat opens... I thought this might be the water pump but wanted to narrow it down some before replacing anything else. So, can I get away with just replacing the impeller? know where I can find a water pump for a 1964 chrysler 361?

Thanks again

Scott

Hello, Scott:

I have a suspicion about your stalling problem.

There may be a rubber hose on the intake end of your fuel pump. If fuel pump hose gets weak from age, it will become soft when hot, and the fuel pump will suck it shut.

I friend of mine told me a story about a '33 Plymouth that made the rounds between him and all his friends back in the '40s, and it drove them all crazy with this problem. When my '50 DeSoto started acting like this, I remembered the story, replaced the fuel hose, and it was instantly solved. I'm sorry to say I didn't hear this story in time to help out a guy with a '56 DeSoto who was repeatedly stalled in a freeway in Sacramento, California on a hot day in 1992.

JON

Water pumps for '63 and '64 Chryslers are as close as your nearest NAPA auto parts store, although they may have to order it.

Pete Phillips

'63 New Yorker

Hi Scott, When you say the engine heats up, or gets hot, do you mean hotter than a normal, fully warmed engine? Also,

after it quits, do you have fuel available from the accelerator pump jets in the carb? If you have adequate voltage/spark,

cranking speed, un-obstructed exhaust, fuel in the carb, and eng. vacuum, you should be able to run regardless of eng.

temp. (relatively speaking). Have you ever observed your engine vacuum when it is running? Jon may be on to something.

I have seen/heard fuel pumps knock (like a lifter or worse) leak fuel into the crankcase (oil thins and level keeps climbing!),

and hoses kink and decompose.

The inlet of the pump should have good vacuum when cranking/running (pump vac. will fluctuate on a running engine as the needle and

seat cycle). A sending unit obstruction is possible (failed sealer, debris, etc.). The worst (similar) case I have seen was piston rings so worn

and broken that they could not make eng. vacuum on the engine unless it was over-night cold!

Good Luck,

Curious Bill

When the car stops, have you checked for fuel flow at that time? Does the accelerator pump still pump fuel from the bowl? What about having a correct gas cap for the vehicle?

A radiator that looks good at the top can be plugged at the bottom of the core, but the heat factor alone should not cause stalling if everything else is working ok. Are the dash gauges/lights working ok during this time?

What about the condition of the short hose that connects the sending unit to the body side fuel line? If it's original or not recent, it could be swelling due to the new gasolines we have these days. If you change it, be sure to reinstall the ground strap on that hose for the dash gauge to read correctly.

What about alternator output/battery condition? Have you checked those things with a voltmeter when starting and at the time it dies? I had a cable with an internal problem on another car. When it was bad, it lost 1/2 volt between the ends and the car would die at idle and might not restart until it cooled down; when it was working ok, it was ok--replacing it fixed it.

I concur with Pete, Great Cars in the Best Chrysler Tradition!

Just some thoughts,

NTX5467

Thanks for all the help,

I found and did the following:

1. I rebuilt the carb. -- Car ran a little better didn't stall quite as fast, and I found about an eighth of an inch of crud in the bowl, it was covering the jets.

2. Replaced the impeller in the water pump (and found there was no gasket from the water pump to the block) The impeller looked ok but the bearing made a lot of noise after I drained the radiator and refilled it -- Car no longer over heats, still shut off when I drove it at 40+ mph for a couple of minutes.

3. Installed a glass fuel filter in line with the carb -- A lot of rust and crud was evident..

4. Replaced the fuel pump

5. Replaced the fuel line from the tank to the block -- No more rust in the filter, car runs great still shuts off but much more infrequently.

6. filled gas tank with 5 gal of gas (car had about 4 in the tank, or so I thought, gas gauge doesn't work) -- Tank overflowed after about 1 gal was added...

So, it looks like the tank has a little varnish or bad gas in it. I added some cleaner to the gas, and swished it around in the tank (rocked the back of the car up and down) --- The gas gauge started working...

I have at last been able to drive the car more than 1 mile (actually I drove it about 10 on Sunday, and another 2 yesterday, it only stalled once and I am sure it is the pickup tube in the tank grabbing some varnish..

Thanks again.

Scott