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My simple radiator setup here in the very hot south is a single row aluminum 1 1/4 core with plastic tanks, with a fixed Flex-a-lite 1818 fan and no shroud. It maintains temp at 190ish with a 180* thermostat. Sometimes bigger isn't better. Lean fuel feed, retarded timing, and poor air flow through the radiator at idle, are the most common causes for engines to run hotter.
I would run an engine flush through the cooling system. Your current aftermarket radiator is not that old from the looks of it.
My simple radiator setup here in the very hot south is a single row aluminum 1 1/4 core with plastic tanks, with a fixed Flex-a-lite 1818 fan and no shroud. It maintains temp at 190ish with a 180* thermostat. Sometimes bigger isn't better. Lean fuel feed, retarded timing, and poor air flow through the radiator at idle, are the most common causes for engines to run hotter.
I would run an engine flush through the cooling system. Your current aftermarket radiator is not that old from the looks of it.
No idea how old it is. Came with the car last year. But it sure looks cruddy. I'd also like a unit without that capped off extra hose port. I still don't know what that's for. I'm going to be flushing the entire system BEFORE installing anything new. If the flush improves/restores the current unit ? We shall see.
I'd also like a unit without that capped off extra hose port. I still don't know what that's for.
Go back and read Post #3. The extra port is for the heater return hose in Chevy applications. Your current radiator is a one-size-fits-none aftermarket unit, designed to fit Chevy as well as other GM applications.
So does the car have any cooling issues or are you replacing solely becuase of the pic in the first post? If the car is not having any cooling issues you may want to leave it alone.
Go back and read Post #3. The extra port is for the heater return hose in Chevy applications. Your current radiator is a one-size-fits-none aftermarket unit, designed to fit Chevy as well as other GM applications.
My bad.
"One size fits none"🤣 love itOne more reason I want it OUT!!! I'm striving to put things back to "normal"under the hood.
Last edited by FINISHLINE; March 28th, 2022 at 03:56 PM.
So does the car have any cooling issues or are you replacing solely becuase of the pic in the first post? If the car is not having any cooling issues you may want to leave it alone.
As I stated earlier the car was running very hot when I first got it. (like feel the heat pouring through the firewall). After a timing adjustment that settled down. My reasoning to change it right now is two fold. 1) I've got the power steering pump out for repair. Along with belts, alternator etc. Repainting all the accompanying brackets etc. So the timing is good for pulling the radiator.
2) When I got a look inside that radiator it appeared to me that a fresh one would be a good idea. Then started tossing around the idea of an upsize /upgrade/OE 4 row/aluminum etc. Ideas were running wild lol.
I don't have it in me to "leave alone" a radiator in that condition.
A 2 core aluminum radiator's benefit comes from being aluminum.
There is a reason for more cores.
The frontal area of a radiator is the same for said application.
Therefore thickness, ergo cores is where the change is realized
All things being equal, a two core will not cool as well as a 4 core.
An original 4 core radiator can do the job.
Keep in mind the complimentary parts such as fan shroud are needed to realized the radiators full potential.
I agree with a lot of what you posted.
Originally Posted by RocketDevo
All things being equal, a two core will not cool as well as a 4 core.
This is an accurate statement, but realize that the tube sizes are NOT the same between the copper/brass and aluminum radiators. Aluminum radiators typically have tubes that are much larger than those in a copper/brass radiator, and therefore can transfer more heat due to the greater surface area. This is why an aluminum replacement for a 2 or 3 row copper/brass radiator typically has 1 row of tubes, and the aluminum replacement for a copper/brass 4 row has 2 (or more) rows of tubes, or 1 row with a much larger tube size.
Last edited by Fun71; March 28th, 2022 at 04:04 PM.
What happens to the air flow into your radiator when you have an a/c condenser mounted between it and your grill? Seems like that's blocking quite a bit of the incoming air flow. . Is this another good reason for an upgrade / increase in size/cooling ability of my current 3 row? Shroud is in tact and in place. Fan is stock.
As I stated earlier the car was running very hot when I first got it. (like feel the heat pouring through the firewall). After a timing adjustment that settled down. My reasoning to change it right now is two fold. 1) I've got the power steering pump out for repair. Along with belts, alternator etc. Repainting all the accompanying brackets etc. So the timing is good for pulling the radiator.
2) When I got a look inside that radiator it appeared to me that a fresh one would be a good idea. Then started tossing around the idea of an upsize /upgrade/OE 4 row/aluminum etc. Ideas were running wild lol.
I don't have it in me to "leave alone" a radiator in that condition.
Sorry, I did not see the part about the engine running hot (post #15), only the pic showing what the radiator looked like inside and the description/ question in the first post. Without measuring how hot the engine is running first, I still think simply replacing the radiator without further investigation may not be the best choice. These cars do not have great interior thermal insulation (unless someone added some during a previous restoration) so heat coming through the firewall is not a very accurate measure of engine temp. It isn’t much work to pull a radiator out even after you get everything else back together. If you are set on a replacement it would still be good to know how much (if any) improvement you made, and it would be best to use the old radiator to flush the system out which usually requires getting the engine up to operating temp so you don't put a lot of junk from the block in the new radiator tubes. I would get it back together the way it is to flush the system and use a digital temp gun to see where the engine temp actually is. If it is running hot, replace the radiator and check it again to see if you have made it better. Otherwise, you may be throwing parts and time at a problem that doesn't actually exist.
What happens to the air flow into your radiator when you have an a/c condenser mounted between it and your grill? Seems like that's blocking quite a bit of the incoming air flow. . Is this another good reason for an upgrade / increase in size/cooling ability of my current 3 row? Shroud is in tact and in place. Fan is stock.
Anything in front of the radiator (A/C condenser, trans cooler, intercooler, etc) will not only impact air flow but also increase the air temp flowing into the radiator which is why A/C cars got bigger radiators.
Sorry, I did not see the part about the engine running hot (post #15), only the pic showing what the radiator looked like inside and the description/ question in the first post. Without measuring how hot the engine is running first, I still think simply replacing the radiator without further investigation may not be the best choice. These cars do not have great interior thermal insulation (unless someone added some during a previous restoration) so heat coming through the firewall is not a very accurate measure of engine temp. It isn’t much work to pull a radiator out even after you get everything else back together. If you are set on a replacement it would still be good to know how much (if any) improvement you made, and it would be best to use the old radiator to flush the system out which usually requires getting the engine up to operating temp so you don't put a lot of junk from the block in the new radiator tubes. I would get it back together the way it is to flush the system and use a digital temp gun to see where the engine temp actually is. If it is running hot, replace the radiator and check it again to see if you have made it better. Otherwise, you may be throwing parts and time at a problem that doesn't actually exist.
All good info ty...a nice set of gauges is also in my future. I honestly haven't dealt with a lot of radiators. Are you saying the condition you can see in my original pic isn't as critical as I think? To me it looks nearly clogged.
I would certainly try flushing it before you do anything especially if the car is not overheating. Most of the clogged radiators I have seen (that actually caused overheating problems) had hard deposits on the tubes (like what hard water build-up does in a house). The stuff in your photos looks much softer like it may wash out with a good flush. If you have a good radiator shop near you (I think you mentioned that in an earlier post) they should be able to flow and pressure test it if it looks decent after the flush. Either way, you will want to flush it with the current radiator in place.
I recall many years ago someone posted about a similar looking radiator. With the radiator out, he poured CLR into the radiator, let it soak, flushed it, and it came out much cleaner.
If you’re looking to buy a new radiator anyway, what do you have to lose by trying that?
I recall many years ago someone posted about a similar looking radiator. With the radiator out, he poured CLR into the radiator, let it soak, flushed it, and it came out much cleaner.
If you’re looking to buy a new radiator anyway, what do you have to lose by trying that?
Also, I totally get replacing it strictly from an outward aesthetic point of view if that is your main goal. It just seemed like aesthetics were a secondary goal from your earlier posts. Painting an aluminum 4 row (most likely 2 row) and using a 4 row top plate will look more correct for an A/C 455, but you might not notice much of a temp drop from you current radiator.
Also, I totally get replacing it strictly from an outward aesthetic point of view if that is your main goal. It just seemed like aesthetics were a secondary goal from your earlier posts. Painting an aluminum 4 row (most likely 2 row) and using a 4 row top plate will look more correct for an A/C 455, but you might not notice much of a temp drop from you current radiator.
Both topics are at hand. I want to keep it cool, AND I like a stock look in there. My very first thought was an OE 4 row, (or at least OE looking) ,switch the top plate and cradles. As someone mentioned earlier "a/c cars got larger radiators". Which I assumed would be a big factory 4 row. Then I saw a few black aluminum units and considered those as an option as well due to their efficient cooling . (All of this of course based on getting a look inside that current unit and thinking it's fried).
That $230 radiator I linked will cool much better than a 3 core replacement for the same cost and look stock, once painted black. It is supposed to have a lifetime warranty. Here are the pics of what mine looked like.
Is that lower core support an individual piece that can be unbolted and removed?
It's all welded. If you plan to upgrade to a four row core, you need to cut off those lower brackets and weld on new ones, or flatten one leg to allow the thicker end tanks to fit. You also need the matching top plate. Repros of the wider brackets are available.
Thank you Joe..
in the end I had a 40+ year radiator guy in my area build me a nice 3 core. 1/2 inch tubes, 16 fins/ inch . All metal. I would like to replace the bottom rubber mounts as they are kind of aged and out of shape a bit. I'm seeing them on OPGI with sizes listed by inch. 4, 5 , 6 inch. My bottoms don't measure any of these "exactly" . Which size is correct for 3 core bottom?
I bought a set of these radiator mounting insulators. Came in a four pack, two 6-in and two what I believe were five and a half inch. (Picture below with one of the shorter ones mounted in my radiator top plate) . It seems to me both the top plate and the radiator core support both handle the shorter ones nicely but the 6 in ones are too long on either top or bottom. Any insight?
March 28th, 2022, 03:05 PM
