New radiator

Was putting some more bits back on the old girl tonight and noticed a drip on the driveway.. the top tank of the radiator is either cracked or coming away from the core.

There's plenty of info around but it's all over the place. I'm keen for some realtime feedback on what radiator they're currently running and what they think of it.

I'm leaning towards just replacing it with the an oem jobbie but they're wanting over $1000 for one of them.

Also has anyone gone the way of having their standard one repaired and if so, how's it going?

hi, I went Aluminium from ebay and works great, just got to make sure it's the right one for your patrol regards Alex = below is just a sample of what i purchased, not the seller. mine was 3 year ago.

https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/3-Row-Ra...fMR:rk:10:pf:0

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Originally Posted by altech

hi, I went Aluminium from ebay and works great, just got to make sure it's the right one for your patrol regards Alex = below is just a sample of what i purchased, not the seller. mine was 3 year ago.

https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/3-Row-Ra...fMR:rk:10:pf:0

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Thanks mate. Had a bit of a look at the evilbay ones but didn't want to end up with something crappy. Might have a bit deeper look if you've had good luck with one.

We’ve had great success with OEM radiators mate on GQ’s & GU’s although they are getting a little exy these days as you’ve mentioned.
Unfortunately though the aluminium aftermarket ones we’ve trialled do not handle our corrugated home roads and adventures out there very well we’ve found.
I guess it does depend on usage and budget but on a positive note we’ve only just replaced on a family GU wagon after 17 years an OEM from Patrolapart at under $700 IIRC. Per annum $41 seems pretty fair to me in the long run [emoji106][emoji106]


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Quote:

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Originally Posted by MB

We’ve had great success with OEM radiators mate on GQ’s & GU’s although they are getting a little exy these days as you’ve mentioned.
Unfortunately though the aluminium aftermarket ones we’ve trialled do not handle our corrugated home roads and adventures out there very well we’ve found.
I guess it does depend on usage and budget but on a positive note we’ve only just replaced on a family GU wagon after 17 years an OEM from Patrolapart at under $700 IIRC. Per annum $41 seems pretty fair to me in the long run [emoji106][emoji106]


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Yeah thanks mate. That was the first place I checked. I'll have another look but they had all the wider versions up for about $700 but the bloody Ti one was over 1k. I did spend some time looking at the ally ones last night and the tiny mounting tabs look like they're just welded on to the side of the core. That'd last about 2 seconds on some of the roads I've been down.

Adrad do a very similar thing to oem for a more reasonable price. Anyone running or had one of these?

You might be on the money there mate!
I do seem to remember @mudski talking of a company that used OEM cores or something similar from same manufacturing plant I thought once read here somewhere.
EDIT: Double check warranties given either way you go too mate!


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I am waiting for an ADRAD custom Aluminium radiator to arrive. This is for my Chev Optimiser Supercharger installation. ADRAD have a total design and engineering process for their radiators and actually flow test and airflow test the designs before they go to market. They build what works, not necessarily what you think might be best - which is a very confident position to be taking I reckon.

This is going to be my first aluminium radiator as prior to this I was a firm believer in Copper/brass. If you go the aluminium route you need to focus on electrolysis and galvanic corrosion. The radiator needs to be an isolated element and free from stray currents or it will corrode very quickly. Using a good quality coolant with anti freeze and lubricants, changed regularly, I am told a conservative approach is every 20,000klm if using Glycol bases, should keep the corrosion in check. Ensure the coolant concentration remains at the 50% recommended level. Also, ensure there is no current path thru the radiator, so the rubber mounts need to be in good condition. Dont link an earth strap for example between the radiator and block or use the radiator as an earthing point.

I have done a deep dive into the coolant/corrosion situation and settled on this product. I spoke with the scientist who formulated it and he provided me with a lot of data to demonstrate its value. Its not cheap, however it is a quarter of the price of the Evans Waterless Coolant system, and because its a water soluble oil mix, it can be topped up with water without ever losing the 50% concentration as the water is what evaporates, not the soluble oil.

I don't have any experience with Aluminium radiators as stated, and have also heard all the tales of shortcomings of these from cracking, fatigue, corrosion and difficulties to repair. I am holding my breath hoping this selection will deliver the goods in the long run, however I know the radiator will provide the cooling capacity I need by speaking with a guy in WA who has the identical setup.

Bit long winded - most of my posts are, as theres a bit to the puzzle usually. Lastly, going with ADRAD I know the radiator can be repaired down the track with their system as they hold build data on every radiator they make. The radiator is made from custom extrusions and using 3 different grades of aluminium across the assy. Mine cost $1800, so it better work! Here is the link to the coolant I will be using also, worth a look at i reckon. It was originally developed to target the ultra expensive vintage/classic car domain where vehicles had alloy engine blocks or radiators and they are too small for the HP, hence overheat very easily. The ph of this material is around 9.5 and you need a pH within the range of 7.5 to 8 at least for effective corrosion control between aluminium and cast iron. The viscosity is very very close to water which aids in both heat transfer and flow, and it is an electrical insulator by nature, so current paths are eliminated. All this guff is on their website including validation and it confirms in every aspect to the relevent Aust Standard, unlike most others. Operating range in the region of -10 - +125C, not as high as Evans at 190C however its heat transfer capacity is far better than any Glycol or Evans coolant system. Worth a look.


https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Liquid-I...L/183651175697

Looks like ‘Natrad’ are stockists of ‘Adrad’ and also ‘Koyorad’ of which the later I believe @mudski may have been talking about for OE replacement.

http://www.nissanpatrol.com.au/forum...019/02/148.jpg

http://www.koyorad.com/




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I don't understand why radiators are made using plastic end/top/bottom tanks? The factory original for the 2.8T was plastic and the failure point.

As mentioned mate, 17 years out of a GU 2001 TD42T OEM plastic tank jobbie and was still strong, just a bit dirty internally and not as efficient.
My experiences with aluminium tanks has been cracking on the welds and folds unfortunately from the sharp rough corrugated stuff.


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