MaxBoost!
Advice for fellow TR owners from Tom Shea Racing
Home phone until 9 pm 952-892-5669
Cell phone anytime (612)-209-9090.
Email ttshea@charter.net
"TSR" Switch Fuel System, save money, drive on pump gas!
RADIATORS AND INTERCOOLERS
Both are heat exchangers. Both are critical to performance. If you run a 160 degree thermostat its theoretically possible to maintain that coolant temperature. The radiator has to be up to the task. These cars have been in service for a long time, it's likely that the radiators have lost some efficiency, to say the least.
The stock 3 core row radiator was not designed to operate at 160 degrees, especially under the heavy load of turbo boost conditions. Keeping the engine running cool is vital to performance and longevity. There are other heat sensitive components under the hood that will benefit from lower operating temps. Items like seals, gaskets, belt, hoses, even sensors and injectors just to name a few. These parts are not only heat sensitive but also subject to damage from high temp. operation.
This is not just a performance consideration. If your car is running over 180 degrees with a 160 degrees stat, its time to give some consideration in this area. Options include cleaning or boiling out and pressure testing or getting your old radiator re-cored. If you decide to go for a re-core, you might want to consider a larger 4 row core to replace the stock 3 row core.
There are some differences in cores and replacement radiators. These are mainly in the number of fins per inch and the number of core tubes in each row. The stock T.R. (high density) radiator has more fins per inch and more tubes per vertical row than a conventional replacement core.
It's not wise to change out a part and replace it with one of less capacity. Even maintaining the same capacity is questionable considering the effort and expense involved.
Keeping a cool head is something we all can appreciate. Pun Intended! Since the coolants job is to do that, its advisable to use a separate cooler for the transmission fluid. The engine oil cooler is something that I have removed from my radiator as well. My radiator has only one job, that is to deal with the engine coolant.
I recommend going with a standard 4 tube horizontal row instead of the stock type 3 tube horizontal row high density (more fins per inch and smaller and more tubes per vertical row) re-core, using the stock side tanks. Unless you have eliminated the need for the stock engine oil and transmission coolers in the passenger side tank. If this is the case you have more options.
The standard 4 tube row core will have less tubes per row vertically and they will be slightly larger. It will have less fins per inch. It is a less expensive option compared to the high density version of the 3 tube row. This is a tradeoff because more tubes and fins equals more surface to air contact and greater heat exchange on the one hand. On the other hand a standard 4 row core has less fins and less tubes per row but more rows horizontally and larger tubes.
This means more coolant in the air stream and increased air flow through the radiator due to wider spacing between fins and tubes. This increased airflow will benefit the engine compartment with cooler air.
One important thing to note is a 4 core will be thicker and require more clearance. Check the lower fan shroud mounting brackets. These will have to be reversed, or flipped over upside down, in order to keep the bolt points from coming into contact with the core. The bolts may have to be ground down a little at the point for clearance on the top and bottom fan shroud mounting brackets. Other than that a 4 row core will fit nicely and is hardly even detectable unless someone is actually looking for it specifically.
Intercoolers are subject to fouling from the oil breather that in stock form comes out of the front of the passenger side, valve cover. They are subject to intense heat stress, heat cycles, and vibrations.
It is a good idea to take your I.C. in to the shop that does your radiator. This removal will make it easier to work on reinstall of the 4 core. The radiator shop should be able to clean out and pressure test The I.C. for you. You might even get a better deal if you take it in with your radiator as opposed to separately. They should be able to seal any I.C. leaks for you.
Keep in mind, if you re-install the factory stock breather it will foul the inside of your I.C. with oil film again. There are kits available to cap plug the turbo inlet belt connection and a filter breather for the valve cover to replace the stock set up. This is "off road' use only as it is not emissions legal to vent crankcase to atmosphere.
Front mount intercoolers block some of the air-flow to the radiator and exchange some heat into the air stream that the radiator uses to exchange heat to. This makes the efficiency of a good radiator setup an even greater consideration that a stock location intercooler set up.
© 2007 MGNTA.com
