I bought a 70 maverick with the 200ci 6 and a 3 speed manual the other day with 81k original miles. 1 owner old lady car. I drove the car for about 75 miles without issue, taking it easy on the gas. On my way home today i noticed the car wanted to stall when i stopped at a light. About 20 miles after that it started to buck and sputter when i tried to accelerate. I managed to get home fighting to keep it running. When i got home, the antifreeze was leaking out of the overflow tube and it was all foaming, same inside the radiator. I am thinking maybe the head gasket went, but i have not had this happen before so i am unsure, just something i remember hearing about when i was a kid. Would the head gasket cause the immediate poor running condition? I have every receipt for the car from day 1 and the lady before me really kept the car up, but it basically sat in the garage from about 2001 to now, only being driven 50 miles a year.
Yes a head gasket can cause the symptoms you are describeing. But an overheating condition will also. scale plugged radiator/ thermostat stuck shut (Doubtful with your symptoms) Lower hose collapsing under cruise conditions, etc...
Probably the head gasket, seems to be the most likely suspect, although could be any number of things. If i remove the head to replace the gasket, does the head need to go out for service, the car was running great before it started to run rough, not sure of the process. I have replaced heads before, but they were always new heads on a v8. This engine looks pretty easy to work with, not much in the way.
First thing I would do is replace the radiator cap. In fact whenever I buy a new old car first thing to get replaced is the rad cap. They tend to go to crap if they sit, and if they no longer hold pressure your radiator will over heat like you have a blown gasket.
Any evidence of anti-freeze in the oil or oil in the radiator? Was it blowing any white smoke (steam) from the exhaust? As others have suggested, start with the easy things first...cap, flush and thermostat. With the limited miles driven in the last 12 years you should take the opportunity to look it over pretty good and replace anything that is marginal such as hoses, belts, fluids, tires etc.. Roadside breakdowns suck.
With the engine running, take off the radiator cap and take a whiff. If the head gasket is blown, which I suspect it is, you will smell exhaust fumes. That is what makes the bubbles and foam on the antifreeze. Good luck!!
I would be careful doing this.. Don't want to scall your face. Earl may be thinking to do this while cold first start in the morning or something. I was pretty sure I seen test strips at a auto store. All the basic stuff will be good regardless. So like others said, go ahead and do them first.
I was planning on replacing all the external parts on the motor over the course of the next few months. I know that radiator caps go, and hoses break down,etc but i dont think any of that would cause the engine to run so poorly immediately and suddenly like that. I did not see any white smoke out of tailpipe, and no antifreeze on dipstick either, however. I do feel like the bubbling antifreeze and poor running condition are related, but honestly i drove the car home 25 miles and it ran great. The next day it ran great for about 10 miles, then started to want to stall, then about 10 miles later started bucking and backfiring and when i parked it, it had antifreeze all bubbling out. I dont have any history with the car before, so i have nothing to base anything on other than what i see.
You really need to check the fuel filter , you said it started to buck an stumble on acceleration . Any car that sits for a period of time will do this because of the ethanol in the gas. Use some sea foam in the tank.I went threw 3 fuel filters in two weeks with my car. It sat for almost 30 years. Also change the anti freeze, after awhile it turns to an acid that eats metal. Freeze plugs are most likely. Good luck.
chances are the"sock" is off the fuel pickup...now that you have driven the car it shook up any rust in the tank and let the pump pick it up. with any old car that has been sitting, it's best to clean out the tank/fuel lines before cranking it the first time...
Yeah, be carefull and use common sense. If you can get the test strips, that is much better. It is a good test to check for a blown gasket. Thanks Gene, for pointing that out. Gotta be safe in all we do!!
IMHO, you have multiple issues going on here as others have already implied. Especially when you consider that blown head gaskets don't usually cause backfires. Personally.. I think it's doubtful that you lifted the head enough to pop the gasket in the manner you described above.. UNLESS.. the motor had been overheated enough on previous ocassions to cause such a problem to rear its ugly head on your second drive. Of course, the heads are long and can be susceptible to such problems though. Check fuel flow from the pump into a can after disconnecting the coil. Check fuel flow from accelorator pump discharge nozzles(any breakup indicates clogging/internal issues). PULL ALL PLUGS. That will let you know if you dropped/or burnt the ground straps off which would be indicative of overheating/lean out conditions. And always run a compression test before assuming the worst and pulling an engine apart. Good luck with it all. PS. also forgot to mention that fuel related issues an cause lean out conditions, over heating, and burn valves/crack/warp heads as well. Bad caps and/or scale issues can cause overflow losses, over heating, and leads to all sorts of problems for an older motor.
So i finally got around to checking out the car, the plugs had no antifreeze on them. I think i have ruled out the head. I am thinking more likely the problem happened after i filled up the tank. I think the carb got gunked up, maybe some rust and crud in the tank. Going to pursue that route next. I normally would replace the tank, i noticed on the threads that 71-74 are the same, and 75 up are still availalbe new, anyone have a solution for 70 tanks?
