Radiator Tecnicalogy

[R100]

You often see big fat after market  alloy radiators blasted all over trade me but are they any good ?

 

Does a thicker core mean more/better cooling because more water can flow through it and in turn cool more water?

Does a thicker core mean worse/less cooling because more water can flow through it and in turn not get the chance to cool?

 

Will a thinner radiator cool more efficiently because the air flow through it more easily?

Will a thinner radiator cool less efficiently because there is less surface area for it to cool the water?

 

 

If radiators cool better when there thicker why don't car manufacturers make them thicker in the first place or is it a look at me i got a 6" thick radiator for increased drift.

 

 

Opinions please.

 

 

 

[anglia4]

 

 

Does a thicker core mean more/better cooling because more water can flow through it and in turn cool more water?

Does a thicker core mean worse/less cooling because more water can flow through it and in turn not get the chance to cool?

 

 

 

I would say more volume of water in the radiator is going to be a good thing, it will mean that the water stays in the radiator for longer. 

 

I'm thinking of it in terms of flow rates, i.e if you have water going through a small hose, and then expanding into a larger hose, the water slows down. So bigger radiator = "larger hose" = water in the heat exchanger to cool for longer.

 

I'm not sure about the effects of thickness on airflow through the fins though. I would say its fairly negligible and that the benefits of the extra surface area outweigh the negatives of having more resistance to the airflow.

[KKtrips]

In my opinion bigger is better so there is more volume of water in the cooling cycle at any time.

 

Copper radiators are better than aluminium for heat transfer, (though aluminium is cheaper and easier to fabricate, plus alloy cores last longer than copper cores)

Multi pass are better than single pass and more cores is better than less cores. 

 

Electric water pumps with a speed controller and massive electric fans sucking clean airflow are the ticket.

 

You are talking for burnout machines or on the road?

[0R10N]

I'd be wary of those Trademe alloy radiators, a lot of them suffer from poor construction and flow. Are we talking the likes of the ones with TIG'd end tanks as opposed to plastic ones?

 

In my opinion bigger is better so there is more volume of water in the cooling cycle at any time.

 

Copper radiators are better than aluminium for heat transfer, (though aluminium is cheaper and easier to fabricate, plus alloy cores last longer than copper cores)

Multi pass are better than single pass and more cores is better than less cores.

 

By far the best alloy radiator I've seen and used was a 68mm thick $1000 PWR one... but I'm biased as this is what I ended up purchasing.

 

I've had good results from having copper ones reconditioned with brand new cores, there is a place up here in Auckland that still does them.

[Rookie]

The $150 alloy ones off Aliexpress work mint.

[downtrail]

Its all about surface area exposed to cooling air dual or tripple cores increse the surface area of the cooling tubes as theres more of it exposed to air. Nascar uses radiarors with dimples on the tubes as this has also incresed the surface area on the cooling tubes / fins.

Fsctory cars have no need for larger than standard as the heat produced by the motor is cooled and controlled by the radiator fine (they did some maths and made approiate sized radiators)

More cooling is called for when you make more power as a by product of power is heat. Think wiring. Increase power requirement you must incresr cable size to cope as heat will be produced by large current drawn through small cable cant handle it gets hot etc same principal as making more power.

[cletus]

a previous car i owned had a recored standard brass/copper thing with a core from a chev of some description, and a pickapart fan, could do skids all day and never get hot. current car has fancy afco double pass alloy radiator with an expensive davies craig elec fan and its always borderline, it gets hot on a warm day, or at the drags etc. and it weeps antifreeze somewhere the core goes into the tank

 

next time will go back to copper and pickapart combo

[Jase]

the brass copper combo is more ductile than the alloy,

so other than being better at heat transfer it can also expand and contract more readily than the alloy with each heat cycle.

you will also notice some alloy rads have the tubes bowed in the core so that with expansion and  contraction of the tube it is not ripped from the end tanks.

 

a lot of the trademe ali jobs suffer from cracking of that nature

[SOHC]

I understand some of the cheep alloy radiators have the tanks epoxied onto the core tubes