anyone done a 3sx single pass aluminum radiator in there car?

I just had them drop ship one to my door.

I was going to try and mount it about half an inch forward from the stock position. I was just wondering if it is pretty much a stock replacement with a thicker core or if it is a bit taller/wider/vibrates for her pleasure?

I figured I should get rid of the duct tape before the UMG on my old radiator, or SJ would make fun of me some more...

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I have a buddy in Appleton that just dropped one in. It's pretty much a drop in replacement.

Curious, but why did you go with the single pass with almost the same size core as a vr4/tt?

Height difference is negligible, width is the same. All factory sensors (if you're a 1G), fans, and coolant pipes bolt right up.

I hate installing these on cars with larger turbos... Oh, be careful of your AC condenser lines.



It's 1/2 inch thicker than stock meaning it'll hold more coolant and the thicker volume makes for better cooling.

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06 Blue EVO 9

I remember it was almost the same as the vr4/tt radiator. Since it wasn't that much bigger then an n/a.

None the less, I thought it be bad for a DD car with a big radiator. Correct me if I'm wrong but just what I've heard from people with experience.

Your definition of "almost" is pretty obscure.

Top radiator is a manual tranny NA
Middle is a stock TT or ATX radiator
Bottom is the radiator we're talking about.



As you can see, there is a very significant difference.

Adam's car is no where near stock nor is it used for daily driving... With a FMIC in the way, a better radiator is needed to keep the coolant temps in check.

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06 Blue EVO 9

Looks like the one that I helped my buddy install, but a lot bigger. So either he bought a different one. Or he got ripped off where ever he got it from. But whatever.

So is it a good thing or bad thing to drive around with a bigger radiator though? Or is it even better because it's better then stock? Since you know more then me, I figure I can ask you.

3sx has sold many different aluminum radiators for a while. Your friend might have gotten an older model or probably just one of the "stock replacement" ones they sell.

Larger radiators cool the coolant better and coolant temp is controlled by the thermostat. Obviously, on a stock car there's nothing wrong with a stock radiator (unless it's old) so why upgrade something if you don't "need" it?

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06 Blue EVO 9

Still didn't answer my question though. lol.

Assuming I do need a radiator and mine is crack and all hell damaged. And I'm running a radiator that almost twice as thick as my stock n/a one. What are the pro's in con's of it? Or is there no con's at all?

I'm thinking about getting that 3SX aluminum radiator. Got any ballpark figures on the *C drop in the average water temp, guys? With/without flexalites?

Actually I did.

You will notice no difference what-so-ever since the temp is controlled by the thermostat.

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06 Blue EVO 9

Heat transfer 101 - quick reference guide:

Two surfaces are at different temperatures. One hot, one cold. The hot would be the warm coolant from the engine. It got hot because of internal combustion. We won't get into that here. The coolant swirls around the engine, driven by the water pump, picking up the heat of the block and carrying it to the radiator. The radiator has narrow channels which the coolant flows through. These narrow channels also have metal fins welded onto them. Typically aluminum because it transfers heat well, and is relatively inexpensive.

Air is all around the outside of the radiator. As air molecules come into contact with the radiator fins and channels, the hotter coolant transfers some of it's energey to the air using convection. The coolant temperature is lowered, but because there is no energy or matter destroyed or created, that means the the temperature of the air must rise.

So if the air was left next to the radiator, eventually the two would become the same temperature and no more heat transfer would take place. Because of this we attach fans to our radiators do draw or push air through them. Or, when we are in motion, some of the air passing by the car is ducted through the radiator and around in the engine bay to cool various areas. (oil cooler, radiator, power steering, AC condensor, etc etc.)

By using a thicker radiator we are allowing the air more time to be in contact with the hotter coolant as it rushes by, thus allowing more time for heat transfer to take place.

This is infact less than optimal as when the air passes through the fins, it starts to heat up. So by the end of the 2" radiator, the air that is flowing by the fins is already pretty warm and thus transfers less heat. The better solution would be a larger radiator, instead of one that is 2 foot tall by 3 foot wide (imaginary numbers) you would get one that is 3 foot tall by 4 foot wide. However, in our system we are limited in size by the fact that we do not want the radiator to stick out above the hood, and thus we must settle for being thicker.

Another option would be to use the dual pass, side pass radiator, as it gives the coolant more time to come into contact with the cool air. But as I didn't want to spend over 800 dollars, and have to move my turbo yet another time as the inlets and outlets are in the way, I decided to give the cheaper option a try.

Also the 3sx radiator is advertised as a full inch thicker than stock. The koyo and PWR radiators are advertised as a half inch thicker, but more expensive from what I found. Perhaps there is a cheaper site that I did not check, but I do order a fair amount of stuff from 3sx as they have usually treated me fairly well, except for one braided brake line that had a leak, and they replaced it very quickly.

Also, as far as putting to big of a radiator on a car, you can do it, but the temperature of the coolant will never drop below the temperature of the ambiant air. And the thermostat that Greg mentioned will close at a certain tempeature and keep the coolant from dropping below what the engine wants as it keeps the coolant from going to the radiator. Thus the "too big (efficent) radiator" only comes into play in the dead of winter... which my car never sees.

There is no need to upgrade a radiator until you have a problem with uncontrolled increases in temperatures. My car is fine until the middle of summer and I get on the gas for extended periods, such as a gathering drive. Then I end up using the heater for a bit of temperature control on long pulls, and I'd rather not do that. I kept my A/C for a reason, I like a nice 72 degrees at all time.




The problem I run into with my set up is the wastegate has a bolt on the top that is dangerously close to the radiator I have now, so I have to move the new radiator about half an inch forward so that I can clear it, and I wanted to know if I would be moving anything else in front to also make room.

I'm also not certain if the front mount is the cause of my heating issues, or the fact that my turbo is just a few inches away, and I should probably also work on better heat shrouding for it, such as a heat sheild or a turbo booty. (heh. booty.)

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Radiator is in the car.

Seems to not be leaking.

These radiators will not fit in a stock 3/s without moving the A/C condensor.

Mine was a bit more fun than just that.

Also wrapped my downpipe. I got a turbo-booty from summit. it's f*cking lame. I'm sending that crap back. They can try again, with something better.

Other than that, I feel the car should be up and running soon.

Coincedentally I found the relay for my fuel pump was slightly melted. I'll have to keep an eye on that. Don't know what the hell that is about. perhaps I should use smaller guage wire so that it acts as a fuse, or maybe through a switch in there so that can burn out first...

>.>

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Bad decisions make good stories.
Look at it! LOOK AT MY @SS AND TELL ME IT'S PRETTY!

Put a coat on your pipes or cut a hole in your hood to vent the heat.

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06 Blue EVO 9

Yeah, maybe I can get one of those huge f*cking snorkles from an off road truck place. that'd be cool.

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Bad decisions make good stories.
Look at it! LOOK AT MY @SS AND TELL ME IT'S PRETTY!

For some reason I had a brilliant idea to market stick on hood vents.

Much like the fake stick on hood scoops and sunroofs.
http://www.boingboing.net/2007/09/10/fa ... r-car.html

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06 Blue EVO 9