3 Row radiator VS 2 row aluminum

Hey fellas,

I am looking to upgrade my cooling system. I am putting in a new B&M tranny cooler, water pump, thermostat, radiator, hoses, etc... I have read a few articles on this upgrade on jeepin.com and jeephorizons.com.

I am now to the point where I am shopping for a radiator. I called the local radiator shop for some advice and he told me the following (in summary):

A three row all metal radiator is good, but I would need to see if the radiator actually is thicker with a normal sized third row. He said that sometimes the three row radiators are made with thinner tubes in the rows to make it a three row and it is common to clog with the slightest debris build up.

He did recommend an aluminum two row "high efficiency" radiator that is supposed to cool just as good without the thickness of a three row because it is aluminum. The choices for the aluminum were all aluminum ($500ish) or aluminum with plastic ($160ish).

I asked about the plastic's durability, and he said that he has been impressed lately with those radiators.

So for those of you that did this kind of upgrade, what did you go with and how is that fuinctioning for you?

Any other input would also be appreciated. Thanks.:farmer:

I have replaced every component in my cooling system at one point or another. When my stock radiator crapped out, I shelled out the dough for a three core radiator from Turbo City I think it was. Not only did it not cool any better (at all) but it only lasted about a year and a half and developed a leak. I then replaced it with a two core Modine unit from Napa. This unit is all brass, it was cheaper than the first one I had purchased, and best of all it made the most noticeable difference in cooling of all the other mods I have done.

I used an aluminum 3 core rad i got from www.autopartswarehouse.com for under $120 shipped to my door.It is made by silla and has a life time warranty.it does have plastic tanks ,but I do have to say I do trust plastic tanks,cause i werk at a hyundai dealer and well you know hyundai's rep.but the new ones are cool and they have plastic and alum rads I see ones that are from 1999 and do coolant flushes on these and the plastic still looks new and there is no cloggage what so ever on them either.so my view on plastic and alum is first hand.my previus modine large tube brass rad 2 core was completely clogged in 3 years of use and i flush 2 times a year!!!!I am very happy with my choice on rads I will see if i can find what i used and post it - if you mention a code in the discount code section i used9savemore) and it gives yo ua 5 or 10 percent disc.Ill check and re post here as a link hold on.............

Sheesh, another radiator thread.

Check out www.radiatorbarn.com. 2 row, all metal, brass tanks, copper core, free shipping, less than $140.

Bought one for my '88. Fits great, works great, great service, got mine next day. 'nuff said!

ok found it and the coupon code of ( savemore ) still werks-scroll to part SILLA2335P preminum 3 core and when you add it too your cart type in savemore and it will give the deal-$111.72 shipped to yuor door-OH by the way it is free shipping as well!!!!!!!!!!http://replacement.autopartswarehouse.com/parts/autopartswarehouse/quote.jsp?year=2000&product=G1000-131872&application=002628571&part=Radiator&dp=true

Saaaweeet!!! I will have to check it out. I just did not have any info to go on for the plastic/aluminum radiator. Thanks:viking:

no problema- plus this rad werks really good for me here in NC,it was like 90 today and mine stays way under the 210 mark if you were to look at the temp gauge like a gas gauge it would show a litte more than a quarter tank left - meaning it stays reeeeeeel cool!!!!:thumbup:

here's a tip for you-to keep the coolant from elecetrolys put a zinc anode in it- the coorsive part will eat the zinc anode and now the plastic or aluminum like everybody says that plastic disinigrates,will no get consumed .it will eat the anode!!!!! you can get them from race car places - i havent searched biut i will be installing one inmine- they do have some that just drop in with a wire that hangs from the rad cap-but we have a stupid 90* turn on our filler necks!!! so i will be looking for one that screws in to the motor-preferable the side of the block.:lecture: try this next time--take yer volt meter-digital one - and connect the groung lead to the battery and then take the positive one and hold it in the coolant without touching anythig-if its over 2 tenths of a volt ( .2 ) coolant is spent!!!!!!!!

found it!!!! took like 2 seconds to find it->http://store.summitracing.com/egnse...1&Ntt=zinc+anode&searchinresults=false&N=+115

direct from ebsite at summitracing
Anode Kit, Zinc, 1/4 in. NPT, Each
Get rid of the drain petcock on your radiator.
These Flex-a-lite zinc anode kits have developed these kits to be installed in the radiator as a replacement for the drain petcocks. They are designed to protect your cooling system from the galvanic action that eats the zinc rather than the components of your cooling system. Most of today's vehicles have many aluminum parts in the cooling system that may disintegrate from electrolysis on the cooling system. Keep your cooling system working at optimum levels with one of these Flex-a-lite zinc anode kits.

Yeah, I did not even think about that. I definately want to keep my cooling system at optimum. Believe it or not, but here in California (Sacramento area) it gets up to and sometimes over 110 degrees in the summer. I would like my cooling system to stay operational, so I am not going to try to go cheap and end up broken down somewhere.

markaboo929 said:

I used an aluminum 3 core rad i got from www.autopartswarehouse.com for under $120 shipped to my door.It is made by silla and has a life time warranty.it does have plastic tanks ,but I do have to say I do trust plastic tanks,cause i werk at a hyundai dealer and well you know hyundai's rep.but the new ones are cool and they have plastic and alum rads I see ones that are from 1999 and do coolant flushes on these and the plastic still looks new and there is no cloggage what so ever on them either.so my view on plastic and alum is first hand.my previus modine large tube brass rad 2 core was completely clogged in 3 years of use and i flush 2 times a year!!!!I am very happy with my choice on rads I will see if i can find what i used and post it - if you mention a code in the discount code section i used9savemore) and it gives yo ua 5 or 10 percent disc.Ill check and re post here as a link hold on.............

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&
Saudade "Sheesh, another radiator thread."

Well let's see if we can't get to the CORE (LOL) of the problem this time!:laugh2: Or should I just say OH, How COOL! LOL.


I have run many brass radiators for 5 to 7 years with out a flush. Have only replaced antifreeze water mix when I replaced hoses, and then I used DI water and antifreeze with no flush. Never had any problems and these were old used cars when I bought them. Flushing with tap water just keeps adding more calcium into the block from the water flushes.

Not to Knock plastic ( I have a Renix with a plastic pressure bottle, closed system) but I would think it would be a little tough to solder a leaking plastic/metal combo radiator. I will stick with good old fashioned brass and copper.

Alluminum corrodes on the outside too easy for my tastes and it is a lot trickier to clean and repair. The only reason to use plastic and alluminum is low weight. Plastic will not dissipate any heat and gets brittle with age, brass and copper do not get brittle. If you want durabilty and long life get brass/copper. If you want to reduce the weight by a few pounds, or save a few dollars and plan to be happy with replacing it in 5 to 6 years go with plastic and alluminum.

Zinc anode will not stop plastic embrittlement!

It is also MUCH easier to fix a B&C radiator on the trail than a cracked plastic and aluminum job. (propane torch, some solder, and done.)

I am going to be towing my 3500# trailer with my XJ. I was kind of just looking to see if I needed something other than the all metal replacement that I can pick up at the local NAPA auto parts. It was running pretty hot when I towed that trailer to the mountains for camping last week.

I was told about the aluminum and how it dissipates heat well, but I would like one that is not going to leave me sidelined in the middle of friggin' nowhere. I am trying to balance good old fashioned reliability with an upgraded (supposedly) aluminum/plastic product. I guess I really can't solder up a plastic spot.:doh:

The price is not really the issue as they both cost about the same.

Mikey said:

I am going to be towing my 3500# trailer with my XJ. I was kind of just looking to see if I needed something other than the all metal replacement that I can pick up at the local NAPA auto parts. It was running pretty hot when I towed that trailer to the mountains for camping last week.

I was told about the aluminum and how it dissipates heat well, but I would like one that is not going to leave me sidelined in the middle of friggin' nowhere. I am trying to balance good old fashioned reliability with an upgraded (supposedly) aluminum/plastic product. I guess I really can't solder up a plastic spot.:doh:

The price is not really the issue as they both cost about the same.

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I've repaired numerous aluminum radiators and the plastic tanks with JB Weld or an equivalent (on Jeeps and other trucks since zhe late 80`s). I started out using aluminum condenser (refrigeration) epoxy repair kits and found out JB Weld worked just as good. Most of a successful repair is the prep. I keep a selection of very small round wire brushes and chemical cleaners. Don't be stingy with the epoxy or JB weld, lay it on there thick. Loosing a couple of percent of the radiator surface area is largely irrelevant. If the epoxy or JB Weld repair fails it is faulty prep or it cracks (thick helps prevent this). My epoxy repairs typically last 3-5 years.
I've since found a quality quick dry epoxy, that sets up in twenty minutes.
The problem with soldering (yes I've done a bunch) is heat control. A little too hot and the factory solders starts to flow. And on old radiators the copper often gets really thin, it will often disintegrate as soon as you hit it with a flame or a hot iron. Thirdly, when the hole is somewhere near the center of the core, it can be rough, to impossible, to solder.
I'm getting so I use JB weld on both copper and aluminum, unless the copper repair is simple and easy to access.
More of an opinion than a known fact, but the two row Modine aluminum I have in my 88, works better than any copper I've tried. And it doesn't plug externally from mud, dust pollen, bugs or whatnot as quickly as the copper does, the fins aren't nearly so fine as the copper.
I've only had two radiators die of old age, all the rest were from some sort of physical damage.

Is that Modine radiator A plastic/aluminum type or all aluminum?

Mikey said:

Is that Modine radiator A plastic/aluminum type or all aluminum?

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I got a two row aluminum Modine a few years ago, Plastic/aluminum, it was an accident, I ordered the stock unit and the parts guy copied down the wrong numbers. I took it anyway, for the same cost as the a copper radiator. It's worked out well, except for a couple of small fitment problems, I got the feeling it was one of the first of this series and all the bugs weren't worked out yet. It went in with some minor clearance problems.

Well,

From what I have heard from here, other web forums, and the local radiator shop, I think I will get the aluminum/plastic radiator and let everyone know how it goes so that this thread will benefit someone else with the same ?'s. Thanks all for your input.:thumbup:

8Mud, I will keep some JB weld readily available if needed.

Also, how do you tell if the clutch on the main fan has gone bad? I will probably replace it anyway since I am there, but how do you test it?

I just went through all of this with my cooling system, since it had a tendency to overheat in ambient temperatures above 85 degrees. The first thing I did was replace my fan clutch. I was told it should turn under hand pressure with the engine off -B but it should feel some resistance, a little "sticky" if you will. Mine was free-spinning at hand pressure. That made a slight difference in temp, but not enough. Next I bypassed my electric fan temp solenoid so I can turn it on anytime, and leave it on during shut-down to cool the fluid in the rad. That helped a little bit as well, but still not up to snuff. So several weeks ago I bit the bullet and bought a CSF three core brass radiator form DPG Offroad (around $175) and a Flowcooler high-volume water pump (about $90) and installed both of them, along with a complete coolant flush, including the heater core. I was amazed by the amount of brown gunk that came out of the heater core, keep flushing it until it runs clear. With the new rad and water pump installed (195 degree t-stat) my Jeep ran at 215 degrees yesterday in almost 90 degree weather with the air conditioning on. When I flicked on the electric fan switch, it dropped to about 200.

So yeah, cooling issues solved. Looking forward to using my A/C this Summer and no more parking on the shoulder waiting for the Jeep to cool down to avoid a boil-over.

Something I'm going to do one of these first weekends, it figure out a way to support the end tanks a little better. Much/most of the weight is supported well in from the end tanks. Most of the force when slamming the suspension is between or at the farthest points from the radiator supports. Or in other words the middle or the ends. The end tanks full of coolant are likely relatively heavy.
If you take a radiator out of there that has been installed for awhile. you can actually see the smile (bow). Which can't be good for the connections between the rows and the end tanks.
We used to have a similar problem with Dodge truck radiators, the solution was to support the bottom of the radiator along a wider base with sheets of packing foam. Which helped to keep the radiator from deforming and took some of the stress off the mounts.
I can't believe I'm the only one with stress fractures on various radiators (different manufacturers and materials), where the rows attach to the tanks.
I grant you I dirt road a bit and hammer my stuff pretty good, but not nearly so hard as many do.