Well guys I am pissed but I am still gonna try to be objective. Got my Be Cool Rad yesterday. Attempted the install and WOW what a pain.

Lets start with concerns:

No instructions in box!
Drivers side of rad hits sub-frame / unibody. Hammer mods + high temp aluminum tape required to help ensure no wear holes!
No hardware for upper shroud spacer!
Have to order tranny cooler adaptors separate!
No Plug for heater hose hole in radiator / gotta order separate!
DUAL COOLING FANS DO NOT EVEN COME CLOSE TO FITING!!!! Even with 1 inch spacers. Sorry, this sucks the worst.
Had to buy Be Cool dual 11 inch fans! 380 Bucks!
Tranny lines have to be bent alot! I made new ones.
I don't even know how someone could get a Power Steering cooler to fit!

Benefits:

Nice weld quality.
Only rad that even comes close to fitting.
Upper hose fits drivers side A/C.
Lower hose actually fits.
It will obviously cool alot.

Conclusion:
Be Cool makes the best rad out there for our cars but it is not worth the price. If the rad and fans were about 500 instead of 1000 bucks, I would be pleased. Just thought I would share.

 

Oh it gets even better. I called Be Cool and Summit recommended the wrong brackets and now I need two more part numbers from Be Cool. Just another 150 bucks. Man Be Cool is a bunch of idiots! How many separate part numbers must I have, sheesh!

 

If it gets any worse just box it up and send it to me. I'll take it off your hands and you'll never have to worry about it again.

Seriously though, hopefully you get it installed. I can't believe that they would make it so difficult to install a radiator specifically designed for the car it's being installed into.

 

I run in the 11s on street tires and I still run the stock 89 rad.. I don't have any probs good luck though

 

yeah.. 433hp 350, was fine with a stock radiator on the highway, in 15mph traffic, with the a/c cranked, the kicker? on the single fa, stock setup... hehe

anyways, good luck, you have more than enough cooling availiable now!

Steve

 

Thanks for the support guys. I just get frustrated with dumping a poo load of money on stuff for our cars that has to have alot of custom fab. Maybe i'm just **** though. LOL

 

https://www.thirdgen.org/techbb2/sho...hreadid=258752

Will you have any problems with dual fans though, donno, I know there are some issues with V-belt systems, but the product was great and cheap.

 

i too had similar luck, people wanted to laugh and point fingers. direct fit. right.... some units have supposedly dropped right in according to some members. it's a 50/50 split it seems.

on the positive side my 500+ horsepower motor sat idle during woodward dreamcruise last year cooler then ever. my stock aluminum radiator that was new couldn't handle it. i love the radiator but the first install is a pain.

good luck.

 

I spent about 45 minutes the other night staring at my cars engine bay, and my intercooler. thinking.. "man. maybe tomorrow"..

-- Joe

 

Got my fans last night. Oh brother, Be Cool Strikes again. These fans are cool, don't get me wrong but they must be heavier than my old radiator! Any weight savings from the aluminum radiator is easily negated by these fans. The fans are not only heavy but do not come with pigtails to attach to my relays! Sheesh, just gotta make those too. Be Cool also sells aluminum reinforcing brackets for these fans that need rubber bumpers. OK so the rubber bumpers should be in the same box as the braces, RIGHT! Oh, heck no. The rubber bumpers come in the brackets that fit the radiator core,(sarcasm) that makes sense. If someone wanted to make their own brackets but desired to use the reinforcing strip they would have to find their own rubber bumpers.

WOW! If I owned Be Cool I could take that company and make it a whole lot better by not only packaging things correctly with product specific instructions (not general ones in every box) but I would make a COMPREHENSIVE product list for consumers to read and make educated decisions. I sure hope this post helps someone else understand what they are getting into with Be Cool.

 

That's why I went with the Summit Racing alumium
radiator. The GM 31" x 19" fits the exact way like
the Be Cool direct fit did. I had to hammer the bottom
in a bit to get the radiator to fit, then modified the
existing upper radiator support to wrap it around.
I couldn't use any rubber mounts, though. It fits
so snug, that the car moves when I try to move
the radiator.

For the fans, I just replaced my little single fan for
the dual Flex-A-lite fans w/adjustable temp controls.
Total I spent on the rad. and fans was $400. The low
profile Flex-A-Lite fans weight less and use less amperage
then the Be Cool ones.

Summit Racing universal radiator:

Pros: -BIG radiator, cools like ice. lol
-All welded design, no side tank
seals or gaskets to go bad and leak
-Only $180. Compared to Be Cool's $519.


Cons: -No drain plug
- No trans. cooler
- may need to use custom
radiator hoses (depending on your application)

Low profile dual Flex-A lite fans (w/temp controls):

Pros: - Cheaper and weight less than Be Cool's
- Use less amperage
- Will easily clear serpentine belt systems!


Cons: There isn't any! Comes with detailed instructions
and I custom wired mine up in 1/2 hour.

This radiator is great for cars running with a manual
trans and want to use custom hoses.

Even if you have an auto, you should be using a
remote trans. cooler anyway. High hp motor or not,
any trans. benefits from it! You can get one for
$80.

 

Just want to say congrats on your latest magazine cover and
feature! I recieved my latest GM High Tech Performance in the
mail 2 days ago. I look at the cover and said, "that Z28 looks
familar!" I read further and find out it was your car! I am
glad to see a thirdgen back on the cover. It's been a while
that GMHTP did that.

All I can say is WOW! That's a LOT of mods! And my friends
think I am crazy to spend money on my thirdgen. Wait until
I show them yours.

OK, no more off-topic......

 

I'm using a Be Cool radiator too, have to modify the upper metal brace "shroud" just to get it sitting correctly in the car. No mounting brackets or rubber isolators supplied, little things you should expect when spending that kinda money. It's a great radiator, heck it better be for 500bucks. err, well I paid 480.. My advise to anyone considering a radiator, just buy the universal one. You'll have to do some creative fitting either way.

 

That's the best chance to make right there. Save
$300-$320 and buy the Summit Racing universal
fit one. It's like 31" x 19".

 

You will love this one. I called Be Cool to see if I could buy the fan pigtails separate. They said that would not be possible. The pigtails only come in the relay kit. OH BROTHER! I looked up Spal fans on their website and you can not only buy the fans for 30-40 bucks cheaper than Summit sells the REPACKAGED Be Cool ones but Spal will sell anyone the pigtails for 6 bucks each. Thanks again Be Cool for beating around the easy install bush. LOL

 

I am very sorry to hear all about your unfortunate
problems with Be Cool. This again, is why I decided
to risk buying a universal one with low profile fans from
Summit. It was well worth the modifying to fit the
radiator in place. I only spent like $420 at the most
for everything. I couldn't see spending like $1400
for the entire direct fit radiator and dual fans from
Be Cool. I originally thought that that's all I can get
to make my application work. But, some friends of
mine and the Summit tech line helped me out. You
DO NOT have to get the direct fit radiator or the
direct fit fans.

I wish the best of luck to you! You definitely need it!

 

I had almost no problems with my Be Cool. It dropped right in, the oly interference issuse was nominal. I forgot where I had to bend a little metal but it wasnt a big deal. I think it was because the radiator was so much larger than stock. As far as the rubeer isolators, you are supposed to use the old ones from the stock radiator. In Summit says in the mag that you need to buy the cooler adapters or fitting seperately if you are getting an auto radiator. Mine had a few papers in the box that said something about spacing the stock fans to get them to fit. Wasnt a big deal for me I just cut some tubing and bought some longer metric bots from the local autoparts store. The barb for the heater hose return was the only thing that totally surprised me. I just took one off my TPI setup and stuck it in there. I have since purchased a 1/2" NPT stainless barb from Performance stainless to use in replacement of the stock POS that rusts.

It sucks that you have had so many problems with your radiator. I thought the whole package was good overall. I wound up getting mine for around $430 after rebates and discounts but i still thought it was a bit pricey for a radiator.