Anyone tried a thicker smaller rad?

[Civvy]

I want a smaller rad for space saving it can be thcker but its got to be shorter in length and i can custom make the pipes no worries...i'm just wondering if it will upset things like cooling capacity!?
If i can do this i can have a straight duct of cold air from the extra space and not have to take my headlamp out every time i drag!
I know tegs fit but they too are too big

[FyreDaug]

I will be doing it very soon. Using a bottle of water wetter aswell helps keep the temps cool. The fan will probably just be running a little more. I dont know what I'm going to pull the rad from but I'll let everyone know hopefully by friday. If you do anything with this let me know aswell.

[AccordEpicenter]

why do you guys need to do this?

[Slipknotcraig133]

I have a crx one in my car right now and its killing me. My car gets hot fast. If im driving by myself with no cars in front of me im fine but as soon as i get into traffic it gets hot. I have a 180 degree thermostat in my car to.

[SteveDX89]

I have a crx one in my car right now and its killing me. My car gets hot fast. If im driving by myself with no cars in front of me im fine but as soon as i get into traffic it gets hot. I have a 180 degree thermostat in my car to.

Sounds like you need to get a manual switch for your fans so you can control them yourself inside the car.

[FyreDaug]

Im doing it because its going to be lighter and more efficient. Plus I need a new rad soon anyways, Im missing alot of fins.

[Versanick]

Fans will barely affect it getting hot. With both my fans on, my 180 deg thermostat keeps it almost as cool as with fans off. No reason not to have them always on though. Other things like the dizzy don't need to get as hot as they do...

And radiators weigh like .... .00000004 pounds anyway. Getting a smaller one will probably only kick you in the face with less cooling capacity and more mounts in strange places... as well as hoses. No need for a smaller one. Get a 90-93 integra Fluidyne and the radiator hosing from a b18a motor. I wound up selling my fluidyne at a sacrifice because I realized I didn't need it. And that's with the A/T radiator cooling my a20 (built in tranny cooler).

[AccordEpicenter]

I have my intercooler and shit before the radiator (koyo aluminum) but the car stays dead cool with the 190 degree stat even. I was thinkin about the 180 degree stat but im not sure yet, it would be strictly for power gains, not to fix cooling problems. You guys need to realize that our cast iron blocks hold in soo much heat, thats why we need a bigass radiator to cool them, not like those aluminum block hondas that need a piece of tinfoil for a radiator. My engine gets warmed up ALOT faster then one of those little dick D16s and half radiators...

[shepherd79]

all you need is stock radiator with stock thermostat to keep the car running cool.
if you really want to run cool, go to autoparts store and pick up 160-170 deg thermostat.

[leia]

I'd like to give a quantitative answer since this is part of my major in school, but I'm sorry I'm totally braindead right now. I can give you the equations :)

There are many factors involved, such as surface area, cross sectional area inside, pipe thickness, flow rate, as well as losses in flow rate, pipe legnth, thermal conductivity of the pipe material and fuild within, and I'm pretty sure thermal emissivity is of concern too. Unfortunately all of my text books and other material that would refresh me on this are at home. Then theres also number of fins, fin thickness, legnth and material.

And unless you know this stuff, I would not try to make your own radiator. Thats some serious fluids and thermo calculations which were carefully designed to choose the optimal cooling design for that space and application.
Though yes you are changing the application slightly by running the engine much harder, but still within the limitations of the design.

Plus the guys gave decent answers on their experience, I just had to throw in the nerd POV and I'm sorry I didn't have my books.....so I could only list the factors involved.

[FyreDaug]

Its lighter because there would be less fluid in it. Plus it opens up space in the front for cooler air to flow in through the spaces. Since it doesnt have to go through a hot rad

[halxi]

Are you one of those guys that wont keep change in the car because it adds weight too?

Seriously dude, youll save like FIVE pounds MAX... woopty doo. Unless youre a super hardcore drag guy, with at least 600hp its not going to make 1 damn bit of difference. :rolleyes:

If you want to save weight, take out something like the back seat. Somethings thats NOT going to effect how the engine runs. No matter what you do, i see it as :rice: Let me guess, those stickers add 5hp too?

Sorry to flame, but this idea is just flat stupid.

[Civvy]

Eh? so back to my post. My B20 block is alu and she dosent run a stat so the temp doesnt lift untill i'm stationary in traffic. i dont even have a heater (irelvant) but it simplifies pipes. I dont have a fan just the stock rad and its fine for city driving being stationary etc,etc.
WHAT I WANT is to use a smaller rad and maybe use twin kenlows (if i have to) the sloe purpose of this mod is to get direct cold air to the t.b. and the rear of the engine. If i had i.t.b.s/ webers it would really be top of my list

[DBMaster]

A lower temperature thermostat will NOT keep the engine cooler. It just opens sooner (at a lower temp) than the standard version. Once open both flow the same amount of coolant and since normal operating temperatures are well above 195 the standard thermostat is open all the way, too.

[Versanick]

With fans, and a stock sized radiator, you'll stay plenty cool. I wouldn't stay stationary in traffic without fans. If you're moving, you're surely fine.

My temperature sensor tells me I operate within the same temperature range with the fans off as with the fans on, but other engine internals like to have the fans blowing on them (the distributor, for example, will wear a bit faster without the moving air from the fans in still traffic).

A 160 deg thermostat will make your engine wear a bit faster in practice, 180 deg is about optimal for a fuel injected honda motor. The lower temp thermostat will keep the coolant a bit cooler, and therefore most of the engine a LITTLE bit cooler. The idea of it being wide open is that when coolant is freely flowing through the radiator, the coolant is reducing in temperature.. my 180 deg thermostat keeps things 15 degrees cooler than the 195 (gee, imagine that), but the engine still runs over 190 degrees anyway (as already noted). My 195 wasn't fully opened until close to 220 degrees, which was too hot for my b20 (blowing head gaskets, etc).

A bad old thermostat allowing you to overheat is disaster for an aluminum head (or block, or anything else), as aluminum warps like Enterprise in deep space when it gets too hot.

I'd get a 180 deg thermostat and keep your stock radiator (since it costs less than $10 with gasket), I still don't understand the desire to use a smaller radiator, but don't do anything without fans...

[FyreDaug]

I like to keep my cars weight as balanced as possible. It makes things rather difficult when you have a cast iron block and nothing but your system in the trunk.

Any pound I can cut off that is not needed is 1 step, especially since I need a rad. I wouldnt bother touching the stock rad if there was nothing wrong with it. But going by junkyard rules smaller is cheaper. (by like 4 dollars..) but it also gives me time to do something else, like open up the intake tract, work on my ram air exhaust idea and essentially keep things at the same temp.

I'm just trying stuff and seeing what the cause and effect of little things are.

PS. Water wetter is an amazing product, try it.

[modu03]

My B20 block is alu and she dosent run a stat so the temp doesnt lift untill i'm stationary in traffic.


put the thermostat back in and you won't have any heat problems when idling... there is a reason those things are there. if you have constant fluid flow, it doesn't get to cool off as much in the radiator because it's just flowing straight through...

if you put a smaller radiator in, your gonna overheat alot faster. put a thermostat in if you go with a smaller radiator. really, you shouldn't downgrade your engines cooling ability, a cool engine runs better and lasts longer.

[phrenology]

Yeah, Datsun truck radiator for me...modding it with a single electric fan from a late 90's Pontiac Grand Am if I can find a shroud and we can make it all fit. :cool: Stay Cool Geez.

[FyreDaug]

Yeah natural air flow will help too, but still, cast iron block holds heat and doesnt dissipate too well. Aslong as you are moving it shouldnt be a problem, but thats when the coolant kicks in, a car depends on air flow, if it doesnt have it, a fan is used to simulate it. Getting pushed through the front (driving) or getting pulled through the back (fan) have the same effect. Just why use electrical energy when you dont have to?

I donno, its just something I want to try. Like I said, I need a rad. Worst case scenerio Im out 20 bucks or so.

[halxi]

I like to keep my cars weight as balanced as possible. It makes things rather difficult when you have a cast iron block and nothing but your system in the trunk.

sorry to continue this flamming, but i cant stand people like this. If you want to save weight, the last thing you should put in your car is a system. My god, whats the world comming to

[Versanick]

Anyway, all of this is goofiness. Your car shouldn't even heat up properly without a stat. And some things will be hotter than they should be without a fan (including possibly your car if your radiator is junk and you don't have a fan on it, sitting still in traffic with no wind)...

Get a 180 deg thermostat, and get a fan. Case closed. There is virtually no weight reduction at all. Put two cans of soda in the back end of the trunk to make up the difference. Because it won't be much more than that.

Save what's left of the $20 after the thermostat and a used fan to make your car FASTER. Weight balance is not an incredibly important issue.

[Civvy]

Can i just make one thing clear here guys....I DONT GIVE A FUK BOUT WIEGHT and i'm not interested what u guys think about thermostats, all i want is more experienced people with smaller rads.

[AccordEpicenter]

confucious say: anyone who put smaller rad in accord lose cooling efficiency

[FyreDaug]

sorry to continue this flamming, but i cant stand people like this. If you want to save weight, the last thing you should put in your car is a system. My god, whats the world comming to

I think you misread what I said..