my cooling level is set buy the rad. letting out extra fluid when it is overfilled, OK I get that.
is it normal for the fluis level to be down halfway in the tank?

I have refilled & it just lets the fluid out to the same point every time.
put a new 16# cap & same thing.:confused:

my cooling level is set buy the rad. letting out extra fluid when it is overfilled, OK I get that.
is it normal for the fluis level to be down halfway in the tank?

I have refilled & it just lets the fluid out to the same point every time.
put a new 16# cap & same thing.:confused:

IF it is a 68 to 72 there should be a fill cold line stamped in the side of the end tank .
if the car had a recirulation tank .. the by all means get a 2 way cap and fill the rad to the brim then some the tank it will catch the expansion then draw it back when cold ... if it dosent the tank .. then think about putting one in ..this way you wil always be full .

IF it is a 68 to 72 there should be a fill cold line stamped in the side of the end tank .
if the car had a recirulation tank .. the by all means get a 2 way cap and fill the rad to the brim then some the tank it will catch the expansion then draw it back when cold ... if it dosent the tank .. then think about putting one in ..this way you wil always be full .

is this considered normal? or should I look for an issue somewhere?

is this considered normal? or should I look for an issue somewhere?

If you don't have a recirulation tank, then yes, it is normal.

Not all of the crossflow radiators have that fill mark (maybe all original ones do), And if you do not have it, fill the coolant to just above the trans oil cooler.

upgrade to a more modern setup and get an overflow tank with the appropriate 16 pound cap to go along with it. i like the caps with the pressure release lever..
with the engine cold, fill the rad all the way to the top and start it up. when you start it, the level will go down. fill it all the way up and put the cap on. put a little bit of coolant in the overflow tank- fill it about 1/4 up.
go for a short drive to get it up to temp and build up pressure. once it's all warm and toasty, shut it off and slowly release the pressure with the lever. this will get all the air out of the system. close the lever, and do something else for a while to let it cool. as it cools, it will draw the excess coolant out of the overflow and back into the rad.
you now have a completely filled system with no air bubbles anywhere.

Not all of the crossflow radiators have that fill mark (maybe all original ones do), And if you do not have it, fill the coolant to just above the trans oil cooler.

no cooler, car is a stick

no cooler, car is a stick

ok leave about 3 inches of air from the cap for expansion ...this would be ok for a open system as you have where exess coolant would puke on the ground .
the other system discussed here is called a closed system .. thats is one with a return tank and 2way cap .

Yup,totally agree with above statment that for your car(Dan) you need to fill to approx 3"-3.5" from filler neck where rad cap seats.

Filling the coolent lvl anythng much closer to the filler neck then that will usually result in coolent spitting out the overflow .

Maybe your simply over filling your rad and the expansion of coolent when hot is resulting the collent being forced out.

Get a new 15lb cap and fill rad to 3"-3.5" from top when cold and you should be good to go.

But if you still have issues after that with a new 15lb cap and proper coolent lvl for your car then you have another issue going on that needs to be addressed . But try this out 1st before digging any futher as it may simply be the coolent lvl & poss a bad rad cap causing your porblem.

Scott

Definitely go for the expansion tank. Air in the radiator contributes to corrosion. With the expansion tank and all the air purged from your radiator you will see a significant reduction in corrosion inside the radiator.