Radiator: OEM or All Aluminum?

[JeepSJ]

2 fat rows cools better than 3 or 4 narrow rows.

Copper/brass cools better than aluminum, but only if fins are brazed to tubes and not soldered with lead.

Aluminum with 2 fat rows and brazed fins will outcool an old school 4 core brass/copper, but a 2 fat row brazed copper will outcool the aluminum.

Confused yet?

Get an aluminum with 2 fat rows that is brazed and not epoxied and don't worry about plastic or aluminum tanks and you will be happy.

[arveetek]

Get an aluminum with 2 fat rows that is brazed and not epoxied and don't worry about plastic or aluminum tanks and you will be happy.

This one and the one sctrailrider linked to are both 3-row aluminum:

https://www.radiatorexpress.com/prod...aia_id=1053425

Thoughts on that particular product?

Casey

[Robyn]

The factory units were 2 fat rows, aluminum brazed tubes and plastic tanks.

As long as these OEM jobs are clean inside they cool fine.

IMHO they are a tad small in cooling capacity, as they start lagging once they get some high miles.

I used a Visteon in the Dahooooley the last rebuild and it cools fine.

Also noticed that the cooling ability has increased a bunch as we left the lower aluminum cover off after we put the engine back in... Not sure why that did not get bolted back on, but did notice it stays much cooler when its hot out.

Possibly the engine bay is staying cooler and allowing more air to vent in/out.

Also the kid dropped on a hood with the vented cowl bump and that could be allowing air to vent ?????

[sctrailrider]

I had Griffin Radiators build me "non production" unit last year for the 93 dually. It holds 3/4 gallon more than the stock brass unit, I also coated it with a thermal dispersant coating. It was pricey but it will last forever or until something pokes through the grill and will keep the p400 cool towing..

[arveetek]

I used a Visteon in the Dahooooley the last rebuild and it cools fine.

Where do you find this animal? I found you had mentioned Visteon in another thread, but I cannot find a supplier or even that this brand exists online.

Casey

[arveetek]

Where do you find this animal? I found you had mentioned Visteon in another thread, but I cannot find a supplier or even that this brand exists online.

Casey

A little more searching on Google finally came up with some info that Visteon (radiators) went bankrupt a few years ago. The current company that operates under the name of Visteon only deals with vehicle electronics.

Casey

[Robyn]

I bought mine at MACS Radiator in Portland Oregon.

[arveetek]

Well, lo and behold I located a shop nearby that is still in the radiator business! I spoke to them on the phone, and they said they can flush my OEM radiator with a special solution under medium pressure that cleans the inside tubes really well without having to disassemble the end tanks for $30. The higher pressure will also reveal any leaks that need to be repaired. They said to stay away from most aftermarket "OEM style" radiators since they are cheaply made.

Sounds like a good deal, but I'm a little concerned that the flush may cause a problem later on down the road due to the medium pressure they place on the radiator. Thoughts?

Casey

[sctrailrider]

I have used this method for years now in my tractors, trucks, every "old" radiator....

Buy 2-3 gallons of CLR from walmart or hardware store, drain the cooling system, fill with the CLR, run the motor for a day or so and drain & flush with clean water and refill with antifreeze... or remove the radiator, install the cap and lay flat with the hose connections up, fill with CLR and let sit, roll once in a while to move the fluid around, this will remove all the crud and not bother the metal...

I like doing this on the truck so everything is cleaned, block, heater core, etc and have never had any undue results from this..