So a few boards down in the fabrication section you will find my 454 single turbo thread. Ive run into a problem. The driver side header collector and 90 degree turn down that goes by the power steering pump area sticks out enough that the stock radiator wont fit. There is simply no remedy for that, Ive accepted it. I REALLY dont want to change the way the headers are right now, so Ive decided that while Im replacing the radiator anyways, Im going to find one thats a bit narrower. Ive attached a picture below to show you what Im working with.

My idea is to find a radiator that is 24" x 19", and then angle it backwards so that the shroud will fit and hold it snug. The blue foam in the picture is the "mock size" (add 1 inch to thickness). Does anyone know if there is a viable STREET radiator that size? Its has to support 700+ hp, so 3 row Im guessing? My worries are that it is going to be like 3 inches smaller 1 way, and taller the other way. Thanks for any help.

PS, Ive looked at the ones on eBay, and they claim to be street/strip radiators, but Id like to ask someone that actually knows something, not someone thats trying to sell me something.

 

should be able to find one pretty easy-check out
"nascar"or "circle track"radiators on EBAY along with
all the major racing radiator manufactuers.
Also make sure to use a good powerful fan-not one of
those streetrod type "thinline"ones-they usually don't
have enough blade pitch to move much air...

 

I actually just purchased a universal summit aluminum racing rad. its a 2 row, fabricated 2.25" core thickness. its a 31x19"... and its made by national radiators. National radiators is a MADE IN USA brand that has great quality (hence why summit just reboxes them) and the best part about it is that it only cost me 160$!! They have other sizes tho, im pretty sure they sell a 24"x19" or around that, I understand your looking for a 3core but this is another option. Id be more worried about your fan pushing enough CFM esp if your going 3core route. you will only be able to run a single fan by the looks of the demensions... and I would prob go with a 2speed high flow electric fan (from a ford mark VI/taurus) they flow insane CFM... like over 5000cfm easily. U can find them on ebay all the time for like 90$ but i think u need the ford controller as well.

Also your in the same predicament as me... Im swapping a ford big block 521cuin into my 87 bird... i just got the 31x19 rad yesterday and mounted the fans, but the rad enter/exit necks are opposite of chevy (rad exit on lower driver side, rad enter on upper passenger side) and WHAM! totally forgot about the steering box! I already cut out the lower rad support and Im going to knotch the passenger subframe on the side of the rad about 2" to allow the rad to shift over for the clearance I need. You should consider doing the same! that would allow you to clear the header

EDIT: a company called champion sells 3 and 4 core rads for really cheap on ebay.

 

Did some searching on ebay for champion radiators and heres what I found:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/3-ROW...Q5fAccessories

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/3-ROW...Q5fAccessories

I like the second one a bit better because its basically the exact size I need. Im goin to search around a little more to find something that will support over 700 hp, if that even exists.

Thanks for the help guys

 

No need to search for a radiator that is said to support a
certain horsepower rating-there are too many varibles
involved-a radiator that would actually cool a 700hp
engine running under load for any length of time will
not fit under the hood of a thirdgen. To get an idea of
what it takes to cool 700hp under load,look under the
hood of a semi truck and notice the huge radiator
along with a large belt drive fan that takes 30 hp at
2000 rpm
One thing to look for besides the #of rows and the
core thickness is the fin density-many racing type
radiators have a lower fin density in order to allow
a greater volume of air to pass through at high
speed for better cooling at high speed,while street
radiators often have a higher fin density for better
cooling with a lower volume of airflow.

 

agreed! There are no radiators that are rated for a certain hp... not to mention the differences in cooler design, waterpump design, driving situation/intentions/climates.

for example... my 383 HSR was going to be a 11.5-11.9 sec car in the 1/4. It has all the MPH but only one track day before it was stolen... the car ran a stock aluminum radiator (1core) and the stock dual fan setup, stock iron type water pump, i was running a 160tstat, and a 177 on and 166 off hypertech fan switch. The car was only street driven and it has a 3000stall. I had 2 temp gauges on it (stock and aftermarket) and the car usually hovered around 160 degrees... sometimes in traffic on a 90+ degree day in traffic (in the new jersey humidity is a killer) and the engine might reach 180 (mostly bc of the trans stall at lights) but these engine should have been producing 470-480 hp. Yet the stock rad with the above stuff was able to put out very nice temps. Its not about how much cooling you can have its more about how efficent u can be. The stock L98 dual fans i was running also were like 1-1.5" off the rad face! not even close to be pulling atlot of air throught that thing. My brothers 502 merlin BBC in his vette runs a 2 core fabbed rad (some vette brand) with i think one fan and a shroud (his motor was dynod at 630-650hp) and his temps never get higher than 190.

Honestly i think you would be better with a 2 or 3 core rad... try to stuff the largest one u can. I would seriously consider knotching the subframe on the pass side to slide the rad over alittle. I just did mine yesterday and fabbed up a lower mount and it turned out great! I would then see about throwing a markVI fan or something that will pull a buttload, prob a high flow 16" spal fan or the 18" MarkVI. Wats going to kill you is the header right on the side of the rad... thats gona heat things up a bunch! maybe ceramic coat it and then header wrap it, and u might need to build a heat sheild for the rad.

 

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/3-ROW...Q5fAccessories

I think Im going to go with that one, its got a higher density fin count and is damn near the size I need. The most important part, however, is that they have a guarantee, so if I find that it wont cool the engine I can return it.

I have to look at the subframe sometime this weekend and figure out if I need to notch it, Id rather not, but if I have to, I will.

Im not worried about the heat from the header, it will be ceramic coated, and then Im buying some of that super expensive (dont know why though) heat shield, the kind thats got aluminum foil with a aluminum or iconel mid section. I have to buy a whole bunch of it for the space between the header and booster/mc area, so another sheet of it for the radiator wont kill me.

Thanks for the responses guys, I didnt know how in-depth and seemingly complicated the cooling systems can be