Greetings,
I have a 54 Chevrolet 3100 Truck, 235 engine, I believe it is a second series. Looking for your guidance on recent overheating.
Recently I drove into town, truck drove fine, but then I had to wait in line (idling) and the gauge went to hot and it went to a rough idle. i shut the truck off and waited until it cooled off and then drove home (temp stayed normal).
I started by replacing the thermostat, started the truck, let it idle, it went to Hot again.
I removed the radiator. Looks to be ok, I ran water from a hose into the upper hose connector, the water drained out the bottom, water was clear.
Thinking it may be the water pump, I removed it. Looked to be ok. No play in the shaft, no leaks from the weeping hole. Took it to a local friend and he said it looked to be just fine (the cleanest 74-year-old pump he has ever seen). The fan belt was dry rotted a bit, so I replaced it. Put it all back together, let the truck idle and it overheated again. When I was letting it idle, I had the radiator cap off and after a while I observed water moving in the radiator, which led me to believe the thermostat and pump are working.
I put in new radiator fluid. The old was clean. I inspected the hoses, and they look to be ok. The connectors to the heater (which I don't have one) have a single hose that is kinked (has been forever).
In conclusion, the truck is getting hot when the gauge gets to H. It starts to run rough, so I shut it down. Any guidance is greatly appreciated.
Regards,
Victor
