transmission cooler mounting question

[jerry S]

My transmission cooler is flush-mounted in front of my radiator. I have a 12 inch puller fan behind the radiator. I notice my engine temps start to creep up pretty high when I am tooling around town at low speed (note: this is a new build with less than 700 miles on it: 10.5 CR and .040 over. I am informed via SN that newer engines tend to run hot until they break in, especially with a higher CR so maybe my issue is just temporary). Notwithstanding the fan, I am wondering if the transmission cooler up front isn't interfering with the air flow through the radiator. Can anyone intelligently opine on the subject?

regards,

jS

 

[iskwezm]

the cooler does block a bit of airflow, but you are running a .040 block and 10.5 cr. I was told that if a enigine runs warm after the first few hundred miles, thats the way its gonna run.The break in period seems to be a "myth" with him

 

[69 302/351c]

I mounted my trans cooler on 2 brackets off the front frame rail. It sits right in the valence opening, doesn't block the radiator at all.

 

[jmlay71]

You did not mention what size radiator you are running. Do you have a shroud around your electric fan? What is the actual temp that you are seeing?

Also you could cut back on the antifreeze a bit & add some Water Wetter, or a similar product. Or possibly a highter CFM fan.

But with the .040 overbore you may just run a bit warm.

Mike

 

[jerry S]

You did not mention what size radiator you are running. Do you have a shroud around your electric fan? What is the actual temp that you are seeing?

Also you could cut back on the antifreeze a bit & add some Water Wetter, or a similar product. Or possibly a highter CFM fan.

But with the .040 overbore you may just run a bit warm.

Mike

I have a 24x19 Griffin alum radiator, dual row, 1 inch tubes. Actual temp reads "H" (using the stock instruments but I did just order a 6 gauge set of Autometer Ultra Lites) and I can smell coolant when the engine is getting hot. The fan is running when this happens.

I have very little space between the radiator fan and the water pump, only .5 inch. I am using a Flex-a-lite low profile 12 inch puller fan rated at 1250 cfm and as far as I can tell, it is the only fan that will fit. I am thinking about the same size radiator (24x19 but with 1.25 or even 1.5 inch tubes)

 

[brianj5600]

I think you are under-fanned. It may also help to seal off all openings in the core support and seal the radiator to it. Air flow moves from high pressure to low pressure. ALL air in the engine bay should go through the radiator. Any air that gets through the core support and not the radiator reduces the low pressure area behind the radiator which reduces flow through the core. I think the radiator size is not the problem, unless it is designed for racing. They have more fins per inch and require more speed to get enough air through them

 

[jmlay71]

I just read your other post a few pages back, electric fan issues. What changed as it seemed that you were having no issues after getting the fan working?

There should be a bit of a gap between the trans cooler & the radiator but that would no make enough difference to cause it to over heat. I think you will find that a shroud around the back of the radiator will help considerably!!!

I have a friend that has a kit Cobra with a warmed over 351W. On a hot day here in TX it runs ~205 deg. His problem is 2 fold the radiator is installed at an angle so air does not flow thru easily & there is no shroud in front to behind the radiator. The shroud behind will ensure that air is pulled thru all of the fins. He needs a shroud in front to funnel the air into the radiator be cause of the tilt back at the top.


Mike
Mike

 

[jerry S]

I think you are under-fanned. It may also help to seal off all openings in the core support and seal the radiator to it. Air flow moves from high pressure to low pressure. ALL air in the engine bay should go through the radiator. Any air that gets through the core support and not the radiator reduces the low pressure area behind the radiator which reduces flow through the core. I think the radiator size is not the problem, unless it is designed for racing. They have more fins per inch and require more speed to get enough air through them

The problem is that the fan I have is the only fan that fits. I have 3 inches from the radiator to the water pump. The flex-a-lite 12 inch fan is 2.25 inches deed. The dual fan is only slightly deeper and could fit but it requires a more surface area than I actually have.

 

[jerry S]

I just read your other post a few pages back, electric fan issues. What changed as it seemed that you were having no issues after getting the fan working?

Mike

After I fixed the fuse, I made a 2 hour trip of all freeway driving to get an estimate on paint. The gauge indicated that I was running nice and cool while I was on the highway. Once I got into town and was driving slow, say 25-35 mph, the temp started to creep up. I could even smell coolant. I pulled over to check the fan and it was still running. Once I was back on the highway, the car ran nice and cool (according to the unreliable temp gauge). It was only about 70 degrees outside at the time. The radiator is a Griffin Alum Racing Radiator. I am beginning to wonder about Brianj5600's observation about racing radiators. Perhaps the application works as intended when at high speed but not at low speed.