Running without a thermostat ok?

RustyRatRod said

When I worked at the local Citgo station in the mid 70s, every single bottom hose we had came with the spring. The bottom hose is the suction side. As engine RPM increases, so does suction. In a closed system, the suction has no relief, so if there is no spring to support the bottom hose, it will collapse at highway speed and restrict the inlet flow to the engine from the radiator.

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I think you were supposed to pull the spring out of the old hose and put it into the new one. But since these cars are 40 or so years old, the hoses have been replaced several times and the spring got thrown out with the old hose at some point in time.

I think it would be pretty easy to make a new spring out of some 1/8" aluminum wire. Just wind it around a broom handle or something similar. I know my lower hose has no spring inside it, and my 340 runs kind of hot. The spring might just be the answer, as I've done everything else.