If you have a bad feeling you should do, do it.

[Bob Riebe]

I hooked up my trailer , with garden mulch in it to my 1978 Olds Delta 88; I knew I had a radiator issue that I should check out thoroughly , and that the tires on the trailer looked a bit odd, but I had a doctor's appointment fifty miles away and I was already running late to get there, so I put caution to the wind.

Well I found not only would there be a detour but on another section of four lane it was two-lane due to road work; I did not put the pedal to the medal as pulling that trailor would drop gas mileage even worse, and I had a feeling that even thogh the trailer was loaded it seemed to be pulling a bit hard and the car did not kick-down going up-hill as it usually would.

About half-way home I noticed a lack of HP, and finally looked at the warning light, it said HOT, then the engine stopped running. I was fortunately far enough behind the dump truck I had been following I could stop with the little braking I had without the engine running.

I sat there popped the hood and saw that the radiator had filled the over-flow bottle till it ran over and was boiling.
I do not have a mobile phone, and told two cars who stopped that at that point thanks for stopping but I could deal with it; well I waited till the car stared and moved along at 30 mph till it went pffft again and stopped by a small engine repair site and asked if he had some water.

To make a long story shorter he was having coniptions while doing paper tax work and used language about Biden I cannot print here; filled a five gallon pail with water and gave me a ride back to his car in one of those off road four wheelers.
When we finally go the cap off , he warned me about cold water in  a hot engine and even though I knew full well all he was saying I just more or less nodded my head.

Well I knew I had radiator problem but had never done more that keep it full, but some thing had gone totally pffft, yet it still held water; I told him I was going to crawl back to my home town and he said I would not make it (which I knew but I knew where I would stop )

Got the car going, still showing HOT, and crawled along at up to , 50 mph, down-hill, ; I was about 1/2 mile from where I wanted to get to ( a technically town whose only business left was a gas station) when I knew the engine was gong to stop running again so I put it in neutral and shut the engine off.

Now the laws of physics are amazing; I coasted up a fairly shallow hill and thought gravity will take me down to the town but as I crested the top, the down-hill was more shallow that I thought and there was another up hill after the valley, well it slowly went over the top and the coast down was far, far slower than I though it should be and thoughts of the look of the tires on the trailer shouted -- you moron , you should have checked them yesterday.
By the GRACE of GOD, and nothing else the car and trailer just moved along at slow pace as if some thing was pushing it.

I crawled into the station with enough speed I still had to use all my leg strength to stopp it.
Called AAA , subscribing to that is one of the best things I ever did 30 years ago, and waited an hour but he arrived and loaded the car on the truck and hooked the trailer to his hitch and towed me home.

At home the left side tire on the trailer went flat-flat an hour after I got home and I fould that there was only 8 psi in the right tire. (True truck tires on a old Chevy truck axel.)
A new radiator (I will put on new hoses just because I can, and may buy a new water pump just in case) with hoses will cost me approx. 200 dollars.
It has been 29 years since I did major cooling system work--  ( the water pump on a used car I had just bought, blew-up thirty miles into a trip, and the service station mechanic was kind enough to let me use his tools to install a new one myself for 20 dollars. {I had bought a new one just in case}).

So as I have learned in the past, God still smiles on hard learners, but lets our bone headedness teach us a lesson.

[gene_225]

Have been that bone headed myself a few times. Have always appreciated God's looking out for me anyway and tried not to do the same thing twice.

[Ranger99]

You'll be needing a new radiator
cap and thermostat and any
gaskets/seals as well
Doesn't sound very promising if
the reservoir was flowing over.
As soon as you get things sorted
out,  you need to find a automotive
tech that has the stuff to check
for combustion residue in your
coolant

Just me- I always strive to keep
a vehicle in the condition to jump
in and go as hard as I can go as
fast as I can. You never know when
the need to do so might arise.
You might need to evacuate for
whatever reason, there might be an
emergency of some kind where
you have to drive nonstop for
several hours, maybe a friend or
relative is on their last lap and
you need to get there ASAP, any
number of reasons.
I try to keep good fluids in
everything that needs it, check
tire pressure and condition frequently,
Inspect the belt(s) and hoses when
checking fluid levels, and regularly
PM everything.   Putting off repairs
is asking for Murphy to ride with you.
The side of the road is the loneliest
place in the world.  Don't count on
your cellphone working everywhere
you go. And you may not be able
to get a tow in a timely fashion.
Don't count on all the gasoline
stations being open when you
need to fill up

[Lloyd Smale]

78 olds doesnt have the electronics to cut hp or stop your motor if it overheats. My guess is you did internal damage to that motor. Something got it so hot that friction caused a loss of hp and even stalling. That friction just lead to more heat or was the cause of the problem to begin with. I think you basicaly seized that motor up 3 times. You would have to be EXTREMELY lucky not to have done damage to that motor.

[Bob Riebe]

78 olds doesnt have the electronics to cut hp or stop your motor if it overheats. My guess is you did internal damage to that motor. Something got it so hot that friction caused a loss of hp and even stalling. That friction just lead to more heat or was the cause of the problem to begin with. I think you basicaly seized that motor up 3 times. You would have to be EXTREMELY lucky not to have done damage to that motor.

When it cooled down , no lights on , it started just fine, no knocking. and I parked it better than unloading off of trailer did.

What really suprised me was the over-flow tank drained back into the radiator when it actually cooled down, but NOW water (coolant) ran out of the radiator as fas as you put it in, big hole some where now but not then.
I was going to tow the trailer up on the lawn with the car, but decided not to.

Ranger -- that is the way I was till proable 15 years ago, when money got tight , I got lazy. mid-oughts I bought a '92 Buick Roadmaster and knew it needed brake work but drove till the brake almost locked up; I had some money still then and literall put new drums in the rear and one entire brake on the right side.
Too many thing started to go pffft when money got tight, and I guess not being able to fix any thing, any time, screwed up my method of operating.

I have had this car 4 years and the first two years two different driver ran into into the rear, right side first , left side second time, although I did not have to pay for it, a 5,000 car is not a 15,000 dollar car, and sadly the bad paint the the body man said GM used those years is starting to show up.
Little specks of rust all over and I cannot afford to have the doors and front fenders taken care of; extremely annoying.

[neckisred]

78 olds doesnt have the electronics to cut hp or stop your motor if it overheats. My guess is you did internal damage to that motor. Something got it so hot that friction caused a loss of hp and even stalling. That friction just lead to more heat or was the cause of the problem to begin with. I think you basicaly seized that motor up 3 times. You would have to be EXTREMELY lucky not to have done damage to that motor.

I'm with you on that one Lloyd. When they get hot enough to stall, damage is done.

[Bob Riebe]

Can easily be due to a over-heated fuel line/pump.
as I said, when it cooled down it started easily.

[neckisred]

Well I hope for your sake Bob, that's all it was. I'd check the oil before I put a dime in that car. Milky oil is never a good sign.

[Ranger99]

Well I hope for your sake Bob, that's all it was. I'd check the oil before I put a dime in that car. Milky oil is never a good sign.

This ^ ^ ^
And look for shavings on the dipstick.
It'll look like glitter in the daylight

[Lloyd Smale]

I know its not relevant but i used to get a new snowmobile every year. My 93 artic cat seized up. it was my own fault. I the injection oil was getting low and i knew i had to add some but this was back in my drinking days and my buddy called and wanted to go riding. I had a hangover and was a bit muddy in the mind and hopped on the sled and took off with him. About 40 miles from town it seized up. I let it cool and sent him to the gas station about 4 miles from us that i I knew had injection oil. He came back and we put oil in it (mostly because it was under warantee and i wanted to put oil in it so it would look like i was that stupid) Ive smoked a number of snowmobile motors in my day. Mostly from lean detonation. They would never start when cooled. But suprisingly this thing started first pull and i drove it back home 40 miles and didnt baby it. It ran like a top. Figured id bring it to the shop just to make sure there was no damage. Both pistons and cylinders were completely wiped. They couldnt even get the rings off of one of them. So much metal in the motor that they decided to replace it instead of rebuilding it. It shows you that just because it starts up and seems to run fine doesnt mean you didnt kill that motor. It might run fine for a 100 miles then completely wipe out. Not a huge deal for you because it probably as a 305 in it or maybe a 350 and there a dime a dozen. Cheap to find a used motor or rebuild your own as long as the crank wasnt damaged to badly. f it were mine id for sure drain the oil and do a visual inspection on it. Even try a magnet in it but that wont show much as far as Babbit wiped. Just send some in for an oil analysis. There pretty cheap these days. Maybe even a compression test and a leak down test. In all my years of farting with motors ive never seen a running car stop running from vapor lock. Usually as long as gas is flowing (car is running) the gas wont get hot enough. Vapor lock usually happens when you shut it off and the gas stops flowing and the engine heat turns it to vapor. Not saying it couldnt happen but ive never seen it.   

Can easily be due to a over-heated fuel line/pump.
as I said, when it cooled down it started easily.

[mcbammer]

Well I hope for your sake Bob, that's all it was. I'd check the oil before I put a dime in that car. Milky oil is never a good sign.

  If you got milky oil , I guarantee you  water is finding its way to the  crankcase .

[Lloyd Smale]

I dont see where he posted his oil was milky

[phalanx]

If you get a oil sample bottle from your CAT dealer. Fill it up and  take it to them and they send it to a lab. And give you the results.  If ever in doubt thats what i do. It can tell them just about anything going on in your engine.

[neckisred]

12 replies and 192 views. Any update on this Bob?

[Bob Riebe]

I am waiting for my water pump to arrive, changing it just because I would rather do it now with the radiator out than find out I need one down the road and have to work in cramped quarters.
Annoyed , I ordered from Auto Zone, for next day delivery (they have deals you ONLY get if you order on line) and I got $110 wprth of parts for $88 dollars but the only things that arrived next day were hoses, air filter and jug of 50/50 coolant.

The car was sitting on the street but I started it up and backed it into the garage where I will work on it, did not check the oil (it will be changed)  but it was full and not cloudy the day of the incident.

Car started just fine, idled fine sounded fine.

[Bob Riebe]

Water pump arrived took it home, and took it back to AutoZone as one pipe was 1/4 too long.
Finally found a different pump at NAPA.
When I returned the first pump I forgot to return the gasket, but it broke into three pieces while trying to mount it, so I used the second gasket, paper thin and it ripped while mounting.
I have driven near 100 miles just to find parts for the Olds.

I am now on my fourth gasket; I thought I had forgotten all I knew about putting water pumps on (this car you CANNOT simply put it straight on, you have about 3/16 of an inch of free play on one corner and you MUST slide it in, which ruins gaskets) ,I have done a lot of water pumps, mine and other gents in the past forty years, BUT one gent, at a parts store, had worked on an identical car and he agreed they were a SOB to  put on.

He gave me some ideas on how to mount it without ruining the new gasket but I bought two Victor Reinz any way.
I finally bought them at Rock Auto as the parts stores now charge  you shipping for ordering one in and it was quicker and cheaper to order online.
Oil is fine and the car starts just fine but the carb. does need a cleaning and adjusting but looking at the  gaggle of lines I have to remove, I would not do it but it has to be done.( The main gasoline line, which also makes putting a  pump on more difficult, the brass attachement fitting is fused with the gasoline line, and fortunately untwisted when I retightened it to the carb.)
I have done a fair number of carbs. but this is the worst and I have done Quadrajets before, so I will leave it till next year.

[Bob Riebe]

Success.

I listened to what the ex-mechainic said and spot pasted the gasket to the engine block, VIOLA,  I found that a clip came down and made putting the gasket on without first taking an exacto knife and trimming impossible.

I trimmed the gasket and had the water pump mounted without problems, although I did take the power steering pump bracket and move it as far out of the way as possible without removing it, about 1/2 inch but made putting pump on far, far, far less problematic.
I did actully use a torque wrench to tighten bolts/nuts on.

Drained oil and put in some foo-foo true synthetic Shell oil I bought two years ago at a price that is at worst one-half of what you pay today; car runs well.

[Lloyd Smale]

glad it worked out without to much money spent.