Its starting to get cold out and my '65 doesn't seem to happy about that. Its got a 200 i6 and an automatic transmission. It stalls occasionally and the heat doesn't seem to work to well. Do you guys have any suggestions to improve overall performance during this time of year?

 

uh, where do you live? how cold is cold there. What kinda choke do you have?
My problem with the cold was that it would have trouble starting and stay runinng when the engine haddnt warmed up yet, electronic choke fixed that problem easy.

 

Its be a long time for me, I think all I6 are cold blooded. When they warm up they should do fine. Is yur choke working right? How about your thermostat. Does it work right. Is it closing all the way?

 

As far as the heater goes, these old dinosaurs don't have good heaters. Just make sure you have a 180 degree thermostat in it. If push comes to shove, put a piece of cardboard in front of the radiator so it will heat up sooner.

 

If you live in a cold climate, you'll need a 192 degree stat to get any heat out of your six. As has been mentioned, make sure your choke is working correctly. Unfortunately, cold weather balkiness is something that sometimes goes along with having a carburetor equipped car.

 

Re your heater problem , you may want to check to see that your water diverter is working properly. Located on the firewall on the passenger side, it is vacuum operated and directs hot water flow to your heater core.

As previously stated, choke adjustment and operation is important for cold starting.

 

well, the choke doesn't exactly work right. I don't know what its called, but the choke uses a tube that runs up from the exhaust to heat a bimetal strip to operate the choke. The tube doesn't really get hot though. I'd be interested in an electronic choke. That would require a new carburetor, right? Is there one that will fit on the 200 I6?

 

Check a JC Whitney catalog. I used to see electronic choke conversions in there. Around $25 IIRC.

 

awsome. thanks.

in response to some of the other questions, i'm in New Jersey, so it gets pretty cold sometimes. I've already got a 192 degree thermostat, and it helped some, but not that much.

edit: i found a 2bbl carb w/ electric choke. It should be a step in the right direction. What are the biggest size wheels that will fit comfortably on these cars?