I have a '54 Hornet, and have never seen the temp guage past the 1/2 way mark. What temp T-Stat are you running? Have you had your radiator cleaned or rodded out? Check the Hudson Mechanical Procedure Manual and make sure the water pump specs are correct in relation to the engine block. And, the last resort would be to remove the brass tube from inside the cylinder block and make sure it is not plugged up or corroded and therefore not usable, and while you are into the block, backflush it with high powered (presure) water to be sure there is no crud build-up within the block.

To help your car start easier when hot, make sure you have the correct gauge heavy duty 6 volt battery cables and make sure all your connections are clean and tight. It might even make your temperature read lower.

[sup][/sup]Discussion moved to "Hudson" forum category.

Thanks Jerry.. The T stat is correct and I have had the rad out and rodded and flushed. But I have not checked the water pump specs, so I will have a look at that too. Have a good one. ken

Good Point and Thank you Ed!

In the first post it says the radiator was recorded? Then in a more recent post it says rodded and flushed? I don't know of any shops that rod out radiators anymore. If it has been recored, then I would knock out the core plugs on the side of the block and take a hose and flush out the block. It may be necessary to take a stiff wire like a coat hanger to loosen up the sand and sediment while flushing. Especially around the rear cylinder. Every time I have a radiator flushed and cleaned I end up having it recored to solve the problem.

Ken, do you own an infered gun?. This is a very handy tool. You can buy one at the local auto supply, hardware , Walmart or Harbor freight , and are about $20.00. Take the gun and start checking the radiator for temp change, going from side to side, and then top to bottom. If the radiator is working properly, you should be able to see where the coolant is coming into the top tank, see where it flows out and down the complete core. If you look and pay close attention, you should be able to see the temp change as you go to the bottom. As you check acrossed the width, you should be able to see the temperature of the coolant as it comes into the top tank, flows out and then is drawn down the core. If you check the temps at the radiator and find it is hot in the middle of the radiator, and not the sides or even one side, this describes lack of flow or lack of proper flow. This DEcreses the radiators capacity and subsequently will finally reach a point of no return and can NOT cool the engine, especially if you are just cruising around. This might not be the problem, BUT by doing this, it will give you some information about where to check and/or what the problem may be. I hope this helps.
Also, make sure the head gasket is not leaking. Re-torque the cylinder head to ensure all the bolts are to specs.

I never thought of that.....good idea and simple. I am also hoping to pull the block plugs and flush out the bottom of the engine. Hopefully this combo of ideas, will help cure my problem. I Will also check the torque on the cylinder head as well. Thank you Doug for taking the time, and for your helpful suggestions. This forum has certainly been helpful, (thanks to members like yourself). Happy Trails! ken

As Ed has pointed out also, if your radiator needs to be rodded out, it will most likely need to be re-cored. Rodding a radiator out was common practice, but after adding another 30-40 years to an original radiator, and then just rodding it out usually doesn't make it. When restoring your car, regardless of Marque, you should plan on installing a new or re-cored rad., and restore the complete cooling system, including the heater core. Also as Ed has pointed out, remove the freeze plugs and flush it all out. It is best you do this all at once, and do it right the first time. We have seen it many times in the past, a newly re-cored radiator was installed but the rest of the system was left alone. It works for awhile, and because the system flows nice thru the rad., it allows all the trash in the block and/or heater core to brake loose, circulate and it up inside your new radiator, and allows it to start plugging it up, thus causing cooling issues.

Thanks for the advice Doug......I plan to take out the frost plugs, flush the block, and also do the heater core. I am afraid that I just did the rad, assuming that would cure the problem. Back to square one! ken

Ken, you mentioned in another topic that you replaced the coolant temp sensor. A/ Where did you find one and B/ did you have to drain the cooling system to install it? I have a similar issue that you had, the gauge moving up as the engine gets hotter from either sustained speeds or traffic stops.
Thanks for your help.

Hi there Demetrios. Sorry for not getting back to you sooner, but my wife has been ill and we have been traveling to another city for radiation treatments ( a 2 hour drive one way). In any event, getting a sending unit is the difficult part. I happened to get lucky by knowing a gentleman, who had a friend that had some NOS hudson stuff and he had one sending unit---but unfortunately, no more. I think that all one can do is look at the White Triangle adds, and of course, keep an eye on Ebay. As for the cooling system, you do not have to drain the entire system, just drain a bit to lower the level in the engine. The sending unit is at the back of the engine, on the side of the head, so it is high and easy to access. I would imagine that even if you could get a used unit (as long as it is working properly), it wouldn't matter. I note that one of the members (Dean) also suggested using a product called 'Purple Ice' which works like Wetter Water, but in his estimation is even better. I will try it myself, if we can get it where I live. Good luck with your hunt for a sending unit, but remember, you only need it if in fact your unit is defective. An infrared gun test will tell you whether it is working properly. Hope this helps you Demetrios. ken

Also check that the WP pulley hasn't been replaced with a 6.25" one. You need a 5" OD pulley.
Due to 1/16" thickness vs 1/8" thickness.
And a 6 blade fan; everything helps!!

Hello Dee, we stock these now. We didn't have the correct one, but now we do. We just installed one in a '51 C8 last week. It read about 3/4 on the dash gauge, when it was about 140 degrees at the cyl.head. When the engine was at 165 deg., it read between 3/4 and hot. Now with the new sender, it reads less than 1/2 at 165 degrees. Problem resolved.