Radiators and temps

[white_90_GT]

Ok so I have replaced everything,

All new hoses, 180 Thermostate, tranny cooler ( added ), autolite water temp gauge, electric fan ( 2200 cfm ), new radiator ( oem ), and new water pump.

Still I am running up at 230 and sometimes higher, a without even try the A\C.

So general theory is that I need a bigger radiator. I have asked a lot of people and got a lot of opinions, and am currently looking at the aluminum radiator from summit. It is 2 1" tubes and CLAIMS to out cool a 4 core.

So my question is this,

For all of you that have actually switched to an aluminum rad, and specifically the summit one, what temps are you running at????????

Thanks,

Casey

 

[89MustangGX]

You most likely have a problem with the fan. Radiators are WAY overbought, most people don't need any more than just an OEM style unit. I bet if you take a few minutes and put your stock fan back on it would cool perfect. This is assuming you have the common assortment of mods or are near stock.

 

[TheUser]

I know it sounds dumb, but make sure you "burped" the system to get the air out. Leave the cap off and let it run and let the thermostat open and it'll push air out...might want a catch pan to catch any coolant that might bubble out. Also, run it, come home, let it cool down and check fluid level, maybe it's some how getting low on coolant...that's my problem I think

 

[HISSIN50]

when are you running hot? highway, in town, etc.
im with Adam on this one (TU's burp advice is always good). unless you are running hot on the highway, i would look at the ancillary items, notably the fan. the stock set up moves a lot of air. some electric units dont seem to do so hot (or do, do hot).
Adam's advice was right on - put a stock mech fan on for testing and see what gives, IMHO.
good luck.

 

[blackstangt]

why 180 thermostat, i run 160, optimal temp, but previous statments all sond good. or if electric fan, better one mabye or shroud if missing.

 

[jeffnoel]

How is your electric fan being activated? I'm using a thermastat that mounts in the Rad fins and turns the fan on at 185, off at 170.

 

[393Bird]

If you read a add about the Black Majic fan, they say that there 2800 cfm fan is good to cool a 225 HP engine. I would guess they know more about cooling needs than most. If yours is 2200 cfm, and the HP is above 200, I would guess your new fan is too small. If it runs cool at highway speeds, but hot at idle or stop/go driving, its a fan problem.

 

[SlowGT]

I've seen the Black magic run 450hp+ engines. 2200 is plenty in this case assuming that he's not far beyond normal bolt-ons and as long as it's got a shroud. Not familiar with how much fan is necessary when not using a shroud. I've been running 340hp on the factory fan in a 95. Don't know what the flow #s are for it though.

Here's a bite-ya-in-the-ass idea: A lot of aftermarket fans are reversible. If you're fan is trying to push air out through the radiator, it may not get the job done. Something that could easily be overlooked because one would assume that it's spinning in the right direction and most probably wouldn't think of checking it.

 

[white_90_GT]

Thanks for all of the advice.

Just to be more specific, I am currently running bone stock ( gotta cool it down before I can add more power ), the electric fan is mounted in the shroud and the kit says "This fan will cool all but the most extreme modifications". The radiator has been burped, and oh yes I also have a new cap.

I did however go ahead and put my stock fan back on last night, and low and behold I am not running nearly as hot. Actually ran about 180 all day, 210 w/ the A/C on. But I also know that the clutch in my fan is going out as the fan turns way to easy when it's hot. That is the reason I bought the electric to begin with.

So it looks like I have a nasty letter to write to a manufacturer of a certain electric fan that won't cool the way they promise. Actually I think the fan could do the job, but it seems like it doesn't force the air down under the car like it should.

So I will be getting a new fan clutch and go from there. Of course my questions still stands as to what temps people w/ aluminum radiators are running. So if anybody has some input on that I would still love to hear it.

Thanks again guys,
Casey

 

[white_90_GT]

oh yeah, and just for anyone who might look at this thread in the future.

My electric fan is currently being activated by a switch I ran to under the dash. And since it is hotter than hell here, I was pretty much just leaving it on all the time.

As for it spining backwords, thats not possible as it had a diode on it that wouldn't allow it.

And the temp would just go up. Around town, on the freeway, didn't matter. I could start the day fine and be at 230 in about an hour and 250 by the end of the day.(w/ a lot of driving )

Any way I am on the right track now so thanks again everyone. Just wanted to add the last info I could think of.

 

[HISSIN50]

Casey, well atleast you have narrowed it down (though the mechanical fan making a difference when the car is running hot at all times does confuse simple me).
i would talk to the manufacturer and/or vendor too.

i bet you could make it work a little better (if stuck with it) with a www.DcControl.com

the progressive nature of this controller would 'work up' to dealing with the higher temps you experience better than a conventional relay/switch.

speaking of which, have you considered that the wiring or switch you ran not being up to the task of flowing full juice to the fan? sounds like you have a good handle on what you are doing, but i had to ask (easy to overlook stuff like that when racking your brain to find a solution - atleast for me).

what temp was your fan set to go on at (sorry if i missed it in previous posts - in a rush)? did you try backing the temp on the controller down? i would have run like on at 195, off at 185 or so.

random thoughts. good luck, Casey.

 

[SlowGT]

Flex-A-Lite also makes a Variable Speed Controller. They've got a good install writeup on their site, too. $80 from Summit.

 

[whitenblu89]

i have an aluminum radiator that i bought at a local shop. its an aliminum one with 2 one inch cores and with the stock fan it cools too much. cruisinc down the highway the temp gauge never goes above the bottom of the L in NORMAL. and in heavy stop and go it goes to the A. i want to get an electric fan so i can keep it a little hotter but i just cant decide on a fan. but anyways the aluminum radiator similar to summits is awsome and will support later mods.

 

[white_90_GT]

Thanks so much guys for the continued help.

I know that the clutch on my mechanical is going bad, and that is probably why I was just running hot in general. I am definatly cooler since changing the radiator and the water pump, so I figure it never hurts to have some new parts.

I did voltage checks on the electric fan, which looked fine, but no amperage checks so it is possible it wasn't spinning at a high enough speed. Although what really strikes me as odd is how flat the blades are in comparison to the stock fan.

I'm not sure what I am going to do w/ the electric fan for now. I am still thinking of an aluminum radiator, so perhaps in the future the fan will be useful. Either way I think that anyone considering an electric fan should probably be a little causious especially if ordering online or through a catatlog. Definatley do your homework.

Casey

 

[Hawkeye_306]

I have a summit 2-1” core aluminum radiator. Since I have a 5 speed (no need for the tranny cooler) I got the “ford applications” one to save a few bucks ($169 vs $299). I think it is actually a shade smaller than the “5.0 Mustang” radiator. My temp gauge stays in the 180-200 degree range depending on conditions, so far never over 200. Haven’t really opened it up yet though. This is with the stock fan, 180 thermostat, summit “High-Volume” water pump (don’t ask me why), and I run 3.73 gears. My engine if fairly modified—heads, cam, and so on.

So I would recommend the summit aluminum radiator. My summit “ford applications” radiator did require some mounting fabrication, but that is probably not the case for the “5.0” radiator. Though I can`t say that from experience.

Hope this helped.

 

[HISSIN50]

i have an aluminum radiator that i bought at a local shop. its an aliminum one with 2 one inch cores and with the stock fan it cools too much. cruisinc down the highway the temp gauge never goes above the bottom of the L in NORMAL. and in heavy stop and go it goes to the A. i want to get an electric fan so i can keep it a little hotter but i just cant decide on a fan. but anyways the aluminum radiator similar to summits is awsome and will support later mods.

i would suggest that you get a real temp gauge before making mods and decisions based on the stock gauge. you may be running a bit hotter than you think.
just my two cents worth. good luck.

 

[Foxwolfe]

Lol yes I found it odd that the stock gauge never read any higher than 130, so it was nice to see it run at 190 once I hooked my autometer gauges up. My stock volt gauge is bananas as well, always reading well over 18 volts whereas my autometer voltmeter reads around 14. And I know your all well aware of the prob with stock fuel gauges heh.

 

[HISSIN50]

Lol yes I found it odd that the stock gauge never read any higher than 130, so it was nice to see it run at 190 once I hooked my autometer gauges up. heh.

yeah, same boat for me. i used to run around in 110* ambient temps, with a/c on, and never creased 1/2 on my stock temp gauge. with the aftermarket gauge, it can actually precisely see the small increases and know when im creeping up to 210*.
in the same conditions, the stocker never moved. it seemed to 'hang' at 1/4 and 1/2. this is probably a result of the built-in hysteresis (as Michael Yount, puts it).

one of the first mods to any fox, IMHO, should be oil pressure and water temp gauges, at a min.

Fox, if you get around to trying to find the problem, it sounds like your instrument voltage regulator could have gone south (it is behind the cluster).