Recommendations on replacement radiators?

On Friday, I was just getting ready to get my car insured and registered when I noticed a couple of small puddles under each end of the radiator after getting the car fully warmed up. I pulled off the grille and I could see some blueish corrosion on the connections between the core and each tank. The areas were slowly dripping with the system under pressure. I plan to pull the radiator shortly and get a better assessment of the damage. If it is a copper system, I suppose I could try resoldering it as the water flow inside is excellent. If not, I guess I'll be shopping for a new radiator.

I've never had a cooling issue with this car (I can count on one hand how many times the fan has come on while driving) so I believe anything with similar capacity to the original will work. I've seen several aluminum radiators at our suppliers and on eBay. Any recommendations?

Thanks,


Don
 
One of the X's I bought came with a aluminum replacement from one of our vendors. I don't want to name the vendor nor specify the exact product due to some sensitive feelings that seem to exist around here (I got in trouble for being honest previously). So I'll just describe the product's faults and you can PM me if you want more details.

The unit only has a couple hundred miles of use on it, but it was installed almost two years ago. The antifreeze was still fresh and there is no evidence of damage, misuse, improper installation, etc. There are two leaks at seam welds. The vent pipe came off. And the supplied electric fans pull VERY little air (poor quality fans).

Aside from those issues, I like the concept of an aluminum radiator. Even though you are satisfied with the stock capacity, I appreciate the slightly increased size of the aftermarket one. I will take it to be soldered/welded at the needed places and hope the rest of it holds up.

Honestly I doubt that any of the aftermarket units are any better quality that the one described above. Otherwise I see two options; have your old one rebuilt (great time to have the tanks pulled, core rodded out, and everything resealed - even if it is working fine), or go with a custom installation. The VW radiator discussed here a while back is a very affordable upgrade in my opinion. That is what I will do on my other X.
 
I would rebuild your existing one if it is flowing well. There has to still be a vintage radiator shop around you that can resolver the tanks. I would have them remove them, clean and then resolder the tanks.

I have an aluminum one in reserve for when one of mine fails.
 
I have had zero issues with the aluminum rad I had made by Howe racing to my specification. I would highly recommend them. Can't speak to any of the other available units.
 
My 85X has one of the first run of Bob Grasch aluminum rads. MWB carries them now. Once I resolved the one small issue described below, I have been amazed by the difference the aluminum rad made in my 85. Prior to replacing the rad I was always staring at the temp gauge since it would swing higher and higher the longer I drove the car. It never made it to the red, but it was troubling. I changed nothing in the system besides the new aluminum rad, now the only time it reaches 190 is after long drives and then stopping in traffic. This summer I saw it get just a tiny bit over 190 at a long traffic signal.
20140726_105751.jpg
Once I start moving again it drops back to about here:
20140726_104834.jpg
(edited my post, because I dropped the in motion picture and had to re-add it. oops)

The only issue I had with this rad is that the bung for the bleeder valve was welded in at a very slight angle which made the threaded opening not align with the body hole perfectly. This meant the bleeder leaked a bit for a few days till I looked closer and figured out what was going on. After a little re-positioning of the rad bracket a I got a good seal. I have been extremely pleased with this rad and bought a second one that I have sitting on the shelf for the future.
 
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On Friday, I was just getting ready to get my car insured and registered when I noticed a couple of small puddles under each end of the radiator after getting the car fully warmed up. I pulled off the grille and I could see some blueish corrosion on the connections between the core and each tank. The areas were slowly dripping with the system under pressure. I plan to pull the radiator shortly and get a better assessment of the damage. If it is a copper system, I suppose I could try resoldering it as the water flow inside is excellent. If not, I guess I'll be shopping for a new radiator.

I've never had a cooling issue with this car (I can count on one hand how many times the fan has come on while driving) so I believe anything with similar capacity to the original will work. I've seen several aluminum radiators at our suppliers and on eBay. Any recommendations?

Thanks,


Don
I bought a couple of Bob's aluminum rads, I think they are well worth the price. But, if you are interested in a new stock rad PM me, I have several new Modine replacements available.
BTW the stock rads are made of steel. Steel transfers heat very well, that's why the fins are placed so close together. It's also why the stock rad can rust.
 
I bought a couple of Bob's aluminum rads, I think they are well worth the price. But, if you are interested in a new stock rad PM me, I have several new Modine replacements available.
BTW the stock rads are made of steel. Steel transfers heat very well, that's why the fins are placed so close together. It's also why the stock rad can rust.

I never paid attention to that - I have this pic I took when I did the VW rad years ago - does look like steel core - I assumed that was just the solder over the connection to end plate. I thought the core was also copper like the end tanks

X19_0834.jpg
 
https://www.midwest-bayless.com/Fia...bertone-x19-lancia-scorpion-new-aluminum.aspx

^This is the radiator I've ran in two X's over the past 18 months. No complaints on fit/finish/functionality. Cools much better than the stock steel rad. I don't have any experience with other vendor's aluminum radiators, so I can't praise or knock them - just giving my two cents on the one I've been using.

Aluminum's thermal conductivity is roughly 5x better than steel. This allows for the aluminum radiator to be less densly packed than the steel radiator and still provide better cooling.

Copper is even better - about 2x that of Aluminum. The oem radiator in my MR2 is aluminum with copper fins. The radiator cavity on both cars is extremely similar. I've thought about seeing what it would take to make the MR2 radiator fit in the X1/9, but that's not high on my list especially since the MWB aluminum radiator cools more than adequately.
 
I have a funny feeling that when guys say their new aluminum radiator is much better than their stock steel one that they are actually comparing an old partially clogged original rad to a brand new unclogged and thermally more efficient aluminum radiator.

having said that, there is a good chance that if I had to get a new rad I would probably get an aluminum one.
 
I have a funny feeling that when guys say their new aluminum radiator is much better than their stock steel one that they are actually comparing an old partially clogged original rad to a brand new unclogged and thermally more efficient aluminum radiator.

having said that, there is a good chance that if I had to get a new rad I would probably get an aluminum one.

Nothing funny about your feeling at all carl. I am definitely comparing the performance of the crusty old stock steel rad that was in my 85 to the performance of the shiny new aluminum rad in the car now. :D

I bought a new steel rad from Chris Obert (linked in case someone wants steel) back in 2004 to replace my 78's clogged and crusty old steel radiator. The 78 would hit the red with the old rad. The new steel rad from Chris definitely made the 78 run as it should temp wise.

So steel and aluminum rads both work well when new.
 
I’ve been chasing a cooling issue on my X since I got it in the spring. I did change the old plugged rad with an aluminum unit from viks and was very happy with the look, fit and function. Price was attractive as well. Just to add my 2 cents.
 
I pulled my radiator today. No big surprises. Here are a few photos:

Radiator - Rear - 2018_10_11.jpg


Close-ups of the rear lower corners:
Radiator - Rear Driver Side Lower Close-up - 2018_10_11.jpg


Radiator - Rear Passenger Side Lower Close-up - 2018_10_11.jpg


Also, there was some discussion about radiators being made of steel. That struck me as a rather unusual choice of material for a radiator as it does not have great thermal conductivity for a metal, and it rusts. I decided to check my radiator with a magnet and the only thing it stuck to was the thin steel frame around the unit. The core and tanks clearly look like they are made of copper or brass.

I found one radiator shop in the area that still fixes radiators (You'd be surprised at how many shops with "radiator" in there name don't) so I plan to bring it in and see what they say. If that doesn't work out, I'll probably shop around for a well made aluminum replacement.
 
That's sad to hear. But I guess not at all surprising.
I think radiators have become throw away items. The last radiator I replaced (Volvo T5R) there was really nothing to fix. The seal between the plastic tanks and the aluminum core went after about 150K, and it was hardly worth an attempt to reseal it for the price replacements were going for.
 
In the past, "real" radiator shops were great places to get more than regular radiator servicing done. They were able to make custom units with oversized cores that still fit like a stock one. Or modify one to accommodate custom engines. And their cleaning tanks and soldering/brazing skills were terrific for gas tanks and other components as well. But you are correct about the nature of modern radiators.
 
The prices on radiator work is what surprised me. I found a real old school shop here in STL that would work on my suspect 124 sedan radiator. They charged me $325 to replace the neck, inspect, clean and finally repaint the rad. They told me it was in amazing shape for its age and didn't really need much attention... just $325 dollars worth. Of course I was in a bind, since I couldn't find a new rad for a 124 sedan with automatic transmission.
 
That is a lot. That's another thing I remember about the old shops in the past; it was really cheap to get work done. Much less than replacing anything with new. Completely disassemble the rad, rod out the core, hot tank everything, reassemble, solder, seal and repaint for around $100. I guess if they don't get the volume of business anymore then they need to make up for it with their rates.
 
holy jeez, 325 dollars? did that come with a parts car or something? I guess that's the times. One of the few things I had to do on the previous 124 Sedan I owned was radiator work...I took the radiator (also an auto) and a few 124 sport radiators from god-knows-what that I had on hand and all appeared to have good parts & the shop used the original and part of another to build a good one for about $60. Of course, that was about 2001 also. At shop prices like these, they do quickly become throw-away items unless I can DIY (which, often I can do). I'm mostly intrigued by the new radiators for our cars.
 
The old school shop I used to use did a little bit of everything, but by marquee their specialty was radiators & fuel tanks. I was partial to them (I say "was" but the shop is still there, just don't know it's nature today) because it was around the corner from my grandfather's house and he'd stop to have small, dumb stuff checked out...the owner always took good care of him & in the months before we had to take his keys from my grandfather (for everyone's safety), there were times where the owner would drive my grandfather home & walk back to the shop. You don't get that kind of service much any more.
 
Agreed. I went in with the old prices in mind and dropped it off. I was a bit stunned at $325, but I paid up since I needed the rad back. Maybe they just overcharged me since I was not a regular customer or I looked stupid? :)

I tried using a $75 aluminum rad for a Civic, but I couldn't make it work. The transmission cooler connections were different and the in and out tubes, especially the out tube, were just in the wrong spot with the wrong angle. I was kinda surprised how tightly the sedans rad was fitted into the engine bay. It is very close to the front of the engine given the amount of space in front of the rad mounting surface. With a lot of work, I figured I could cut the rad frame and re position the aluminum rad to gain some clearance, but I gave up and got the stock unit worked over.
 
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