I want to post my general disatisfaction with several products that I purchased from Be-Cool for my '86 Camaro. First, I bought the "direct fit" aluminum radiator. I researched it, and everyone claimed that it was a direct replacement, and I could use my stock cooling fan, ect.

About the only part of it that was a direct fit was that it had tabs to use the factory insulator type radiator mounts, and the fittings were in the right locations. I had to modify the cooling fan and space it so far from the radiator that it flexed in operaton and made a very annoying noise, and the distance made it so ineffective that the car would still overheat during the summer, making using my newly refurbished AC impossible. The right end tank hit the power steering return line, which had to be tweaked to prevent metal to metal contact that I'm sure would have eventually worn a hole in that expensive end tank. The aluminum mounting spacer had to be modified on one corner to allow the use of nut clips to install the upper radiator shroud. Without these clips I don't know how you could properly install the upper radiator mount. The installation was frustrating and had me wondering why I'd paid a premium for this "direct fit" radiator when I could have just bought a generic GM aluminum radiator from Summit knowing up front that the installation was going to require modifications and fabrication.

In order to correct the overheating situation I purchsed the twin 11" cooling fan next. The fan I ordered is the same fan that Be-Cool includes in their module kit for the 3rd gen F-body. It claimed that all the hardware needed was included. I was more than a little disgruntled when I opened up the box, read the instructions and discovered that I needed to buy two more sets of brackets to mount the fan to the radiator.

Over $100 later I had the brackets, which I ordered directly from the instructions included with the fan, which gave Be-Cool part numbers for the two bracket kits required. All of these parts sat in their boxes in the back of the car over the summer, as I waited until I'd be able to work on the car (when my 85 hour work weeks ended).

This past week I went to install everything. The set of brackets that were supposed to attach the fan to the radiator would not work, and could not even be made to work. The fan was the same width as the radiator, but the brackets had offset holes. Making them work was a physical impossibility. I double checked the part numbers, and everythign was exactly how it claimed it needed to be in the instructions. I have rarely been that hopping mad in all my life. I spent 1/2 of my Saturday fabricating new brackets, which did work, and mounted the fan to the radiator. As I was building the brackets I thought, what would someone unlike me do in this situation? Someone who doesn't have a welder, or the knowledge required to fabricate a part like this. Someone like me, who bought these parts expecting that since the manufacturer claimed they were supposed to work together they would. That person would be screwed, and that's how I feel.

I find it unconscionable that a company would sell a product and claim that it was "direct fit" when it wasn't. I also find it rediculous that a company's own literature recommends parts that don't work. I know I'll never recover anything from this episode, but if someone at least thinks twice about purchasing these same products I feel a little better. This goes well beyond the simple "No bolt ons really are" mantra that we have all become acustomed to.

On a parting note I will say that the quality is first rate.

 

I have a Be Cool radiator in my 91 Camaro. I bought it believing that it was a direct fit. I could not have been more wrong.

The damn thing was a total pain in the *** to install, I couldn't even use the stock fan. I had to go out and purchase an aftermarket fan.

That being said, my motor does run much cooler than it did before.

 

hmm well after i get my trans sent out shortly after xmas (tko hows it goin) and get my motor built and ill be lookin for a good radiator what wuld you guys reccommend?

 

get a griffin

 

ok thansk ill take a look at em

 

It's goin' good. I can't complain (nobody listens when I do anyway!).

I agree with you johnjm22 that the quality is excellent, and that it did help the overheating problem significantly. My problem is exactly what we both said, we feel like we were lied to by Be-Cool's advertising, which claimed that the radiator was a "direct fit". When I went to install the radiator in my car I figured it would be a simple 1/2 hour procedure. I've swapped radiators in a 3rd gen in 1/2 hour before no problem, on three different cars. I wasn't prepared for it to turn into a four hour debacle. Fortunately my car is a toy that I don't depend on for daily transportation, but what if it was?

All I'm saying is that if you advertise a product as "direct fit" or a "direct replacement" it should be. If it isn't then tell the truth. What the advertisement should say is "This radiator uses the factory style insulator mounting. Due to the increased thickness of this radiator modifications to some surrounding components may be required. Modifications are required to retain the factory cooling fan. An aftermarket cooling fan is recommended for maximum cooling efficiency." I don't think I would have been nearly as pissed if I'd been able to read those few simple sentences prior to attempting the install.

Additionally, If you are going to sell a product meant to be used in conjunction with other products you offer (e.g. a cooling fan for use with one of your radiators) you need to verify that the brackets you call out for in your own instructions can be used to mount that fan to all of the radiators for which it is recommended. If it doesn't work for all the combinations you need to sell the correct brackets for all applications, and give a list of which brackets to use for which applications in the instructions.

 

Oh NO--Please say it ain't so!!! I've a "direct fit" waiting in the shop to be installed in the GTA. For the price I paid for the Be-Cool I expected it to go right in. What mods did you have to do to make it fit, maybe a pic or two if possible, please??

 

The power steering return line (both going to, and returning from the cooler loop) had to be tweaked with a tubing bender to keep from being in contact with the end tank.

Mounting the factory cooling fan was a nightmare. The fan mounting holes had to be altered, and I had to use spacers at the bottom mounts, nearly 3" long. The lower bolts also came very close to contacting the fins of the radiator, so I had to shorten the bolts so that they just went through the nut clips on the lower fan mounting bracket. The effectiveness of the fan was dramatically reduced by being this far from the radiator. I still had problems with hot running during hot summer days. I highly recommend installating an aftermarket fan up front, and avoiding the problem from the onset.

The upper mounting plate they give you to space the upper radiator/fan mount further forward had to be modified at one end to allow use of nut clips, which greatly facilitate the installation of the upper radiator mount. You could bolt the upper radiator mount to the plate using nuts and bolts, and then use the factory hardware to bolt the plate to the radiator support, but it made it easier to ensure that everyhting was lined up properly by using the clips.

Some cars require you to actually bend parts of the radiator support out of the way for clearance. However, I found this unecessary on my car.

 

Yeah, for $700 you would expect the thing to be a "direct fit."

 

yep... nothing direct fit about it; much easier then the one that isn't though. some people have had decent luck with them fitting which has been odd. mine sure didn't go in well either.

FndmntlsOfPimpn when/if your ready and really need a better radiator check out suburban radiators here in mt.clemens. they make some of the better end units that equal griffin and becool without the name and for alot less. they do alot of work for most of our autorama cars.

 

Didn't have too much trouble with mine...I used the extention plate for the Maf ect...it comes pretty close to my a/c pulley(which I'm yanking down the road)...I didnt even need to space the stock fans like was suggested...I have had it in my T/A for almost 3 years,and it has held up well....

Installation headaches aside..it does work well,especially once you get moving is where I really noticed it. It is a bit bigger then stock,thus bringing the whole direct fit into question.

 

i'll agree all headaches aside it works very well.

 

ok, Be-cool makes a universial GM radiator that's 31"x19" just like stock. its $240 bucks for it. I guessing that would be a bigger pain to install?

Also, what about griffin and the others, they say race only in summit catalogs. Can it be run on a street car? Radiators is one thing dont know too much about. i would like a new radiator but dont want it to be really expensive like Becool and want it to go in without too much hassle.

What kind of radiators did they use on that History Channel show with the 88 Irocz's? they had a hell of time doing it too.

Well i guess if you can get something in there, then it is a direct fit!

 

i've seen griffin radiators work quite well. do a little bit of searching on the boards and you'll find a ton of info about your questions.

there is no need to pay the price of be-cool if you don't want to.

 

Okay, don't know what the problem is/was. I put my Be-Cool in by myself in about an hour, if the tranny lines would have come off easier then it would have been 1/2 hour. It was a direct fit, I didn't have any interference problems and my stock twin fans worked fine. I did eventually install a Be-Cool dual fan system for better cooling and they too went in without a problem.

 

Well, I feel this way!
https://www.thirdgen.org/techbb2/sho...hreadid=279064

 

I got the Summit Racing universal radiator for only $180.
Jeg's even sells the GM 31x19 universal too for $180.
I had to modify it to fit, but the motor is ice cold! blurrrr! lol

Better off buying the GM universal 31x19 radiator,
and a set of low profile dual fans. Total spent: $440.
With shipping. Just need to be "creative".

 

How cool is the gm radiator? Do you get a max of 180 degrees all the time or does it go up in the traffic?

My original radiator is in a bad shape although it works as 180 on highway and 220 in traffic (original specifications I think). I want to change it to a more powerful one. If I get the summit radiator can I have 180 degrees all the time? And do you know up to how many horses It can cool? I couldn't find enough information in summit's site.

Thanks

 

Radiators do not control the temp. Your T-stat, fans,
fan switch/relay and ECM does. Modify those to get a
constant 180 degrees. There's a huge article
on that in this website. The radiator can help you
get cooler temps, but not contol them.

180 on highway and 220 in traffic is normal. Even 240
in traffic is normal on some thirdgens. The more air
flow thrown into the radiator, the cooler the coolant
gets, which in turn, cools the motor down.

P.S. The Summit Racing radiator is so big, I would
be confident to say it can help cool down a 600hp SBC.

 

That's not entirely true. Radiators do not directly control temperature, say hold th e coolant to 180 degrees for instance, but they do play a huge role in determining if the other parts of the cooling system are going to be capable of maintaining a stable, steady temperature.

If, for example, your radiator is too small the best cooling fans and thermostat in the world aren't going to keep the car from overheating. There just isn't enough surface area to reject the amount of heat the engine is creating. An inefficent or partilly plugged radiator could qualify in this example too.

However, the flip side of that is that even with the biggest radiator in the world if the cooling fans aren't pulling/pushing enough air, and the thermostat isn't working the car is still going to overheat.

A cooling system is just like any other system in a car. Balance is the name of the game. If the system isn't balanced then it won't work very well. A well thought out system is what keeps a car running cool regardless of outside factors, not one trick expensive part like a giant radiator.

 

Whatever dude.

That's COMMON SENSE to have a well balanced system.
That goes without saying. That's like throwing in
a 1000hp motor and stopping it with four wheel drum
brakes! The guy asked me if the Summit Radiator
keeps a constant 180. NO it does not. Like I said,
you need to have THE REST of the system modified
to get that to happen.

 

Wouldn't the world be a great place if everyone had the same level of common sense? That's exactly why I posted what I did. It's common sense to you, just as it's common sense to me, but it isn't universal common sense for everyone, particularly people who are new to cars and don't have any common sense yet, because they don't have any experience on which to base it.

Advertisers will try to sell you stuff, even stuff that they know you don't need. People who don't know any better will buy the stuff, and then be disappointed when it doesn't solve the problem they thought it would.

1,000 HP in a car with 4-wheel drums? I've seen worse. At least that car had brakes.

 

I'm making a little under 500 rwhp and i'm running my stock rad .. temp jumps about 15-20 degs in traffic during the summer... no big deal really
also I have no A/C smaller rad means less coolant and weight I wil upgrading in the future though .. good info in this post thanks

 

bring your 500 horse motor down to woodward dream cruise in the summer where traffic is bumper/bumper all day long and lets see how that rad helps. i agree with you though as until the plastic on the sides cracked mine help up well too. it wasn't until i decided to pick up the becool that i was greatly impressed. it was nice to have high horsepower and go anywhere in the summer without issues of cooling.

 

Trust me I'm driving in ST Louis all the time and thats the only time the temp went up.. a ton of stop and go mostly stop ...
I'm sure its a little hotter down here in the summer my rad has 230,000 miles on it ....
knock on a very big pile of wood I haven't ever had a problem with it.....

 

Anything is possible. Old copper/brass radiators are actually fairly efficient. They were also significantly thicker than the newer plastic tank aluminum core units. Aluminum has a much greater heat rejection coefficient than brass or copper, so manufacturers were able to get the same cooling from less surface area, plus aluminum is cheaper than copper or brass. Then factor in that the plastic end tanks are epoxied to the core rather than brazed as with a brass/copper unit. Don't forget that the platic/aluminum units are much lighter than the brass/copper units which improves gas milage and performance (acceleration, ect.). The main reason that the OEMs switched to the plastic/aluminum radiators was cost, (the reason they do most anything it seems).

I'm still running the stock radiator in my '87 K5. It's a copper/brass stocker that came with the truck (the truck also came with a 305). I've got AC that I use when it's hot out too. I've never had a problem keeping the truck cool, despite a swapped in 350 that makes an easy 380hp (the stock 305 maybe made 180). I've taken the truck 4-wheeling in summer heat, at slow speeds, high RPM, 4-Low all the way, and still never had temps over 210 using a stock 195 degree t-stat. I've flushed the system every 2-years since I've owned the truck, and when I did the motor swap I had a radiator shop cook the the radiator over the weekend in the chemical tank. A radiator is like any other part of a car. You treat it with respect and service it like you should and it will give you years of trouble free service, even with a modified motor.

3rd gens often seem to have cooling difficulties. I must say that most of the problems I've seen haven't bee corrected by replacing the radiator, unless it's leaking. More often than not the cooling fans are the problem. The factory on point is typically 220 degrees, which is the boiling point of water at atmospheric pressure. The only reason the water in your cooling system doesn't boil at that temperature is that it is under pressure, and raising the pressure raises the boiling point. The fans should come on at more like 180-190 degrees. Just making that switch will solve a lot of overheating problems. The older single fan setups are also often failing by this time, and a swap to a new fan motor will often solve an overheating problem too. Over time the fan motor is a consumable. It doesn't have a finite service life that's easily defined like a spark plug or oil, but over time it wears out and becomes less efficient. The dual fan systems seem to work much better, and new aftermarket fans work even better still.

The typical problem with a car that overhats is that the owner, and even a lot of mechanics will start throwing parts at the car without really diagnosing anything. The t-stat is almost always the first culprit. When that doesn't solve the problem the radiator is clogged. When that doesn't fix it the water pump must be worn out. No luck? Okay, the fan isn't working right. By this point you've spent hundreds of needless dollars, that some simple diagnostic skills could have saved. Like I said before, one "magic part" isn't some kind of universal panacea for a car that runs hot or overheats. Everything needs to be in tip top form, and if you've got a problem you need to diagnose it properly rather than running out and dropping your hard earned cash on some advertisers promise. You'll find those promises are often quite hollow.