The ancient radiator in my car has developed a pinhole leak at the top tank. It's been repaired a few times over the years for the same thing, so I guess its about time to spring for a new radiator.
From what I've read in other posts here, folks are having good luck with the Auto City Classics radiator. I'll give one of those a try. Being a new Texas resident though it's probably also time to upgrade from the old stock 4-blade fan.
I'm thinking an engine-driven fan with a clutch. For you guys running a Y-block, can you share any tips regarding clearance, and what clutch & fan combos have worked for you?
I am still working on some upgrades and replacement cooling parts myself, 59 Meteor recommended a downflow radiator in response to my inquiry last week. I installed a crossflow about 12 years ago and it cools fine unless I'm in heavy traffic or a parade, Well I say that, but once my car gets up around 210 it vapor locks so that has been my motivator to keep below 200 no matter what. I recently insulated my fuel lines and installed a phenolic spacer etc. so I think I have that issue resolved but 59 Meteor got me to thinking since he commented about the core size and down flow,so I did some math.
My crossflow core is 18.7"x17.5" which is 325 square inches. The downflow has more core area that will fit into the 57 front opening, those dimensions vary anywhere from 424-436 square inches, depending on the core size (Griffin or Others). I also looked at the fan sizes since I was running a 16" flex fan. I'm going to install 17" Ford OEM flex fan 5 blade. I built a fan shroud that helps but it is nowhere as good as one of our members fan shroud he designed and had built. I cannot remember who posted it but it was just a few weeks ago so it should be easy to locate. He posted the detail and also shared the fan clutch and part number of the water pump. I installed a 302 in my Fairlane so some things I have had to work out through trial and error but some of the basics are going to carry over from the Y block to any motor due to the grill support opening size of these cars.
I wanted to go to a heavy duty water pump or one for a taxi or limo but I would have to change my timing cover and do not wish to do that. I think the standard flow pumps will work fine on these cars, it's a matter of getting a large enough core and some good air flow through the radiator. A lot of the guys on this site do not run a fan shroud and have not had any issues based on their comments, I don't think any of them came from the factory with a shroud. I will be installing a down flow since I can get a larger core, plus more coolant in the system, larger fan, and will be installing a better fan shroud than the one I built due to these Texas hot triple didgets.
I wish you well on your decisions/choices, the guys on this site have helped me a lot.
Got my reproduction brass radiator in 09 for my E code conv. from Cool Craft of Vernon Ca. Pretty exact and I opted for high efficiency upgrade, they also offered a tripleflow option which I skipped. Never had a problem with cooling. It was 320.00 then. As for the vapor locking use a backup electric pump which doesen't completely take care of the problem. Problem solved by switching to non alcohol fuel. yes its fifty cents or so more per gallon but worth it. Alcohol infused fuel boils at a lower temp., don't have the specs handy.
I believe I saw the post you're referring to with the homemade fan shroud. That did look like a nice setup. If I remember correctly he had a FE installed, so I'm sure clearance between the water pump and radiator is a bit different from a Y-block car.
I'm currently using a shroud that I bought a long time ago and I really have no idea if it makes a difference. The car has never had overheating issues but I usually don't find myself sitting in traffic with it either. Would rather be prepared before I find myself in that situation though.
Once the new radiator shows up I'll have to take some measurements and how much room I've got for a fan clutch and as big a fan as I can fit.
If the radiator you're waiting on is the Auto City Classic, it can be moved forward to gain an inch or so if that helps. Not sure if it'll work on other brands. You may have seen past posts on that mod, if not, I can post pics and instructions.
Rich, it is the Auto City radiator I'm waiting for. According to them it shipped today so I'm hoping it'll be here soon. Once she's in place I'll definitely let you know if I need to relocate things a bit.
As long as the cooling system is drained I may as well throw in one of those flow kooler water pumps. These Texas summers are a bit on the warm side. Can't get away with ignoring the cooling system anymore!
Well the radiator showed up last week. Looks nice. Couldn't drop it in right away since I got hit with the China virus. That really didn't turn out to be much more than a bad head cold that lasted a few days, but it was enough to drain any motivation I might've had for working on the car.
Went to the garage full of piss and vinegar yesterday. Decided to flush the cooling system with the old radiator still in so whatever crud got stirred up wouldn't wind up in the new radiator. That went well until I spotted the stream of coolant where the heater core decided to relieve itself on my new carpet. Not too much of a surprise I guess as I haven't used that heater in quite a few years.
Bypassed the core so I could finish flushing things. Not sure yet if its the core or the valve leaking. No big rush to find out since it's still 102* around here.
Anyway the new pump & thermostat are supposed to show up tomorrow. Once everything's back we'll see what kind of room is left for any fan upgrades.
I would be interested to hear if this radiator is a bolt in, without any mods. I bought one quite a few years ago and when I mounted it the filler neck hit the hood. Had to drill new mounting holes to drop it down enough to clear the hood. Hopefully they have corrected that. I too need to replace another radiator.
Contibob,I'm having that same issue.....the filler neck is hitting or so close,to the hood that I'm not comfortable with the position of the radiator. I moved mine forward as much as possible and down as much as possible, and like I said it is too close to the hood in my opinion.
I also have a straight six radiator and it is smaller in height by 1.25". With the six cylinder radiator placed in the core support,the top of the radiator is at, or just below the top of the core support. No hood clearance issues. I believe the six cylinder radiators mounted in front of the core support, or further forward in the core support, due to the length of the six cylinder engine.
I'm considering having a friend of mine make a radiator to exactly fit.He said he would put the filler neck on the back of the top tank, as opposed to on the top, of the top tank.
John
I believe the 6 cyl radiator does not fit in front of the core support. The flanges on the radiator are different or in a different location, and that's what moves the 6 cyl radiator forward. Yeah, the Auto City radiators are a close fit, but many have done it by simply moving it down via altering the flange holes. Not really a big deal. Do you have the hood on? I didn't think you were at that point.
I had put some Play-doh on top of my radiator cap when I was assembling, had about 1/8" if I remember, and my plan if it didn't fit was to cut the filler neck off, weld shut, and add a 90* filler neck to the engine side of the top tank. Didn't need to do that.
Rich, my radiator/hood clearance is minimal at best. I've moved the radiator down as far as one can and forward to the point of the upper tank being within a 1/32" of the core support. I used some plumbers putty to check the clearance.Very close.
So I decided to add the V shaped "nose piece" that is between the hood and the grill, to see if the front of the hood was close to where it needs to be. The result is too large of a gap between the hood and the nose piece. The hood is down as far as the slots will allow. The nose piece is Up, as far as it will go. The gap is still too large. A friend that knows '57 Fords is coming over tomorrow to take a look.
I have considered the same option regarding the re-location of the filler neck. My thought is to purchase a Auto City Classics radiator and cut the filler neck panel out of the top tank, and install a 90* elbow as you described.
John
BTW I have successfully modified the hood hinges with 120# Gas Struts. When I get the hood/radiator clearance issue resolved, I'll post some photos, part numbers , description etc.
You're moving right along, John! I'm a little confused........I thought you were installing/working with the Auto CIty radiator, but you just said "My thought is to purchase a Auto City Classics radiator". My concern with your previous discussion was not giving the impression that the Auto City radiator didn't fit our cars. I have no connection to them, just appreciate the fact they have been a great source for multiple quality components for us '57 guys at reasonable prices. I think everybody will agree we wish their radiators were a 1/2" shorter or so, but what they have now is still workable.
You're gonna like the hydraulic lifts on the hood.
The hood closes and there's no contact with the radiator, but it seems to be a close fit. Gonna put some silly putty on it today and see just how close.
Right now what concerns me more is fan clearance. Once the radiator was in, I set the pulley, spacer and fan in place (not bolted up) just to get an idea of how different things will be from when the original radiator was there. The fan was contacting the top radiator tank.
Still waiting for the new water pump to arrive, so once that's here I'll bolt it all up to get a better idea of how things will fit. Guess if it comes to it I can use a half-inch shorter spacer.
SO everything is back in and buttoned up. When I mounted the radiator, I used the mount holes as they were and did not open them up to move the radiator in any particular directions.
There's about 1/4" clearance between the cap and the hood, as measured using play-doh.
The water pump was replaced with a flow-kooler pump. Seems like a nice piece. I was worried the impeller would contact the face of the front cover. Very close. It does make slight contact with no gasket, but is just fine with the gasket in place.
The fan did end up making contact with the top tank. I ended up using a 1/2" shorter fan spacer and things were just fine with that. It seems like the top tank of the Auto City Classics radiator extends rearward and overhangs the core a bit more than the top tank of the original radiator, causing the interference with the fan.
No job is complete without a WTF moment. When I first fired it up after filling the cooling system, the car was idling a little rough. Scratched my head a little until I remembered I'd removed the heater core, and the vacuum line to the water valve was left uncapped. Capped it off and she's smooth as silk after that.20220816_153853.jpg
:burnout: Now all that's left is a few hundred miles in Texas heat to give it a shakedown, lol. Nice job, Marc.
Quote from: RICH MUISE on 2022-08-19 19:05:burnout: Now all that's left is a few hundred miles in Texas heat to give it a shakedown, lol. Nice job, Marc.
Hey it's finally cooling off around here! Lots of rain in the forecast too, which is a nice change from the bone-dry summer we've had.
The radiator looks good, nice installation. Good to know you were able to use original mounting holes.
Thanks for posting the photos and the details of your installation.
Not sure if the radiator to hood clearance issue is different between a 57/8, and a 59, but when I installed my Auto City Classic radiator in my 59 2 door sedan, with a 428CJ FE,I checked and if I used the mounting holes in the radiator side brackets, the rad cap would have hit the hood noticeably. So I just drilled 4 new holes about 1/2" above the existing holes, and although still close (less than 1/4" clearance), in over 2 years and over 4000 miles of driving, there has been no signs of the rad cap contacting the hood. Since the radiator and hood are both bolted to the radiator support, the clearance should not change even on large bumps in the road. I have a 7 blade, 18" flex fan on my 428, as well as dual alternator/water pump pulleys, and the upper tank of the Auto City Classic radiator definitely sticks further back, towards the engine than the factory rad, so to avoid fan interference, I had to use a fairly short fan spacer to have enough space between the fan and radiator tank, as well as not have the fan blades avoid touching the forward fan belt. But overall, very happy with the radiator, both in it`s factory appearance, and cooling performance.
Thanks for the kind words Wirenut.
59Meteor, I'm also not sure if the clearance on a 59 differs from 57 & 58. There was definitely room if I needed to lower the radiator a bit to gain clearance.
I'd hoped to go with a larger fan and maybe a clutch, but I think I'm going to give it some time and see how it performs as is. Glad you're happy with the radiator. Fitment issues aside, I've mostly seen positive comments on how the radiator performs which is why I chose it.