Question about coolant flow.........
 

Hello guys/gals, I am building a 73 Nova with an LT1 I am salvaging from a totaled Z. The front of the car was mangled pretty bad and some of it was removed before I got the car. Some of the coolant lines are cut and I cannot decifer where they would go.

Here are the things I do know, upper and lower radiator hoses, and the heater lines which hook up directly to the WP.

One line comes out of the front left side of the water pump and goes to the oil filter housing and returns to the lower corner of the raidiator......can I just do away with that line and plug the WP?

Then there is a line that comes from the back of the head on the right side......what the hell is this for? I can't seem to figure where this one goes to.

Now, the original radiator is trash, do I have to use the orginal type radiator or can I use an old style radiator? I know the LT1 has the reverse flow system.....that is wh I am asking.

Thanks for the help guys!

Joe

Joe,

Here's a fairly comprehensive treatise on the LT1 coolant system, including the (surprising, imho) differences among B/D-body, F-body, and Y-body systems:

http://www.theherd.com/articles/lt1_cool.html

Cheers -- Gary