Which aluminum radiator do you suggest.

Sicarius428 · Oct 27, 2004

Hey guys. My stock radiator is pretty much rotted. If you brush your hand against the fins the fins don't bend but flake off like they disinigrate. I think its time to upgrade so I have decided on aluminum. Do you guys have any suggestions on some radiators. What I am looking for is hopefully a 3 row which will drop in and also fit my stock fan behind it in the 300-350 dollar price range. Probably asking for too much huh. I really don't mind getting a two row if it comes to it though because anything is better than stock as far as im conserned. I have a manual tranny just to let you know so any suggestions would really help a lot. Thank you.
Kevin

bt15 · Oct 27, 2004

I bought one via ebay that was manufactured here in the US and is holding up great. I was truly surprised with the quality when it arrived. I thought that for the price, if it looked like junk, I'd just ship it back at my expense, take my lumps and find a different one. Well, it fit in my 1985 GT just fine, cools like nobody's business and looks great. It was $270, I think. Good luck.

04sleeper · Oct 27, 2004

A lot of people like the Griffin Ford 31" X 19" radiator from Summit. It is $179 and has 2 large 1" rows. The large 2 rows are said to cool better than the 3 row radiators because they have more fin contact area. It does require some minor tweeking to put it in but it will work.
Ron Davis also makes a nice large 2 row that bolts in for around $269.
Then again you can't go wrong with a Fluidyne radiator. They are probably the best there is and need no modifications to bolt them in and are around $350.

Do a search and you will come up with some more info.

notchman90 · Oct 27, 2004

i just bought one off of ebay for 240 shipped. It huge and does an awesome job cooling. i dont have to use my fans anymore. It aluminum, welded and is a direct bolt on. very nice piece

dastang2 · Oct 27, 2004

if you want an aluminum radiator there will be no need for a 3rd row. actually people say that the heat from the first 2 rows heat the 3rd back up. i got a universal radiator from summit it was 30x19 and is not the griffin one.

Sicarius428 · Oct 27, 2004

Thanks a ton guys. I am probably going to go with the Griffin Radiator two row(which looks to be identical to the ones on ebay) from summit so I can consoidate some more toys with the money I saved. Thanks a lot.
Kevin

5.0 Nostalgia · Oct 27, 2004

It is all on how much you are willing to spend. If you want a good radiator but don't want to spend a lot, get the Griffin. If you don't care how much you pay, go with the Fluidyne.

ratrapp · Oct 27, 2004

i've had my griffin for 1&1/2 years and it's great,plus hard to beat the price.

Sicarius428 · Oct 27, 2004

Ya, the Fluidyne is the apex of cooling efficiency which I wish I can get but it is just a tad out of my budget. Right now I could not justify the 200 dollar difference for a tad better performance though. For my H/I/C combo I think the Griffin will do just fine for me from poking around the net and from your input. I am located in the Bay Area and the weather is pretty mild around here so I should be better than good with it(especially over stock). The price is also better than I expected so it leaves some money for an electric fan sooner than later. I thank you all for all the informative replies and your time.
Kevin

5spd GT · Oct 28, 2004

I have the Griffin 31x19 and it works great ...cooled my car down significantly with just that addition and 180 T-stat along with my h/c/i...2 bars on my stock guage

Alls you got to do is tap (hammer) the radiator hold-downs on the top and bottom outwards to fit around the wider radiator...and then resuse your stock hoses but flip your bottom hose around (lube the ends up a bit/wd40 or similar and tighten down real good)...and you'll have to cut a little off the bottom radiator hose to get it to not kink...

Probably the best $180 bucks I I have spent (especially during summertime)

Good Luck

TheUser · Oct 28, 2004

Sicarius428 said:
Ya, the Fluidyne is the apex of cooling efficiency

I read in the stangnet reviews a few months ago and there were a lot of people having leaks w/ the Fluidyne's not long after getting them.

NosPony · Oct 28, 2004

i put a ron davis aluminum radiator in mine. Love it. It dropped my motor almost 50 degrees. No Joke!!!!

5spd GT · Oct 28, 2004

TheUser said:
I read in the stangnet reviews a few months ago and there were a lot of people having leaks w/ the Fluidyne's not long after getting them.

Yeah I have seen that...I know that BeCool makes good radiator/fan combos...

v8only · Oct 28, 2004

$180 3 core autozone radiator, can't beat it for the price

rsw007 · Nov 16, 2004

hey guys is the 2 core alum rad. lighter than the stock brass one? need a little better cooling and always looking for weight savings

87'GTstang · Nov 16, 2004

89sleeper said:
A lot of people like the Griffin Ford 31" X 19" radiator from Summit. It is $179 and has 2 large 1" rows. The large 2 rows are said to cool better than the 3 row radiators because they have more fin contact area. It does require some minor tweeking to put it in but it will work.

Oh heck yeah, that thing works like a charm and you just can't beat the price. Cruising around this past summer, I could barely get above the 3rd tick mark on the stock gauge (less than 1/3 of the way up) and the kicker was I think I cut my electric fan on maybe 5 times since I installed the radiator (the stock radiator required it full time). Works extremely well though

87'GTstang · Nov 16, 2004

rsw007 said:
hey guys is the 2 core alum rad. lighter than the stock brass one? need a little better cooling and always looking for weight savings

Aluminum is so favorable because it is lighter than most other metals, brass is one of the heavier ones, so - by all means it's lighter.

5spd GT · Nov 16, 2004

87'GTstang said:
Oh heck yeah, that thing works like a charm and you just can't beat the price. Cruising around this past summer, I could barely get above the 3rd tick mark on the stock gauge (less than 1/3 of the way up) and the kicker was I think I cut my electric fan on maybe 5 times since I installed the radiator (the stock radiator required it full time). Works extremely well though

That sounds familiar

(I have the Griffin as well)...but I have to turn on my fan when I get in stop and go traffic (no wind for radiator)...or my car will heat up quick...in the summer...

rsw007 · Nov 17, 2004

5spd GT said:
That sounds familiar

(I have the Griffin as well)...but I have to turn on my fan when I get in stop and go traffic (no wind for radiator)...or my car will heat up quick...in the summer...

did you get the griffin thats 79-93 specific? did it drop right in? and is it ligher than the stock rad? thats the one im looking at getting.

5spd GT · Nov 17, 2004

rsw007 said:
did you get the griffin thats 79-93 specific? did it drop right in? and is it ligher than the stock rad? thats the one im looking at getting.

It isn't 79-93 specific (it isn't labeled as that...) but it pretty much dropped in...it is way thicker than the stock one...but alls I did was bend out the radiator supports (bottom and top) and you slightly move the a/c condensor lines to the side...and mine slid in nice and neat...then you take your bottom radiator hose and flip it around and trim it up a bit so it doesn't kink because of the extra length...the reason you flip it is because the stock water pump end on the hose will fit better over the bigger ends of the Griffin radiator...I used a tad bit of wd40 on the inside of the radiator hoses...so I could get it slid on and then I clamped them down and it was a very nice improvement over stock...I also added a 180 thermostat at the time...

Here is a link to the one I got...

http://store.summitracing.com/default.asp?target=esearch.asp&N=100&Ntk=PartSearch&Ntt=GRI-1-26272-X

Which aluminum radiator do you suggest.

Sicarius428

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