I8 durable? strong? long lasting? need advice 22yr old idiot

I

itsabuick

Member
Been awhile since I asked stupid questions so I need an old timer to put me in place.
so i've had me 1946 sedanette for a little over a year (got it running after 20+ years of rest) and I've only been impressed with the machine.
That being said she's only got 48xxx on the clock (I believe is original and odo works) and I've only added 168 miles in last year but I won't drive it during winter months because of road salt and shitty drivers and also my main concern is the block in cold temperature.
so my real question is how solid are these old blocks I mean she's got antifreeze but after flushing coolant system 4-5 times theres still HEAVY amounts of rust and I'm worried to just start it and let her warm up out of fear of cracking block. Im fortunate to live by the coast so it rarely goes below 25f but I've been told if its under 48f don't start it so I'm lost anybody got good advice?
 
If you have a mixture of 50% antifreeze don"t worry about the block cracking. These Buicks were used in cold weather when they were new. Thats why they have two heaters. My straight eight runs fine at zero degrees and even keeps the interior warm. If the roads are dry, take her out and show her off, make those Honda owners jealous. 168 miles is a good Sunday afternoon drive, what did you do the other 364 days? Buicks are road cars and that is were they are happiest. Enjoy the hell out of it, in 20 years the environmentalists tell us we all have to drive electric cars. As long as you keep your straight eight full of oil and coolant you can not hurt it.
 
yeah I'm just very paranoid especially with all the rust in the coolant. and no way for mine to go on a 168 mile drive all at once. I drove up the mountains last summer and she did great aside from temp gauge going somewhere between 210-220. I had to stop off a couple times on the way down and back home to let her cool off (I'm hoping to pull the heater cores to flush, replace hoses, and flush the block & radiator will fix it) like I says though for 20+ year nap and only 160$ to get her moving on her own I'm impressed but its a constant fear if something breaks.... where the **** am I gonna get another one of those! is my motto. also being 22 in school and not having mommy and daddy to feed me money doesn't help I'm ******* broke but I love my car/coffin.
 
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overheating.

Well, the BEST thing you can do for your car and yourself is pull the radiator, find a radiator shop that will rod it out. Your youth probably precludes knowing what this entails. The tanks will be removed from the core and a properly sized rod run through each tube. Tanks will then be reattached. The ONLY way to know the radiator is /can do its job. No excuses , son, just do it. You will thank me . Promise.

Ben
 
but after flushing coolant system 4-5 times theres still HEAVY amounts of rust and I'm worried to just start it and let her warm up out of fear of cracking block.


time for the 'ol pantyhose trick, especially if you have the radiator rodded but haven't had an opportunity to have an engine shop hot tank the disassembled block.

ask some woman you know if you can have a set of her old pantyhose. or you could buy new.

find a leg with no hole in it and cut it off.

put the toe of the pantyhose legging into the inlet side of the radiator keeping just and inch or so outside the radiator nipple.

fold that extending lip of the legging back over the radiator inlet and connect your radiator hose as normal, this will secure the pantyhose legging.

run engine as per normal but pay attention to the temp gauge.

come back home, take radiator hose off and CAREFULLY pull the pantyhose out of the radiator.

you'll probably find quite a bit of rust and crud in it.

if you have difficulty pulling it up, take the whole rad out of the car and turn it upside down. you might also try running water through it backwards.



I'm worried to just start it and let her warm up out of fear of cracking block.


temp related block cracking is almost always due to coolant freezing. ie - insufficient anti freeze and / or extreme cold.

remember, water expands below 32f.

block damage from over heating will almost always be to bearings and rings. at first.
 
you guys are awesome advice taken once one of my other rigs sell ill throw some of that money at Buick and get the heater cores, radiator redone then hustle some ladies for panties.
until then my only other real obvious problems with Buick are fog lights and radio don't work.
I can figure out the fog lights on my own but whats this tube thing that fails or corrodes in the radio it would be cool to hear some 1946 noise and static and I can HOPEFULLY fix radio myself for free.
 
sad to say, i'm old enough to remember when every drug store had a tube testing machine.

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipe...CA-tube-tester-at-Oklahoma-History-Center.jpg


https://www.wikihow.com/Find-out-if-an-Electronic-Tube-Is-Good

i'm sure that's an AM only set so circuit wise it's probably pretty straightforward and will function just fine with all the AM stations in your area. Rush Limbaugh isn't really 1946 noise and static but we can't get much closer than that nowadays.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mm1wuKvrxAw


pace of technical development tended to be pretty leisurely back then so the 1952 service manual will probably help with troubleshooting this:
https://www.teambuick.com/reference/library/52_shop/files/11-b.php

i see that the 52 manual notes that the radio can be damaged by being left on while the engine is being started. this indicates to me that you should install a much more robust noise choke on the 12vdc supply side of the radio, consisting of multiple large capacitors bridged to ground alternating with at least one coil in series.

also, while the 52 manual shows a negative ground you need to verify whether your car is positive or negative ground. if it's positive ground, all the schematics will be backwards.
 
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