Ali Radiators

[rainbow]

Can anyone confirm that fitting a ali rad will help the cooling system over and above the standard rad. Its a bit of expensive kit is it woth it. We now it will look nice but is that all you get for your money.

[tbdgriff500]

fitted a radtec to my cerb racer and it dropped temp by 15 degrees instantly, so yes well worth it, top service from radtec too!

[Alexdaredevilz]

Surely a cooler thermostat and otter switch would make it run considerably cooler? and cost under £20?

[topsparks]

Why don't you get the original rad re cored at a local radiator center to a 4 core rad which will double the cooling capacity.Much stronger than ally and cheaper too!.

[dnb]

Alexdaredevilz said:

Surely a cooler thermostat and otter switch would make it run considerably cooler? and cost under £20?

Because it wouldn't work, other than maybe at idle?

Airflow over the rad when the car is in motion is far more than a fan can ever deliver. The fans are only there to cool at idle when sitting in traffic. So this means changing the otter switch is a sticking plaster to mask a problem that will only get worse.

And the thermostat is only there to aid quick warmup. It opens and allows the rad to cool the coolant. A good standard Griff can produce 300bhp. Petrol engines tend to be 33% (to make the maths easier) efficeint. The rest of the energy is lost as heat, some going out the exhaust, and some dissipated by the cooling system. If half the waste heat goes to the cooling system, the rad needs to remove at least 300bhp of power (that's 220kw or 110 electric fires...) If the system can't cope with this then it doesn't matter what stat it has in it or what the otter switch does with the fans the car will overheat when used enthusiastically.

The second reason is that if the standard ECU is retained with a really cold stat, it will never think the engine is up to temperature and the ECU will constantly over fuel the engine - leading to potential bore wash and other nasties aside from unnecessarily using (quite expensive now) petrol and general loss of power and throttle response.

A standard rad in good condition is enough to cool a Griff, so recoring is a good solution (chances are the recore will use a more efficient core than standard), and it's not too expensive. I went for the ali rad because it was shiny and I have a bit more than standard power - call it belt and braces - it is more efficient than standard, but may be overkill unless you intend lots of track time etc to tax the cooling system.

[spend]

dnb said:

A standard rad in good condition is enough to cool a Griff, so recoring is a good solution (chances are the recore will use a more efficient core than standard), and it's not too expensive. I went for the ali rad because it was shiny and I have a bit more than standard power - call it belt and braces - it is more efficient than standard, but may be overkill unless you intend lots of track time etc to tax the cooling system.

Don't overlook the alternative problem that we see just as many threads about over cooling in winter as we do overheating in summer these days? It's not just a case of one or the other, but achieving a balance to suit all conditions.

[Bluebottle]

spend said:

Don't overlook the alternative problem that we see just as many threads about over cooling in winter as we do overheating in summer these days? It's not just a case of one or the other, but achieving a balance to suit all conditions.

I had to make up a radiator muff this winter to blank off half the radiator to keep the temp up enough to stop the stat closing on the open road. I had to pull it up when in traffic to stop it over heating, but it worked a treat...much rather this problem than dodgy cooling in the summer when the engine/car gets worked the hardest.
As said above, the stand rad with a recore is more than adequate for a stock car, but they will become very marginal as it furs up with age (which seems to be quite quick from my experience). IIRC the ali rad flows 40% more efficiently, so if you're planning track use or power mods its a done deal...and it looks

[dnb]

spend said:

Don't overlook the alternative problem that we see just as many threads about over cooling in winter as we do overheating in summer these days? It's not just a case of one or the other, but achieving a balance to suit all conditions.

That's why I have a hotter stat than standard at the moment, and why the Cerbera/P38 stat scheme is being implemented. (But that's another story)

[pxw]

I had an ally rad fitted in 2004, works great possibly a bit too good it way overcools in winter, may be the thermostat that's ronnied but I've never had a a temp over 90c even in blazing heat in traffic in southern france,
Gordon
www.pxwheels.com