Edelbrock Air Gap ?:Water jackets?

[BullittStangV8]

hey guys. I started putting together the new motor this weekend. I noticed on my edelbrock air gap that the front end has the water ports open, but on the back end the rear water ports arnt...The gaskets I have have the provision for them, but the intake doesnt have a cross over..? Whats the deal? It looks to me that water could only flow through the intake at the front.

 

[BullittStangV8]

ok...I may have just solved this myself..The coolant flows from the bottom of the block up..front to rear. Then, when the coolant gets to the back of the heads, it flows foward through the heads toward the thermostat? Therefore, you dont need a rear crossover, and theres no water ports in the intake in the rear?? Am i mixed up?

 

[rbohm]

since the heads are designed to be used on either side of the engine, you have to have coolant passages at both ends of the head. however the coolant path goes from the front of the cylinder block ot the back, then from the back of the heads to the front and then to the rad. as i recall in the early 80's ford did add a rear crossover passage to balance the system, and pick up a spot where the coolant is hotter for more heat to the heater core to allow the heat in the cabin to come on sooner. your intake will work fine the way it is.

 

[BullittStangV8]

thanks rbohm. I knew I wasnt nuts thinking that ford cars had used crossovers in the rear. Something about the 4/8# cylinders running hotter then the rest.

 

[Dark Knight]

N/M

 

[Max Power]

Edelbrock wouldn't make a manifold that would cook your engine. It's not just the RPM Air Gap that doesn't have the rear crossover. Most their manifolds don't.

I noticed that a lot of Weiends do....

 

[SoCalCruising]

Yeah, the Stealth has the crossover. I think that Edelbrock doesn't in order to try and get a cooler charge - less heat sink into the manifold. Some people don't like that. I have plumbed a rear crossover in the Weber manifold I am putting on my 331 to balance th cooling at the rear of the engine. Several people I trust recommended it to me when I talked over the Weber swap with them.