I am going to get a Griffin 31 x 19 radiator. I am going to get a separate transmission and engine oil cooler. I am going to get rid of the stock "engine oil cooler" which is just runs coolant to the oil filter. Will I still need heater hose fittings on the radiator for my heater core, or can i tap into the system elsewhere?

Has anyone esle done this set-up on a GTA? What about the bracket for the dual fans?

 

I just put in a summit 31" x 19" alum. rad. Over all it's the same rad. as yours.

To run the heater hoses you just hook them up like all the older cars had em'

One to top of water pump, one to front pass. side on intake. You'll need 2 fittings (you should have 1 already) both has threaded bottoms and a hose barb on top. Just screw those fittings into your intake and water pump.

If you have an auto transmission YOU HAVE TO HAVE A ADD ON COOLER. Mount this on the grill side of rad. But DO NOT use the push through core zip straps that comes with cooler to mount it. Alum and those plastic rods will not get along. Pushed through the fins in the rad, and over time it will rub the core thin and cause a leak.

You can make a metal bracket mount for the coolers. I just zip tied mine..

I sat the coolers down on the lower core support in front of the rad. Then pulled the top of them forward some, and zip tied them to those X cross braces, and side of core support. I used close to 10 zip ties to make sure it was on good.

Can't really tell you about your fan mounting cause I aint seen them up close. I use a ford taurus elec fan.

If you look at the top of your rad. theres 2 lips sticking up. On the lip on engine side of rad. I drilled 2 holes, layed my fan on rad, marked the lips where I needed to drill. I drilled the top and bottom lips.
then got some metal plumbers pipe strap, Measured how long I needed my 4 pc., cut them to lenght. Bolted the pipe strap to my fan, layed fan back on rad and bolted other ends of the pipe straps to the rad through those holes I drilled.

I didnt have the stock rad. upper panel that hold it in, so I just used the pipe strap to hold the rad in too. Drilled 2 holes on the grill side of the top lip, put rad/fan in car, and put a pc. of pipe strap on each side of the top, and bolted it to the core support.
Panited all my pipe straps and bolts black (under hood is black) and you cant even see them unless you look for them

 

I had to done some major modification to get my 31x19 to fit, cut out the lower radiatior support and had to drop it 3" so the top of the radiator fit under the factory top plastic cover.

Trans cooler was fabbed in front of the radiator with steel strap that suspends it in mid air in front of radiator. Never mind the ugly dimestore rad hoses. Eventually will upgrade to the pretty stainless hoses.

<img src='http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2004-9/824085/Misc.carpics001.jpg' width=500 height=375 img>

<img src='http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2004-9/824085/Misc.carpics002.jpg' width=500 height=375 img>

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IHI.... Nice clean install bud. Engine looks good too.

I got a question for you alittle off subject though...

From the pics, I notice you have solid engine mounts. How do they feel in a third gen car? I use to have solid mounts in other shock front suspension cars, but never in a strut front end. How harsh are they?

BTW here's some of my rad. install pics.. *in these pics I aint put the plate back on that covers the big hole up around the hood latch*

http://community.webshots.com/photo/...89827989zXoRvv

http://community.webshots.com/photo/...89829858AwKgif

http://community.webshots.com/photo/...89830810UrjTlA

 

LOL, I really gotta do some tiddying up under the hood. Rst of the car looks alright inside/out but when you pop the hood it becomes real apparent it's all business since nothing is fancy anywhere.

This is the first car I've owned I ever installed solid mounts, always used rubber or poly (poly is what I had on the previous motor) First thing I noticed was the vibration that goes through the entire car. I took a long time to get used to the different feeling since you now feel the motor pulsating through the car and it almost felt at first like something was seriously wrong, but I drove a few other buddies cars and they switched over to solid mounts and had the same experience. If your going for cadillac plush, keep with rubber or poly, if your going for max effort, solid all the way, more power to the ground plus consistency on the track since it's one less thing flexing/moving that could equate into the ET game more/less.


Once I get ready ready to put a real small block under the hood, I'll be ripped out everything under the hood and give it alot of attention. Really want to go back to body color engine bay, but all the tool knicks and dings from weekend tuning-the black is waay easier to touch up!

 

IHI... Thanks man for the info. Yeah that's how the solid mounts felt on my old cars. You feel everything the engine is doing, all the road bumps, lines, etc. Just thought it might feel diff in a strut front end car

Hey man... Nothing wrong with the all business looks. I rather a fast engine that looks like it's fast, but not too dressed up, than a slow engine thats a prettied up.

Remember the saying... Chrome wont get you home

 

Night Rider, did you have to modify your lower tray like IHI? If so, do you have any pictures of how that ended up? I am doing a "custom" radiator install and am kind of curious how to re-attach that...or replace it, refabricate it, something of the sort.

IHI...if you ever get pictures of your lower tray, that would be cool, too. From talking to you, I think you realize I need all the help I can get when it comes to putting my beast in

 

Stekman.....

1 little mod done to the lower tray on mine, but I didn't have to cut it out and lower it.

If you look at the bottom tray. It has about 6 little 1/4" long tabs sticking up. I think thats to hold the stock rad rubber U bushing.
I tapped those flat with a hammer, and sat rad. down on the stock lower tray.

If you look at both mine and IHI's pics you'll see why he had to lower his bottom tray, and I didn't. He used the stock plastic upper rad. holder deal. I didn't

If you use that stock part, then the rad will sit up too high above the top of the core support for the plastic panel to fit back on support and over rad.

With mine, I just made my own brackets to hold the rad in with plumbers pipe strap, and didn't use that top plastic panel.
Both ways works.

Both looks good IMO, it's just a matter of what you like better and can do better. To use the upper plastic panel you have to lower the rad. down, I just didn't feel like going through that trouble. I had 1 day to finish mine

I'm happy with the way mine turned out, and I wouldnt change a thing, but I also like how IHI's turned out too. His looks closer to "stock" when you 1st see it, mine don't

 

Dude, LOL, I dont know if I wanna take pictures of it One of those function over form type deals. I had dam near half a day getting it all mocking up and fitted.

In a nutshell for now, I just took my cut off wheel and cut the lower tray completely off, mocked up radiator so I could retain stock plastic peice(lot easier since the factory fans would bolt right back up) and then just cut a peice of flat steel (body sheetmetal steel I think it was to extend it down to the drop I needed.

Once it was back in place and I set the radiator back in, it was very wobbley front to back, the added filler I used to drop the lower support was not rigid enough, so I ran some 1/8"x1" steel strap from the bottom side of the radiator support and bent it so i could just bolt the bracing into the holes already in place for the front sway bar. I took that off 2 years ago, had bolts that would bolt back in, so figured I'd utilize them and it worked out great. I also reused the factory rubber supports as well. You do not want any aluminum to metal contact since they will corrode and lead to problems, (but that'll take a long time for it to happen, especially since these are just toys and not in the elements yr round.

 

Yea, I'm not using the plastic thing either. But I still had to cut mine. But mine is more due to thickness.

Anyway, just curious to see how other people re-attached the lower tray.

I think it's time to start a new thread about this.

 

On my griffin 31 x 9, just hammered the little tabs that stick up on each side down a little bit and modify the stock fan shroud and it fit right in. Also used little rubber pads under the radiator to keep it from hitting metal to metal with the tabs that were bent down. Kind of a PITA but well worth it!

 

I was'nt as luckly width wise on my Howie 31x19. The tanks stuck out too far to even think about fitting between the front frame rails. Lotta heat and lotta hammering with my air hammer to get the front frame rails pushed back enough to allow the radiator to slide right in.

 

I just installed my Northern 31x19 (got a killer deal locally ) I removed all the spot welds on the tray, and lowered it 3 inches and rewelded in place.

One problem i have encountered. HOSES i cant fit my old ones on, even with heat and stretching. Any helpful ideas?

 

Forshock 85TA...
You should have the same rad. as me. The summit house brand is made by northern, even has northern imprinted on the side of the tanks.

For the lower hose, I used the auto zone cheap brand for a 1988 camaro v-8

The top hose, stock should fit as well, but I used what I had around. A top hose for a 1975 corvette.

The bottom hose was a tight fit onto the lower rad. spout. I wiped/poured a good bit of anti frezze inside the hose. So it would act as a lube and help it slip on easier

 

trust me, my store based hoses wont go on

I also dont want to spend $90 on stainless when i could give less about the shiny stuff.

Anyone maybe have cross reference part numbers?

 

most of the universal rads have a 1 3/4 outlet on the lower. the stock upper SHOULD fit.

take your lower hose you have and put the end on the radiator that normally would go on the water pump. i bet it fits. i had to get a hose that was 1 3/4 on both ends. napa had it in stock. i just looked threw all the hoses and grabbed one that was close. i have no idea what it came off of.
good luck.

 

First lets start by saying that the local places near me are lazy...

I did get my rad in, to get the upper on i used the hose from a 1975 Chevy Corvette. Wont work with AC that is for sure. The upperhose in stock form will NOT fit, atleast not "standard ways".

For the lower, yea the water pump end fits, but the rad end is too small. The local places tried a little, but no luck. To get the lower hose on, i slightly, ever so slightly, "bent" the edges inward, maybe 5-8*. This allowed a lip to slid on. I then used fabric softner (Yes, you heard right) The collant was not as slick as this. I could have used KY or vaseline, but that wasnt readily available (ummm...)

Thanks for the help everyone.