Problem solver part

Had a little issue with my '55 coupe... it has a late water manifold with the two bolt flange for the Chevy-style thermostat housing, and an ugly, ugly flex hose with two different sized ends.  The correct molded hose is too small to fit, and it comes out at a slightly wrong angle.  I could use an early water manfold, but I didn't want to....



because the engine came with all the factory A/C brackets and pulleys. 



So I had Jeff Rice make me a little adapter plate to bolt the early thermostat housing on the late manifold.  See where the "normal" heater hose location is blanked off with a pipe plug?  That's why I didn't want to use the early water manifold; a hose fitting there would keep me from mounting the A/C bracket.



None of the early water manifolds that I've seen have the bung on the driver's side that can be drilled for the heater hose connection.  But since this one came off of a car with A/C, it's already drilled.  Fortunately the bolt holes line up with two of the holes in the early thermostat housing - if the flange had just a little more meat on it I wouldn't have needed the adapter plate at all but I was concerned about the gasket sealing because the early thermostat housing only overlaps the late manifold's flange maybe 1/16" or so (the early cars used a larger diameter thermostat.)



All better!  Now I can go ahead and mount my A/C bracket, and no more ugly flex hose.  And there was much rejoicing.  Yay.  Now all I need to do is find a compressor that will clear the hood (I've already dropped the engine maybe 1/2" or so by using the thin "R3" style front engine mounts.)  The original York compressor won't work, but I'm hoping that a Sanden will...

BACK TO PROJECTS

HOME