2 Core Explorer radiator

[Surrey]

And besides, the OP here is in Arizona... I'm not sure what happens in Alaska, Canada, or the northeast would matter to him anyway.

Thats exactly what I said in my first post. lol

 

[Lil-Pony]

here my thread for the 84 install i did on mine
http://www.therangerstation.com/forums/showthread.php?t=141503

 

[4x4junkie]

Thats exactly what I said in my first post. lol

True, you did.

I was just stating that I've been places other than So Cal and not had issues.
Maybe I mistook your comment as less specific than it was (I think of "cold area" as anyplace where it regularly gets well below freezing in winter).

Carry on.

 

[work_in_progress]

I have an 89 and I am putting a 4.0, I know this is probably a stupid question (hey i'm 15 give me a break!) but should i upgrade to an explorer radiator? I'm in Alabama with 90+ as an average summer high and anywhere between 10-30 degree winters. Crazy weather. What should i do to prolong the life of my 4.0?

 

[kunar]

I have an 89 and I am putting a 4.0, I know this is probably a stupid question (hey i'm 15 give me a break!) but should i upgrade to an explorer radiator? I'm in Alabama with 90+ as an average summer high and anywhere between 10-30 degree winters. Crazy weather. What should i do to prolong the life of my 4.0?

i have never had a problem with my 4.0 and a single row radiator. even ford only used them if there was also a transmission cooler needed. if you're running an automatic, get a 2 row radiator. if not, dont worry about it.

 

[ronclark]

Nope.

I've spent time in low teen-temp Oregon winters, as well as up in high Sierra mountain elevations and no issues there either (heater comes on strong after about 5 minutes or so)

Again, the engine temperature is regulated by your thermostat, not the radiator.

+1 what junkie said, i live in SW Washington its never been a problem, even playing up at MT hood in the winter it always warmed up fast.

 

[PetesPonies]

This two row you speak about . . . is it two wide rows??? I have a single row Explorer radiator and the tube is probably 1" WIDE.

 

[4x4junkie]

Yeah the entire cooling core on a 2-row is about 2¼ inches thick.

 

[PetesPonies]

OK thanks. So two tubes of over 1" each then. I will have to get one of these for my truck. I put in a single large core from an Explorer in my V8 BII. It's marginal at best for cooling.

 

[adsm08]

even ford only used them if there was also a transmission cooler needed.

Even then they didn't always use a 2-core. The radiator in my truck is a single core, auto trans, 4.0L radiator.

 

[Shran]

I've discussed this topic a few times before and I am speaking from experience on three 4.0 radiator swaps and 2.9 engine. Keep in mind that opinions vary a lot on this one.

My experience has been that a 4.0 radiator is too much for a 2.9. Same results every time. The water in the radiator is too cold when it circulates back around and your computer sees that and compensates by adding fuel, thus killing your gas mileage. Again, just my experience, all three swaps I did were in vehicles that I personally owned and drove extensively - the rest of the cooling system was in excellent shape.

That said, I live in South Dakota, our winters are fairly cold, and these vehicles got driven mostly in the fall and winter seasons. Warmer climates might yield different results.

I was in the 18-19 combined MPG range with a factory radiator and auto trans, and after the 4.0 radiator swap I was way below that. 11-13 MPG. The engine temp rarely hit 195.

If you have a vehicle that is mostly used in warm weather and/or sees a lot of offroad time, a 4.0 radiator swap is awesome.

 

[Surrey]

+1 what junkie said, i live in SW Washington its never been a problem, even playing up at MT hood in the winter it always warmed up fast.

SW Washington is not somewhere I would ever consider a cold climate.

I live in Vancouver now, but elsewhere in the province it hits -20 for a daily high (thats like -4 degrees f) and I am in the warmest province there is.

As I said, ask an Alaskan about what cold is. lol

 

[adsm08]

The water in the radiator is too cold when it circulates back around

This is the problem with the 2-core rad on a 2.9 in areas that don't regularly see 95+ temps.

Yes, the thermostat is what gets the engine up to temp, but the radiator is what really regulates that temp. And keep in mind that the thermostat reacts to coolant temps.

The two core rad will add approx 1/4 total system capacity (a little more than half a gallon) to the cooling system. This means that when the thermostat opens up and the radiator gets back in the loop you are dumping almost 2 gallons (almost what the block holds) of ambient temp coolant right back into the block. That will close the thermostat back up and you have to go through the warmup cycle all over.

If you are moving you could well get the coolant in the radiator down below the thermostat temp before it starts to flow again, making it a repeating cycle.

 

[Surrey]

This is the problem with the 2-core rad on a 2.9 in areas that don't regularly see 95+ temps.

Yes, the thermostat is what gets the engine up to temp, but the radiator is what really regulates that temp. And keep in mind that the thermostat reacts to coolant temps.

The two core rad will add approx 1/4 total system capacity (a little more than half a gallon) to the cooling system. This means that when the thermostat opens up and the radiator gets back in the loop you are dumping almost 2 gallons (almost what the block holds) of ambient temp coolant right back into the block. That will close the thermostat back up and you have to go through the warmup cycle all over.

If you are moving you could well get the coolant in the radiator down below the thermostat temp before it starts to flow again, making it a repeating cycle.

Thats basically what I tried to say. Cold temps + big radiatior = problems getting up to temp and staying there.

If you are in a colder climate, I wouldn't do a 2-core rad unless you are having problems overheating... At which point, unless the rad you have is buggered something else is probably afoot.

On the other hand, if you live in Arizona or New Mexico, you can probably do it no problem.

 

[4x4junkie]

I'm still not understanding something...

When the thermostat starts to open, just enough coolant begins to flow through that the thermostat will not open any further, establishing a temperature equilibrium in the engine (I know this, I've tested thermostats in hot water and watched them gradually open & close as the water is heated and allowed to cool).
What you're saying is the thermostat just "pops" open and the whole entire shebang in the radiator flows into the engine all at once?? (is that what you mean by "going through the warmup cycle all over"?) If that were so, that would lead to a cracked block in very short order (at least I was always told by many when I was younger to never ever put cool water into a hot radiator unless the engine is running because it could crack the block after you start it).



I'm not saying you didn't have an issue, I'm just trying to wrap my head around how the radiator was the cause of it, and not something else.
I will admit, I have not been in temps below around 5°F, so maybe there is infact something there, but I having a hard time theorizing what or where it is that would cause it if it wasn't just the cold air blasting against the engine itself.

Also, MPGs will drop in cold temperatures simply because cold air is denser & heavier than warmer air (though I would agree, probably not from 19 MPG to 12, maybe more like to around 16)