Berlinetta Restoration 2015

[8 Valve Ed]

Originally Posted by reneanglia

Is your fan turning the right way?
It must be sucking the air tru the radiator,i know you probably checked it but you won't be the first pushing hot air thru the radiator into the cool outer air..............
Also check the water channels in the engine block if there is non dryed up coolant left in the channels as the engine was out of commision for a while.

Hi René, the fan is drawing air from the front, sucking it through the radiator and discharging it into the engine bay. I am using a 12" (300mm) Kenlowe fan which is pretty powerful, there is no mistaking which way the air is moving. I chose to locate the fan behind the radiator to help protect it from the elements when the car is parked, as it will be for longish periods, living so near the sea, everything gets a gentle coating of salty sand in this area (We have to hose down the front door and windows weekly to prevent them looking shabby). It also provides a slightly less 'cluttered' view through the radiator grill.

The engine block and heads were very thoroughly cleaned with a powerful pressure washer before it was re-assembled, I am satisfied the grunge which did exist in the water jacket has all gone.

As I have tried to emphasise, I don't believe I have an engine cooling issue, but I greatly mistrust my existing radiator. Due to it's poor construction it could easily burst at any moment. The header tanks are made from 1.2mm flat brass sheet, folded into a box with no stiffening ribs, the corners are folded and soldered, they rely on the solder to fill gaps, also there are a number of cuts in the lower tube plate which have been soldered up, they have been leaking, add to that, before I got the car the water pump has tried to drill a hole through the centre of the radiator, I have repaired it pretty well but far from perfect. Murphy's law states if it can go wrong, it will and at the worst possible time. Murphy is often right.

From day one I have intended to re-core or replace the radiator, bearing in mind the engine is a Rover 3500 V8, replacement with new is very expensive, the small size of the aperture excludes most commercially available radiators with sufficient capacity, so I am finding myself looking for a bastard solution.

Thanks for your input René, it helps me focus on the issue at hand.

[8 Valve Ed]

Robin, Thanks for the info.

I called at my local breakers yard this morning, I know they have some BMW cars in, I was directed to the BMW corner and it was suggested I was looking for a 3 series car. There was a 325 complete with radiator, not like the one you pointed me to at the Aaron site but the core size seemed about right.

I remembered from my previous search of their radiator store that the rad in the 325 looked very similar to one I had seen in the store, so I went to find it. They charge £10 per Radiator.



I have bought the rad from the store and have easily pulled the left hand header tank from the radiator, this header incorporates an expansion tank. My plan is to go back when it's fine and get the other rad off the 325, if they both match exactly, which I think they will, I will buy that one and use the best core with both right hand header tanks.

That will then mount vertically and should fit perfectly, according to my measurements. I will then HAVE to install an expansion tank, which I have already started to make from stainless.

Today I acquired a new cylinder of Argon gas, so I will soon be able to weld the stainless tank together myself, and other stuff!

If this works, and I see no reason why it shouldn't, it will provide a good means of making a simple and effective radiator, even if you use a new one, it's very easy to get the tanks off by prizing the crimped tags back. They just need gentle straightening and then crimping up again on a fresh header tank.

The measurements are:

Height, including the two small header tanks, 570mm - (22.5 inches)

Width, including the plastic side protection pieces, 470mm - (19 inches)

Core thickness, about 38mm - 40mm?

Tank thickness, about 60mm

The core area is about 440mm by 440mm.

The radiator I got today has a fin spacing of 1mm and 15mm spacing of the tubes which are staggered.

The radiator I have is dated November 1997 and is marked as having come from a 320.





This is the rad with the header tank removed.



By the way... it's exactly 2 years since I collected the Berlinetta from it's PO. A lot of water has gone under that bridge since then.

# 9,255

[MartinClan]

That looks like a later one. Looks like its in very good condition!
Mine is from an earlier E30 (Pre face lift?) and has a seperate header tank.

Must have a picture somewhere.... Aha - and yer tiz



You can see that it is partly obscured by both the oil cooler and bottom chassis rail but still does the job.

Cheers, Robin

[8 Valve Ed]

Ah! Thank you Robin, that confirms my concern about that radiator, I don't think I would have room for the hoses to enter the radiator connections without fabricating metal ones with 'O' ring connections or similar, there is very little room either side of the radiator, probably less than an inch, so I don't think I could easily use that one.

Another option is that I have found, now I have removed the header with the tank, that the connections from the header to the expansion tank are small bore. It's possible I could plug them and possibly use one as a bleed back to my new stainless expansion tank, or as a drain point. That would mean I could possibly use the other rad by modding the header without actually removing it.

The core seems in very nice condition, there is some handling damage, a small patch of fins have been flattened but I am sure they can be straightened well enough. The other radiator which is still in the car looks 100% good, so if I can figure how to remove that in the awkward conditions of the breakers yard, I think I am on a winner, with backup.

[GreatOldOne]

If I recall correctly, the Marlin supplied sportster rad is actually a 316 / 318 spec unit for the M10 series engine:



Nissens Part Number : 60678
Material : Plastic/Copper
Product Height (mm) : 350
Product Width (mm) : 443
Product Thickness (mm) : 33
Replaces O.E Part Number : 1.151.700 1711.1.151.700

(Details nicked from an Aussie eBay item, but as Nissens is a UK company the product number should be ok - but just in case it's an E30 316i, '87-'94, Manual, No A/C)

[NigelB]

I used the Marlin recommended radiator and yes, it is from the 316 /318 M10 engine cars (E30s I believe)

I had a 'full house' of louvres around the bonnet and the cooling was marginal (M50 325i engine). The engine ran at a constant 95-98 degrees, kept under control by the thermostatic fan, but I was always a bit wary about taking the car very far in 25degree + temperatures.

I have now fitted a rad from a MK1/2 ford Escort. It's the right size with a 42mm core but I had it modified to suit my pipe runs. Not sure whether it would suit your set up in its standard form or whether 42mm is the standard core thickness, but perhaps it's another option.

And the coolant temp never goes much above 85 degrees, even in last weeks (was it 2 weeks ago??) 37C!!

Nigel

[MartinClan]

Originally Posted by GreatOldOne

If I recall correctly, the Marlin supplied sportster rad is actually a 316 / 318 spec unit for the M10 series engine:


Nissens Part Number : 60678
Material : Plastic/Copper
Product Height (mm) : 350
Product Width (mm) : 443
Product Thickness (mm) : 33
Replaces O.E Part Number : 1.151.700 1711.1.151.700

(Details nicked from an Aussie eBay item, but as Nissens is a UK company the product number should be ok - but just in case it's an E30 316i, '87-'94, Manual, No A/C)

Good job I used a 325 rad then :-)