Hi all,

im looking for some input from people that have a champion 3 core rad in their car. I fitted mine in March and all is well.

Well i think it is anyway, i can see quite a big difference to my temp when im on the move, it stays quite low which is great. However when i get stuck in traffic and stop and go traffic, or generally stuck at 30mph it heats up quicker, its never overheated at all yet as ive got my dual fans on a switch which does bring the temp back down.

Once it gets hot though its harder to cool down unless i get on a motorway and the air cools it right down.

I was sort of under the impression with this radiator my engine would sit around 180-190 all the time as most people have reported. i popped the hood open yesterday after being out a while in the car and the coolant level was just above the hot mark on the bottle, my aftermarket temp gauge which is coming from a 2nd sender where the fan switch would be was saying it was at 210 degrees.

Ive got a 180 stat, a new water pump, new hoses, fresh coolant etc etc etc

Like i say, its never got to the point where steam has shot out, or even started bubbling to be honest so maybe im just being paranoid ? i just kind of hoped it wouldnt get as hot when driving slowly.

 

I have an 87 Camaro 350 auto trans, I live in Houston, the 3 core cools it to about 190 if I'm sitting in traffic and the fans are on, the fans stay on and the temp normally doesn't go below 190 until I start moving. Then once moving the temp will drop down to 180-185, and the fans will shut off.

 

I have a champion 3 core on a 412" small block in my '88 firebird. The motor is also supercharged. I've never seen the water temp above 190*.

One thing to note, the sensor in the head (dash gauge) is probably not giving you the correct reading if you have headers. My headers heat that sensor up to about 240 degrees. I've checked with my IR guns various spots on the engine, head, return water, etc. It all checks out. The sensor for the gauge is just in a bad spot.

-- Joe

 

Its funny you should say that because ive got dual temp senders. I fitted another one on the passenger side of the block where the fan switch usually goes, because ive rewired my fans tk a switch. And ive got a standalone temp gauge under my dash and that works great. Gives me a much more accurate reading. And about 40-50 degrees lower than what my gauge is telling me on the KITT dash. These are new electronics too that are very accurate. I need to run a new wire from the sender and try that incase its a bad wire.

HOWEVER....this thread is irrelevant now because a few months ago my champion rad got a hole in it so ive had to refit my stock one which is working just fine. Nowhere round me wants to try repairing it with it being all aluminium and welded etc

 

This champion radiator-pin hole thing seems to be fairly common, or I just keep seeing posts mentioning it and those who haven't had problems have just kept silent. I have the exact same one you did, hope mine doesn't suffer the same fate. I don't know if I could go back to factory, it's all gone and the rad support modified...

 

Champion has probably made a hundred thousand radiators over the years. We've heard about a couple of failures.

I don't think that is the definition of "fairly common".

-- Joe