Santee denizen 74 FJ40

[FeralOne]

Hello,

I've been afflicted with the TLC bug for 6 months now, since I obtained my '74. Been freshening things up, TRE's, shocks, etc. It has been interesting working on these machines (electrical t-shooting is especially fun), and I'm currently looking into carburetor tuning and cooling system flushing.

Can anyone chime in with cooling system experiences? The other day I overheated while traveling at freeway speeds-prior to this I had no problems with overheating, in fact it ran on the cooler side according to the temp. gauge. Drove it on a good 60 mile off road shakedown cruise through Ocotillo/Painted Gorge/Ocotillo Wells with nary a hiccup. Did you flush your system with the auto store stuff or take it to a shop for the full monty flush & pressure test, etc.?

I have recently rebuilt the carb and have troubles getting it to idle right. It will run, idling a bit high, and stutter a bit at low speed and as I accelerate. If I get on the gas it goes just fine.

Anyway I'm in Santee and would like to see some other rigs eventually-photos of mine below.

Thanks in advance,

Dave

 

[SoCalDesertCruiser]

Hi Dave! Welcome!

Given that you haven't had previous cooling issues and your overheating happened while at speed, the first thing I'd check for would be a sticking thermostat.

 

[Chungas Revenge]

Welcome...

X2 Check your T-Stat. Boil it and see if it opens. Check water pump and fan clutch? If all good, try a flush and burp..

Just went through this issue after a drain and long dormant period. My T-Stat was good. Bought a burp kit for about $25.

Install kit as per direction. There are pics so it's pretty straight forward. I disconnected the upper hose at the radiator. Added fluid until I had a small dribble coming out of the radiator. Reconnected hose, continued to fill. Added fluid to over-flow tank (1/2). Start your TLC and add fluid until you have a few ounces in the yellow hopper. Let the kit do its job. You will see air bubbles percolate out of your system as it heats up to op temp.. Plenty of You-tube vids to assist.

 

[1973Guppie]

pop the brass plug off the drivers side of the block and see if you get flow. About 50% of trucks I work on there is no flow. If it is open it helps to pump water through the block out of this hole. I double up on the parts store cleaner stuff and run it for a little while. It does work to clear out debris, then flush the system well again. Make sure you have a fan shroud, makes a big difference. Pulling the rad and taking it to be cleaned and / or replacing it if it is old is also a good idea. They clog up over time and an aftermarket one is not too expensive.

 

[FeralOne]

Yes, it was clogged but I was able to chip out the buildup and it started flowing rusty water out. I'm running the Prestone flush at the moment and will give it a good flush pretty soon. Took it on a good run over the hill by my house and it ran cool, took a long time to get up to operating temp. and it seems to run best when it's fully warmed up...I will run it for now and see what happens. If I spend any more money now it will cause further marriage issues with The Boss.

Thanks for the reply Noah!

Dave

 

[fzr400guy]

Welcome to 40 ownership. I'm in Lemon Grove so hit me up if you ever need help working on your 40. My 71 is a resto-mod with a 350 SBC but I'm pretty handy with basic motor stuff.