It's been a long time (too long!) since I have posted on the forum and now I am back asking for tips and advice.

I had my A-22 out over the weekend for the first time since fall. She started and ran great, but was running a little warm. Ambient temperature was in the 80s F, so I thought I would be okay. Well, when I was about 30 miles out I hit a particularly hilly stretch of road and she got very hot. Steam was blowing out the radiator overflow and oil boiling off the top of the head. It took me longer than I would have liked to pull over, but this stretch of road has no shoulders and few driveways.

When I got stopped and lifted the hood I could really see how hot it got. I also could see a little bit of the copper head gasket sticked out from the front of the head. I got it cooled off and towed back to my shop. As background, the engine was rebuilt <300 miles ago by a machine shop that specializes in antique and vintage cars. The block was hot tanked at that time and new head gasket installed. There is no coolant in the oil now either.

So, now I have some questions.
First, any good guesses what might have caused the overheating in the first place? It has never had an overheating problem before, even on 100+ mile drives. I haven't pulled the water pump yet, but the impeller not working correctly is one of my thoughts. She was full of water/glycol coolant mix and topped up with fresh oil. I put fresh premium gas as well.

Second, if the water pump ends up being the problem and the impeller is bad, is there anyone remaking them?

Third, is anyone using a modern temp gage retrofitted into the system somehow? I am very inclined to find a way to do this now.

Fourth, any torque specs for the head and water pump would be greatly appreciated. It will be a while before I can really tackle the project, but I want to be prepared.

Appreciate the help and advice everyone. Glad to be back on the forum, wish it were for better reasons! :sweat_smile:

Where Are You From? Marysville Kansas

Do You own a car built by Durant? 1923 A22 Touring

Hello Todd Overheating can be a timing issue also. You could be slightly too retarded and the problem surfaced with the hills. Or your lever is in the wrong position (operator error).
Check the impeller, but I would think the rebuilder checked the status of the impeller as part of the rebuild.

Where Are You From? Tucson, AZ

Do You own a car built by Durant? 4

Thanks Bob. I hadn't thought of that as being a possible cause. I actually don't have the steering wheel controls connected in my car. When we rebuilt the engine and got all the bits run, we weren't sure exactly how to get things set up, so we got everything seemingly time right and ran it. That was close to 300 miles ago. I wonder if things could have 'shifted' out of time on their own?

It's been a few years, but as I recall the impeller was not in wonderful condition when reinstalled, merely usable. I guess I will do my diligence there and see what is found.
Thanks again.
-Todd

Where Are You From? Marysville Kansas

Do You own a car built by Durant? 1923 A22 Touring