New Radiator & some other goodies HUGE PICS (56k Beware!)

[Grandma91quis]

I just installed my new plastic (didnt know they where plastic) radiator i bought on ebay for 65 free shipping . I also installed a 160T-stat, 14in electric fan w/ on/off switch(need another fan). Removed ac bracket that was holding the coil, and relocated the coil to the driver side fender. Ford put the bottem bolt for the T-stat way to low and behind the water pump:cuss: . Tell me what you think.

[gadget73]

It would actually cool better with the stock fan shroud in there over the electric fan. Might also wanna get a bigger fan.

[Archangel]

I think 160*F is way too low, these engines work better when allowed to warm up nicely - I have a 197*F thermostat to go in my cooling system some day not too far. If you install a second fan move it towards the lower part of the radiator, so the pair looks placed kinda diagonally - as of right now you're not getting very god airflow through the bottom of the radiator. Also get rid of that zip-tie that holds your coil to the fender, drill two holes in the fender (use a sharp knife if necessary), and BOLT the coil to the fender. Install the plastic snorkel pipe back on the air box, it actually gives you a nice CAI setup and which is much better for performance than the WAI you have now with the airbox open like that. Other than that it looks good, mind sharing the fan's charactersitics (cfm and price mainly).

Oh, and your radiator is not plastic, only the tanks on the sides are, stock is exactly the same.

[Tiggie]

My thermostat is stuck open... I go all the way into town and never get over 100 degrees... Maybe one day I'll fix that... naw... I'll just wait for the new engine.

[gadget73]

Keep it too cold and the motor goops up. The oil wont ever get hot enough to cook off the impurities and moisture, and the inside of the motor will end up packed with sludge. I'd link you to 88grandmarq's thread about the 302 he did with no thermostat, but the pics are gone now. It was quite nasty at any rate.

[Tiggie]

Keep it too cold and the motor goops up.

That I can vouch for. I remember 88grandmarq's thread. Unfortunatly, that motor was clean compared to how mine looks. My rocker arms have actually made themselves room inside the valve cover, they push the sludge out of the way. Apparently, my thermostat has been stuck for a very long time, I just got around to putting a gauge on it.

[DuceAnAHalf]

you might want to move that fan to the bottom part of the radiator, the top half gets decent airflow through the grill, the lower half is blocked by the bumper.

[Grandma91quis]

Keep it too cold and the motor goops up. The oil wont ever get hot enough to cook off the impurities and moisture, and the inside of the motor will end up packed with sludge. I'd link you to 88grandmarq's thread about the 302 he did with no thermostat, but the pics are gone now. It was quite nasty at any rate.

Mine doesnt run that cool. I dont kick on the fan till it gets around 190. Thats why i put a switch on my dash for the fan. I run bracket on the weekends i just needed the 160 to keep it from overheating when i run the car. with the stock t-stat and fan it was creepin to 230 after letting it cool for 30 mins it was still at 190 for my next run. it also makes you more consistant if your temp is about the same everytime you run.

[Grandma91quis]

I think 160*F is way too low, these engines work better when allowed to warm up nicely - I have a 197*F thermostat to go in my cooling system some day not too far. If you install a second fan move it towards the lower part of the radiator, so the pair looks placed kinda diagonally - as of right now you're not getting very god airflow through the bottom of the radiator. Also get rid of that zip-tie that holds your coil to the fender, drill two holes in the fender (use a sharp knife if necessary), and BOLT the coil to the fender. Install the plastic snorkel pipe back on the air box, it actually gives you a nice CAI setup and which is much better for performance than the WAI you have now with the airbox open like that. Other than that it looks good, mind sharing the fan's charactersitics (cfm and price mainly).

Oh, and your radiator is not plastic, only the tanks on the sides are, stock is exactly the same.

I want to make a small hood scoop eventualy just for kicks. gonna be a redneck deal but i wanna try it out. Or maybe stick at cone out of the top of the hood. Im looking for cheap HP lol.

The fan was bought on ebay for around 60 and its a 2200 CFM 14inch and i think it pulls 10amps.

Yea and i didnt notice the caps on the radiator where plasic till i changed it.

As for the coil that was a quick redneck job to get that bracket out of the way, ill bolt her down whenever i get the notion

[Blaze86Vic]

That fan is inadiquite for the job. It is too small and doesn't even look as if it is covering 1/3 at the most, probably not even 1/4th. Get a bigger, or second fan. If you are in anyway city driving I would HIGHLY recomend putting the stock fan and shroud back on untill you have a larger or 2 electric fans.

Here is a link to my electric fan upgrade.

[Archangel]

Hm, your car is MPFI, you're not gonna get any benefits from running a scoop (air inlet for engine is nowhere near where the scoop will be), except for lowering the engine bay temperature cause of the colder air from outside pushing down on the hot air trapped above the engine. You can achieve the same effect with a cowl hood, and that will give you better aerodynamics for those bracket races.

[gadget73]

Bracket racing is kind of fun. I did that last weekend and didn't do too horrible considering I've never run before. My dial in was a total screwup, I left the AC on and just left it on the whole time. Slowed me down some I'm sure, but I wasn't sweating at least.

[Grandma91quis]

Hm, your car is MPFI, you're not gonna get any benefits from running a scoop (air inlet for engine is nowhere near where the scoop will be), except for lowering the engine bay temperature cause of the colder air from outside pushing down on the hot air trapped above the engine. You can achieve the same effect with a cowl hood, and that will give you better aerodynamics for those bracket races.

OK how about this. mount the the airbox upside down, cut it out and foam it to an offset hoodscoop in front of the driver. And put like a K&N in the box? I thought that would be cool.

[LTDMan83]

That fan is seriously inadequate,you need to add another one of the same size,or one which will cover most of the raidiator.

[Archangel]

OK how about this. mount the the airbox upside down, cut it out and foam it to an offset hoodscoop in front of the driver. And put like a K&N in the box? I thought that would be cool.

That may work, but will most likely look kinda retarded. Also in rain when you're driving behind an 18-wheeler it will try to soak up the filter and suck water in the engine.