Runnin Hot

What radiator set up is supposed to be in a 69 Roadrunner, 383 4 speed no air? I have a 22 inch core with no shroud and a fan that is about 18 inches diameter.
Second question, With the engine hot, should you be able to see the fluid circulating inside the radiator?

My 67 has a 26"..You really need a shroud...That would help alot..Yes you cann see the the fluid move...
Petty Blue 67

Both my 69 Road Runners have 22". I have shrouds on them and have never had any overheating issues.

My 69 RR has the smaller rad but my 68 has the 26" because it is a factory perf axle package car. You should be fine with the 22". Is the engine new? My 66 Bel ran a bit warm with a 26" when I first got it running.

My 69 RR has the smaller rad but my 68 has the 26" because it is a factory perf axle package car. You should be fine with the 22". Is the engine new? My 66 Bel ran a bit warm with a 26" when I first got it running.

No it's not new. I did find a shroud on ebay for a 22 inch rad. Hopefully it will help. tried to change the thermostat and twisted off one of the bolts. Fun stuff I tell you. lol

It would make a difference if your 22" radiator is a 2,3, or 4 row version. The two row can be over powered by a big block.

Use either a 7 blade solid or a clutch type that will help also! The 7" was the stock fan.

Well, I did some work and got the bolt out that I busted off, and looky what I found. I'm guessing that the radiator is totally clogged up inside. Can they be cleared out or do I need a new one?
Stupid question: How do you know how many core radiator you have? Do you measure the thickness?
Thanks for all your guys' input.

Daryn

I got it, it's a 4 core that had been re-cored already. I took it to a shop so they could do some serious flushing on it. Hopefully with the shroud and the clean-out, It should work properly.

My god Daryn......Looks like something that was salvaged off the Titanic.

I'm sure that will make one heck of a difference getting that garbage out of your radiator

Yeah, it was pretty bad. came off in 1/4 inch thick chunks. I took the radiator out and brought it to a rad shop so they could do a pressure flush on it. Had it over the weekend, went back to pick it up and they never looked at it. That did it, I took it home and flushed it myself with a garden hose. Filled it part way, picked it up and did the big shake with it several times until the water came out clean. I decided that I'm tired of waiting for other peoples schedules and decided to pick up some tools and do more of the work myself.
I am mechanically inclined, I just stopped collecting auto type tools in my early 20's. So I really didn't have a lot of the correct tools. The guy at the auto parts place must have loved me. I dropped $500 in 20 minutes picking up some basics.
The car is cooling now and I do have a fan shroud coming, so that should be the final piece of that puzzle.

My god Daryn......Looks like something that was salvaged off the Titanic.

I'm sure that will make one heck of a difference getting that garbage out of your radiator

:rolling::rolling:

just to add a thought. I too had the same problem, however I had rust in the block too that kept stopping up the holes in the top of the radiator core. Used a flexible magnet to fish out. Flused block as well as I could and bought a GANO coolant filter and put on top hose to trap before getting into radiator.. Caught a lot of debris... finally last Feb. needed to replace headers.. oportunity to pop freeze plugs and use a brush especially on the back two plugs.. flushed 5 times through thermostate housing, blew air through it. Caught the water with a kiddie pool under car so I could see the debris.. about a cup... Works fine now. took the Gano filter off last week.. just a few specs of debris..

Anybody got a comment of aluminum radiators-have a 26" 3 row that even cleaned is runnin 210 on a 440 pushin 500 ponies. whats best a 2 row with 1" cores or a 3 row with 5/8' cores?

whats the opinion on radiators for a 440 pushin over 500 hp? 2-3 or 4 row aluminum?

Ya know, I'm kinda getting tired of cooling problems. Problem is, you cant trust the fixes! Aftermarket water pumps have different impellers, aftermarket T-stats dont flow as well as factory [or the old Stant stuff we trusted] . I've been rebuilding 2.7 Chrysler motors lately, and most of the bad ones have an aftermarket t-stat that is noticeably lighter, and 3/4 of an inch shorter than factory. Hence I guess less flow. I have a feeling that people are trusting parts that cant be trusted anymore. I feel that the aftermarket pumps dont pump! Just my opinion, but I feel cheepness is creeping into the mainstream

Ya know, I'm kinda getting tired of cooling problems. Problem is, you cant trust the fixes! Aftermarket water pumps have different impellers, aftermarket T-stats dont flow as well as factory [or the old Stant stuff we trusted] . I've been rebuilding 2.7 Chrysler motors lately, and most of the bad ones have an aftermarket t-stat that is noticeably lighter, and 3/4 of an inch shorter than factory. Hence I guess less flow. I have a feeling that people are trusting parts that cant be trusted anymore. I feel that the aftermarket pumps dont pump! Just my opinion, but I feel cheepness is creeping into the mainstream

I hear you. The replacement Tstat I put in felt pretty cheaply made. It seems to be working but it is in my mind most of the time as I guess only time will give me confidence that it's doing it's job.

whats the opinion on radiators for a 440 pushin over 500 hp? 2-3 or 4 row aluminum?

I'm not sure what to tell you as I'm no expert. There are a few excellent threads on the subject though with quite a wide variety of opinions and solutions. Maybe find those and read through them. You didn't say what your fan situation is or if you have a shroud. I know that is pretty important.

buy a Robert Shaw brand Thermostat from Jegs or Summit.
if you have a fan clutch, buy the right one from Hayden.
Flowkooler makes a water pump with an anti-cavitation plate and larger impeller (blades that move the antifreeze). YOu can buy them from summit or direct from brassworks.com
HTH
Bob