cooling

[bigbad79]

my 79 has the 400 and a stock radiator. i live in south florida so its always hot but even lately temps in the 70's the truck runs at like 210 - 220. am i better off with a 4 core radiator or an aluminum 3 core. or is there a 4 core aluminum radiator avaiable? i'm going to switch from my 180 degree thermostat to the 160 and also get a high volume water pump. sometime down the road i plan on rebuilding the motor and making more horses so i want a cooling system that can handle it. any suggestions or setups would be great

 

[Ziggy]

High volume water pump is a definate plus. As for the radiator, 4 core gives you more surface area for the air to flow across, aluminum will disapate heat faster. So I would say the radiator thing is a toss up, but brass/copper is easier to repair. I run a 160* thermo in the summer and 185* thermo in the winter here in SoCal. The only other thing I would suggest is an over flow system for your radiator.

 

[77F150]

We use a 4 core on a couple of our trucks that are used for everything from pulling to slow wheeling. The 4 core cools well is cheaper than aluminum, I think it's stronger and less prone to vibration problems as well. Definately use an over flow system, there cheap and well worth the time. /emoticons/[email protected] 2x" width="20" height="20" />

 

[Billz4x4z]

4 core with a reservoir tank added on,oh yeah copper/brass,easy to make trail repairs

 

[bigbad79]

also what should i do about my fan shroud? my truck has a body lift so the shroud dosent line up with the fan on the engine so i lowered the radiator to fit the shroud but it covered up some of the radiator. will that causse it to run hot too, how much better are electric fans?

 

[Ziggy]

The shroud will cover some of the rad since it channels the air to the fan, which will help in cooling. Some people swear by electric fans, as the run at a constant speed unlike the fan on the engine. If you eliminate the engine fan completely, you will gain some power and MPG since your not turning it. You could also go to a clutch fan as they are made to "engage" when the engine is hot or slow speeds and "disengage" when the engine is cool or at high speeds. I've run both a clutch fan and a straight fan and prefer the straight fan. Thought about going to electric fans, but that involves running wires and a thermo switch and I have not had an overheating problem, so I nixed the idea.

 

[4xfan78]

I would say to get the electric fans. You will get better cooling and gain more power. The wirring is not the bad ( as long as you have some mechanical ability ). The price difference between the aluminum radiator and electric fans are pretty close.

 

[highboy73]

go with the electric fans they are great i have a pusher and puller,i also used an old a/c condensor for a trans cooler it helped some too.

don't have to worry about a fan shroud with electric.and yes it does free up some power.