Cooling, cooling, cooling

New Spal fans and controller from Pantera Electronics https://www.pantera-electronics.com/rfc.htm  So far works good for me.

When you say cooling issues do you mean overheating or just running warm?  seeing temps at 200 in traffic is normal for a pantera.

PLEASE define EXACTLY the reason(s) you say you are having cooling problems.

in the last 20 years I have seen far too many owners complain about “cooling issues”, and then endless advice is presented on how to solve the problem.

WITHOUT DETERMINING THERE ....IS... A PROBLEM.

Anyone providing guidance to you without understanding the specifics of your concern is offering advice you may or may not actually need

Larry

MAP is MAP cycles in Florida.

MARINO PERNA is the owner and some years ago he was an active Pantera vendor, most commonly known for his Boyd Coddington-sourced campy reproduction wheels, which I and many other owners still believe are the best looking and the truest interpretation of the original wheels

I did not know he sold radiators but I am quite sure that is the source for what is installed in your car.

Larry

Yes, it was his radiator. He said it was a very high efficient radiator. The car runs 180 out on the highway and roads but goes above 200 when I'm in traffic and definitely when ac is run. Engine then starts to stutter and cuts off. Probably like a heat soak issue.

Would a new set to fans with that radiator help. Maybe in conjuction with a high volume water pump?

Thanks for everyone responding. I'm new and you all are a great help

@ChrisMel posted:

I just purchased a Pantera.  I know they have trouble cooling. ..

Thanks

Well, actually, this should say they "might" have trouble cooling. The cooling issues have long been diagnosed and corrections are known. Many of the "cooling" issues were self inflicted, some weren't issues at all and some were due to inadequate original design.

Self-inflicted - installing a Windsor thermostat. Inadequate air bleed.

Non-issues - temperature indication is incorrect.

Inadequate design - inadequate air flow due to small original fans.

Extensive and thorough discussions of all of these can be found doing a search on this BB. The best part is these solutions have been tested in the real world!

Your engine issue could very well be vapor lock, which is not really a coolant/cooling issue.

it could also be a $20 ignition coil that exhibits problems when heat soaked.

210°, 220° is not really an issue. And of course, unless you have installed an aftermarket gauge and matching sender there is absolutely ZERO chance that your stock gauge and sender are displaying the correct temperature, in the first place.

if you can heat soak your engine block on a high temperature day, usually when stuck in city traffic, and then park your car, walk away, and not have any boiling or gurgling noises and there is no discharge of expansion tank coolant, I don’t think there is an issue

Ford actually had a technical service bulletin advising dealers to install a resistor in the temperature gage wiring to electrically lower the temperature displayed. Like you, many owners new to a car with an actual gauge were  concerned about “high temperature”, when everything was working just as intended

please don’t start going down this rabbit hole based just on gauge readings, not supported by any real-life coolant boiling or loss issues.

Larry

Larry,

Thank you.  Is the heat from the engine then causing the vapor lock?  How do I determine that part

Troubleshooting from a distance is difficult at best, and often counterproductive.

in general heat soak is going to be fuel lines and carburetors exposed to constant heat. I suggest doing a Google search to become better informed on the issue and then follow up with a gained-wisdom inspection of your fuel system.

A better picture might be gained if we knew more about your shut down situation, to include but not be limited to what happens when trying to restart, how long a period passes before it restarts, etc  

Larry

Good advise.  I'm on it!   Thank you

Chris, start with the basics. Make sure your cooling fans are turning on at the correct temperature and blowing air through the radiator, not away from it. Bad contacts/grounds can make the fans run slowly. Make sure there’s no air in the system. Make sure you have a 351C thermostat AND the correct brass “hat” below it. Make sure your pressure tank has a good cap. Make sure your hoses and clamps are good. Are you losing coolant? Check your crank damper to see if the outer timing ring has become detached and your timing is way too advanced. If everything is correct, you won’t have a problem, even with stock fans. There is nothing inherently wrong with the Pantera’s cooling system, it just doesn’t have a lot of excess capacity. If something is wrong, it manifests itself by causing hot running or overheating. The Pantera is no different in this regard than any other mid engined car. Things like a bigger radiator, more powerful fans or a high volume water pump just give you some excess cooling capacity.

All great advice above, and a great checklist of tasks a new owner should perform.

But, are we even sure he HAS a “cooling issue”, as he initially called it in his starting post.

In a subsequent post he indicated when the temperature  gauge went over 200 the engine will “start to stutter and  turn off”.

“stutter and turn off....over 200” are the only details provided behind his term “cooling issue”

please raise your hand if that sounds like a “cooling issue”..... 🤔🤔

Larry

So let me back up and ask, how accurate are the temp guages that are original. And, what temp range is normal for these. Yes, car runs great until it starts to stutter and then dies. I notice this happens when the temp guages goes 200 and above. I may be mistakenly associating them but it happens Everytime.  So my assumption was that the cooling system was not keeping the engine within some range and heating the fuel causing it to stutter and die. It can take a good half hour to hour to restart.

The temp gauge is reasonably accurate with the correct sending unit. This has been documented ad nauseum in these forums. As Larry mentioned, your problem may have nothing to do with coolant temperature, rather, it may be that some other component is close to failure but works when it's cool. The first thing that comes to mind is the coil or perhaps the fuel pump. Next time it happens, pull a plug wire and check for spark. If that's OK, check for fuel.

When Pantera owners say “cooling/radiator issues”, we normally think engine overheating, coolant coming out of the overflow tank, hoses coming off, and the engine block temperature above (say) 250*, temperature gauge pegged.

This can happen with a marginal cooling  system (sometimes a very stock one), and the other aforementioned reasons.

Your problem sounds different - I too might lean towards the “component overheating” theory, based on your description of the symptoms.   The component most prone to something like this would be the coil.

Is your coil mounted on the firewall behind the passenger?

Another relatively easy test might be to wrap some insulating material around the fuel lineup to the carb...  maybe you are having vapor lock?

After the engine dies, and you step on (floor) the accelerator - does gas squirt out of the upper jets of the carburetor?  You have to remove the air cleaner lid to see...

Rocky

When it's gotten hot and stalled on you, does it crank easily, like when cold? Or does the starter struggle until it's left to sit for a while?

Takes a while to restart. Usually half hour or more.

... but does it turn over easily and just won’t start or does the starter have a hard time and labours to crank it over?

It turns over fine.

@lf-tp2511 posted:

Troubleshooting from a distance is difficult at best, and often counterproductive.

in general heat soak is going to be fuel lines and carburetors exposed to constant heat. I suggest doing a Google search to become better informed on the issue and then follow up with a gained-wisdom inspection of your fuel system.

A better picture might be gained if we knew more about your shut down situation, to include but not be limited to what happens when trying to restart, how long a period passes before it restarts, etc  

Larry

Could it be ChrisMel is missing a Solenoid on the Carb that keeps the idle up with the AC on when you come to a stop?