Need Radiator Help!!! Desperate

[THE STIG]

Ok so I bought my 70 Charger in 2010. It was born with a 383 2BBL and the previous owner replaced the 383 with a 440 from a 75 New Yorker. After owning the car for several years it started to overheat so I bought a radiator from Be Cool and tried to replace it my self but didn't have the space or proper lighting in my garage so I gave up and sent it to a shop near by. They had it over a year before they tried to do anything with it and then when they did they told me it was the wrong radiator. I took them the radiator that was in there when I got the car and they told me they'd make something happen. They're now telling me they can't find the right radiator and the car has to go home because the shop is about to be torn down because of interstate expansion. One of the issues we're having is that the radiator that was in the car has both hose port on the right hand side, and we can't find any radiator that has that setup, they all have the upper hose port on the left and lower port on the right. I'm super stressed out about this and don't want to have my car towed home only to have it towed somewhere else again. I'm open to any insight I can get here and I'm in central Indiana if anyone knows of somewhere in my area that can help. Thanks.

 

[91r/t]

Well.....Glen Ray will for sure be able to make you the correct radiator for your car. Being a 383 2BBL car, it should have a 22" radiator in it if it doesn't have the max cool or air conditioning options. This should be a fairly common radiator to scrounge up for a core. Any local radiator shop should be able to recore it, and if they can;t their shop isn't worth a crap as that is their "profession" or "expertise" per say. Glen Ray will be expensive, but you won't ever have to buy another radiator for your car or have the troubles of aftermarket fitment. See casting numbers below.

2998954 70 B&E 22" 383 man htr

2998957 B&E 383 2v auto htr

2998960 B&E 383 4v auto htr

 

[91r/t]

After looking, it appears GlenRay only repops the 26" radiators, but he should or any other shop should be able to recore a radiator in 22" if that is what they do.

 

[THE STIG]

I just called GlenRay their "mopar guy" won't be in until 2PM but I'll for sure be calling them again. I'm more worried about functionality than looks or originality but if it's the last radiator I'll ever need than the cost may be worth it.

 

[91r/t]

Yea bob is an awesome guy to deal with. He will work with you on what you have for sure. No other local radiator only shops by you that can recore your original?

 

[69Coronetrt]

I just called GlenRay their "mopar guy" won't be in until 2PM but I'll for sure be calling them again. I'm more worried about functionality than looks or originality but if it's the last radiator I'll ever need than the cost may be worth it.

I have a 69 R/T with a 440 automatic and 22" radiator. Glen Ray did the work on my stock 053 radiator. I use the stock shroud. I typically run 165-170 degrees on the open road and maybe 190 in town on a hot night. During last Sunday's cruise in 95 degree plus weather, I ran 175 degrees on the road dropping down from 200 in town.

The point is: Glen Ray can set you up with an effective and stock looking 22" radiator. I have nothing but good things to say about Bob and his product.

 

[THE STIG]

Yea bob is an awesome guy to deal with. He will work with you on what you have for sure. No other local radiator only shops by you that can recore your original?

The shop that's had the car for the last year went to a radiator shop and I guess they struck out, I called another guy who kept talking over me when I tried to explain the 383/440 situation but he did say he can make it work. When I talked to the shop again they said they already talked to those guys and they said they couldn't help. The whole situation has me pissed off because we've had a year to address this and now that the interstate construction is coming through I have to move the car like now.

 

[91r/t]

I would get the car home and then deal with it on your own......time and time again these "shops" really aren't good with older stuff and are losing the ability to fix things properly on the older rides. Anyway you can stuff the original radiator back in the car and get the car home then deal with it? Throwing a rad in the car shouldn't be that big of project to get it home atleast.

 

[THE STIG]

I would get the car home and then deal with it on your own......time and time again these "shops" really aren't good with older stuff and are losing the ability to fix things properly on the older rides. Anyway you can stuff the original radiator back in the car and get the car home then deal with it? Throwing a rad in the car shouldn't be that big of project to get it home atleast.

If I have to get it home and deal with it I can but I would at least get it there under it's own power. My driveway is at an incline and my garage doors aren't very wide, and while the shops may be losing the ability to work on these cars I'm no expert either.

 

[91r/t]

Can you throw a radiator in it and get it running or is that above your skillset? Not judging at all just getting a feel for your options.

 

[slepr1]

Is the rad a 22" or 26"? I'd think it would be a 26". My original 360 Cordoba had a 28". Anyway, I see Champion Radiators have inlet/outlet on passenger side for chargers. I bought 2 Champions and they work and fit great. My Cordoba has inlet/outlet on same side.

One year in the shop for a rad swap? Wow you went to the wrong shop. That's a couple hour job at most.

https://shop.championcooling.com/Shop/Performance-Radiators/Dodge/Charger

 

[THE STIG]

Can you throw a radiator in it and get it running or is that above your skillset? Not judging at all just getting a feel for your options.

The radiator was problematic last time it ran, it was overheating that was where the problem started. Someone else on another forum said the Water pump on a new Yorker is different from the one on a Charger. Could changing the water pump fix this?

 

[slepr1]

If I have to get it home and deal with it I can but I would at least get it there under it's own power. My driveway is at an incline and my garage doors aren't very wide, and while the shops may be losing the ability to work on these cars I'm no expert either.

If you Google 'radiator repairs near me' do you get any results? Around here there are plenty of them, mostly catering to larger trucks, but will gladly work on a car also. They would be the first go to place. As I previously said, a rad swap shouldn't take too long. They shouldn't charge more than 4 hours labor unless they have to reconfigure the brackets but thats still easy to do, adding no more than +1hr.

 

[91r/t]

Water pump itself should be the same as any big block that shouldn't cause your overheating issue. There is some difference on fin count and shape on A/C vs. non A/C cars, but for a stock 383 2BBL any big block water pump will suffice. My guess is the radiator, but you might have to send it out to fix it, so I was saying maybe toss it in the car and get the car home then rip it back out and take it to a rad shop or send it to Glen Ray and let them recore it to a max cool and never look back or have an issue.

 

[slepr1]

The radiator was problematic last time it ran, it was overheating that was where the problem started. Someone else on another forum said the Water pump on a new Yorker is different from the one on a Charger. Could changing the water pump fix this?

To answer your question about the water pump...no it won't unless its defective, which it will leak out the front weaping hole or it makes bearing sounds. Your overheating issues can be caused by a timing issue (which is quite common) or the rad is too small, no shroud, fan on backwards. When does it overheat? Maybe it isn't the rad. I used the stock rad that came with the 360 even after I changed to a 440 for over 20 years. I only changed to a better rad after rebuilding the 440 to higher compression and 125 more HP.

 

[slepr1]

I see you are in Indiana. Lots of street racers there which means lots of Speed Shops which also have repair facilities, or know of muscle car repair shops. Get your work done by these kind of shops. They most likely know how to set the timing, set your carb and make it work properly.

 

[THE STIG]

Water pump itself should be the same as any big block that shouldn't cause your overheating issue. There is some difference on fin count and shape on A/C vs. non A/C cars, but for a stock 383 2BBL any big block water pump will suffice. My guess is the radiator, but you might have to send it out to fix it, so I was saying maybe toss it in the car and get the car home then rip it back out and take it to a rad shop or send it to Glen Ray and let them recore it to a max cool and never look back or have an issue.

I was thinking a new water pump housing would alleviate the issue with the radiator fitting. The Rad I have has both hose ports on the right side but every Rad I see for sale has the upper port on the left. A member on DC.com said that the New Yorker and Charger have different water pumps even though they both had 440 options.

 

[69Coronetrt]

The radiator was problematic last time it ran, it was overheating that was where the problem started. Someone else on another forum said the Water pump on a new Yorker is different from the one on a Charger. Could changing the water pump fix this?

Don't look for voodoo fixes. "well this worked for me..." Using a high volume water pump only circulates hot water faster leaving less time in the radiator. The water has to stay in the radiator the proper amount of time so slough off the heat.

None of the other things matter if the radiator won't properly disperse the heat. The factory engineers were pretty smart guys. If you use factory items up to factory specs, you should be fine.

 

[THE STIG]

Don't look for voodoo fixes. "well this worked for me..." Using a high volume water pump only circulates hot water faster leaving less time in the radiator. The water has to stay in the radiator the proper amount of time so slough off the heat.

None of the other things matter if the radiator won't properly disperse the heat. The factory engineers were pretty smart guys. If you use factory items up to factory specs, you should be fine.

Very true, water pump housing aside the radiator issues still need addressed as well. But if I can't make a good radiator fit it still won't work.

 

[slepr1]

I was thinking a new water pump housing would alleviate the issue with the radiator fitting. The Rad I have has both hose ports on the right side but every Rad I see for sale has the upper port on the left

In reality you can easily work with the upper rad outlet being on the wrong side by just getting a different rad hose. They also sell flexible rad hoses that can be put anywhere. The bottom outlet is the important one.