Aluminum Radiator and electric fan

Xargon321

Well-known member
Hello, well im back trying to fix up my 65 mustang with a 200 i6. right now its my daily driver and im going to be upgrading it slowly, starting with Brakes, rear end etc. im eventually going to build a engine with a CI aluminum head. but i was looking at aluminum radiators on ebay and saw http://www.ebay.com/itm/1960-65-For...pt=Motors_Car_Truck_Parts_Accessories&vxp=mtr its a 2 row and come with a fan. i have a 78 block and head and the balancer is the 2v groove with a smaller 1v pulley on the front of it. had anyone else put a aluminum rad in their car with a fan? what kinds of clearance problems did you have?
 
I won't sugar coat it, those are crap... they both have the 1 inch tube and a 1/2 inch tube, just to call it a 2 row,

you want a radiator that has two 1 inch tubes, the total fin area thickness will be over 2 inches, probably 2 and 1/4 inch thick at the fins.

the fins are correct, 14-16 is optimum on an alum radiator.

also, make sure the application is correct, the 200 has smaller inlet/outlets,

Last, get a good quality fan, not something that comes with an electric fan. IMO Durale has an amazing tornado fan that is about 2-5/8 inches thick. it's a 2 stage so it's great if you have AC and during winter driving. (low = 1800 cfm and high = 2400 cfm) those fans will probably be over 3.5 inches thick and will interfere with your water pump.

search the forum I have made many posts on the electric fan and my combo, I do also have the 1 inch and 1/2 inch tube, it's crap, when I 'break' it I'll go full out with a two 1inch tubes and modify my radiator support and swap my engine mounts from side to side (pushes the engine back) and shorten my drive shaft at the same time swap in a 8inch rear end... just to make it fit properly. as currently I have less than 3/8 inch between water pump pulley bolt heads and the electric rad fan, the thick rad won't fit as is, yet

another way to beef up your radiator is make an air dam in your front valence under your bumper. forcing air in at higher speeds really makes a difference.

(heads up, my engines mounts are currently backwards pushing it forward 1/2-3/4 inch, I can't swap them as my drive shaft was lengthened 6 months ago, currently looking for an 8 inch rear so I have an excuse to change the drive shaft again. hind sight is always 20/20)

BTW you have a great base engine build, I would like so see some pictures some time. :thumbup: Good luck!
 
what would you recommend for a radiator? i thought that a champion aluminum radiator was pretty good. the rad i have now is the stock one and works just fine for the current motor but im planing on getting another block(78-83 depending on what trans i choose) and going all out with a Classic inline head and probably a holly efi setup. just looking at making it a good daily driver till i get the motor done. im hoping to have most of my mods done before the motor is ready so i just have to put the motor in when done.

right now its 78 block and head 1v Carter yfa Duraspark II with msd 6a box driving it, just upgraded to a 3g 130a alternator.
 
I don't mean champion is crap, they are on the cheap side though... but you con't get your moneys worth with a 1in+1/2 inch tubed radiator! I'm just giving you info so you get the best bang for your buck. you can probably find the correct radiator for little over $200, it's not the company that's bad just those rads... crappy design.

I recommend asking the sellers if they have a radiator for a 65 mustang with an i6 (indicating the correct size inlet/outlets) that has two 1 inch tubes in the radiator. if they don't then move on to the next seller.

the copper has 1/2-5/8 inch tubes, the alum only works better with the 1 inch tubes vs the 1/2 alum tubes really don't do anything better than copper because the heat transfer area is too small for the alum material.

knowledge is power and more contact area for alum is better,

here's an example chart... it is by no means accurate but rough esimate
1 inch alum rad = 2-3 row copper
1 + 1/2 in alum rad = 3-4 row copper
two 1 inch alum rad = 5-6 row copper
all with 14-16 fins per inch for alum (IIRC I believe you want 17-19 for copper)

due to the difference in materials the alum needs more surface area for fin contact at a more spaced fin count to out perform the copper.

I hope this has been helpful...
 
well so we are speaking the same language...

looking at the radiator from the engine side...
height = tube going from tank to tank
width = how wide the tube is from side to side
thickness = depth from back to front of the radiator

I recommend asking the eBay sellers to get your hands on a radiator that has two 1inch tubes as a 2 row rad.

Hope that helps... don't want to confuse anyone...
 
:thumbup: :thumbup: good rad

the way to get around the size difference is easier said than done... I've figured out the bottom but the top is only @ guess work.

I have found that you need a 72 mav 250 lower hose to fit the bottom, will stretch when fitting a little but fits nicely as IIRC 250's had the same radiator as v8 302's in 72 so it'll use the larger tube. and both the 200 and 250 have the same inlet size @ the water pump :D

and then the top hose is a little harder as you need a larger outlet on your engine, I'm using ClassicInlines billet T-stat housing, it has the larger water exit, then you'll have a hit and miss with the local shops to find the correct size hose I have yet to do this, I'm not sure but I bet a flex hose would be best for the top. I recommend sticking with later 250ci hose sizes/dimensions. I'm sure the hose might have to stretch a little to fit but should be fine.

Another route is to go flex hose down low too, they come with re-enforced tubing (wiring to help flex and hold round shape) and will help fight hose collapse, but I'm not sure on the size.

these are idea's, I'm not absolutely perfect it will go smoothly but I'm positive it can be done with off the self items.

Or simple ask the seller for that radiator with the i6 inlet/outlet sizes. I'm sure he can custom order it for little or no extra cost.
 
Back
Top