Which aluminum radiator do you suggest.
- Thread starter Sicarius428
- Start date
Dark Knight
Founding Member
04sleeper
Founding Member
I'm running an AFCO 31x19.. basically the same as the summit ones. Paid $170 for it. It took some work to get it to fit, but it does the job well.
Michael Yount
Mustang Master
A few facts to help you make your decision. The only reason to go aluminum is if you want to save weight. Standard radiator construction is COPPER core, with brass tanks; or aluminum core with plastic tanks on new oems; alum. core w/alum tanks on stuff like Fluidyne/Griffin. You won't find a brass core out there. The copper cores are noticeably heavier, but copper does transfer heat a bit better than aluminum does - contrary to popular belief; most are misinformed on this notion. The benefit of aluminum is reduced weight, and reduced cost for the oems.
The thing to look for is how many fins per inch does the core have. You want something up in the 16-18 fin/inch range. These are the most efficient cores. And a 2-row is plenty. There's little additional heat transfer that occurs with additional rows (3 row, 4 row) because the air passing over the rear rows has increased in temp to where there's little delta T left between the air and the coolant. If you need more heat transfer, don't increase number of rows; increase square inches of core. That way you get a directly proporitional increase in heat transfer capacity - 30% more surface area=30% more heat transfer capacity. A third row offers only about 10% more capacity over the same size 2 row. A 4th row offers only about 5% more over the 3 row.
I think the option often overlooked is simply taking your stock radiator to the local radiator shop and having them put a contemporary 18 fin/inch 2-row core in it. It will be superior in every way to the stock radiator, you know it will fit, and all your stuff will hook right back up. And it's usually cost competitive (often cheaper) than buying something comparable -- remember, comparable means the same number of fins/inch. People get hung up on the number of rows -- 2's plenty; get hung up on the number of fins/inch. That'll get you a good radiator. Aluminum's lighter; copper transfers heat better.
You decide.
The thing to look for is how many fins per inch does the core have. You want something up in the 16-18 fin/inch range. These are the most efficient cores. And a 2-row is plenty. There's little additional heat transfer that occurs with additional rows (3 row, 4 row) because the air passing over the rear rows has increased in temp to where there's little delta T left between the air and the coolant. If you need more heat transfer, don't increase number of rows; increase square inches of core. That way you get a directly proporitional increase in heat transfer capacity - 30% more surface area=30% more heat transfer capacity. A third row offers only about 10% more capacity over the same size 2 row. A 4th row offers only about 5% more over the 3 row.
I think the option often overlooked is simply taking your stock radiator to the local radiator shop and having them put a contemporary 18 fin/inch 2-row core in it. It will be superior in every way to the stock radiator, you know it will fit, and all your stuff will hook right back up. And it's usually cost competitive (often cheaper) than buying something comparable -- remember, comparable means the same number of fins/inch. People get hung up on the number of rows -- 2's plenty; get hung up on the number of fins/inch. That'll get you a good radiator. Aluminum's lighter; copper transfers heat better.
You decide.
