radiator

[gsbuick65]

whats the best thing to do about my radiator? flush the OEM or get a f body one? havent had the car running long enuff to see if this rad will keep car cool. thanks,

 

[fgordon]

I changed to the f-body radiator and a 160 degree thermostat. My temp rarely gets above 180 now.:smile:

 

[2112]

f-gordon, is the f body a direct fit or is there some modifications that need to be made? Thanks.

 

[fgordon]

f-gordon, is the f body a direct fit or is there some modifications that need to be made? Thanks.

You will need to remove the deflector used to fit the standard radiator. The core support seems to have been designed for the F-body radiator so no problems with this mod.

 

[BRAD_PADGETT]

There is alot of miss information on this thread. I will post the answer if someone is serious about how to cool a hot air dowm. Check the PIC. Good luck-Brad

 

[1QUICK85]

160* T-stat, F-body radiator, Ramcharger fans, and a big tranny cooler. Tranny cooler will help keep the tranny cool and helps the radiator stay cooler for the engine. The F-body/Ramcharger setup is a perfect fit with a G-body V8 radiator hold down. (If you ever need a water pump, go with a Flowkooler pump from Summit.....less then $80 and flow 20% more water.) -Nick.

 

[fgordon]

You will need to remove the deflector used to fit the standard radiator. The core support seems to have been designed for the F-body radiator so no problems with this mod.

Forgot to mention, I had an electric fan mod before I did the radiator.

 

[fgordon]

There is alot of miss information on this thread. I will post the answer if someone is serious about how to cool a hot air dowm. Check the PIC. Good luck-Brad

I assume you're talking about me. You can speak plain.

I don't give out misinformation. I changed mine over in about 2 hours. It is not a big deal, the dual fan setup I had on a new stock radiator still had me running at 200+ degrees in traffic. The fbody radiator did the trick. The 160 degree t-stat was added later when I changed the intake.

BTW - JEGS has a dual fan setup with an adjustable thermostatic fan controller. Fan can be set to come on at any temp you want. Works great without the 87 ECM conversion.

 

[BRAD_PADGETT]

I assume you're talking about me. You can speak plain.

I don't give out misinformation. I changed mine over in about 2 hours. It is not a big deal, the dual fan setup I had on a new stock radiator still had me running at 200+ degrees in traffic. The fbody radiator did the trick. The 160 degree t-stat was added later when I changed the intake.

BTW - JEGS has a dual fan setup with an adjustable thermostatic fan controller. Fan can be set to come on at any temp you want. Works great without the 87 ECM conversion.

I apologize for using the phrase misinformation. I should have used the phrase incomplete information. The original post was about cooling down a hot air with an f-body rad. You can do this with the 84ECM and a switch to run the electric fans. You can also convert to the 87 ECM with a chip and have the ECM run the fans. This will require the Casper 84/85 electric fan conversion kit. It works because it takes the electric load off the fans. Some people simply add an electric fan and keep the mechanical fan.

As a final note the fBODY radiator did not cool down my hot air with the stock 87 GN electric fan. I had to go with the dual fan setup as pictured.

Again- I apologize about my mischoice of words. Brad

 

[1QUICK85]

I was running a FM intercooler and the stock GN replacement radiator with ramcharger fans couldn't keep my car under 200 degree on the highway. I put a used F-body radiator in and presto........car ran at 170 on the highway and I could wait twice as long in town to turn the fans on. Best mod I did to the car probably that helped with driveability. -Nick.

 

[fgordon]

I apologize for using the phrase misinformation. I should have used the phrase incomplete information. The original post was about cooling down a hot air with an f-body rad. You can do this with the 84ECM and a switch to run the electric fans. You can also convert to the 87 ECM with a chip and have the ECM run the fans. This will require the Casper 84/85 electric fan conversion kit. It works because it takes the electric load off the fans. Some people simply add an electric fan and keep the mechanical fan.

As a final note the fBODY radiator did not cool down my hot air with the stock 87 GN electric fan. I had to go with the dual fan setup as pictured.

Again- I apologize about my mischoice of words. Brad

I understand, I should have mentioned my dual fan setup.

My approach to cooling my hotair was the opposite of yours since I went to the dual fans with a (new) stock radiator and still had overheating problems until I installed the fbody radiator. It would seem from our combined experiences (include 1QUICK85) that neither the fbody radiator or the dual fans are the solution by themselves but would need to be used in combination for best effect.

My current setup has one fan controlled by a switch that is normally left on and the other controlled by a thermostat switch. This allows me to have both fans off at startup to heat it up quickly when needed and should also be a good solution for a cold climate car. In this case the thermostat switch is a good safety solution in case you forget to turn on the manual switch. I believe both fans can be run on the thermostatic switch with the same cooling effectiveness.

BTW - I saw almost no improvement in my overheating problem by going to the dual fans with the stock radiator.