Aggiesdm
***** Regular
Regardless, the one I got was a cheap piece of junk, albeit not OEM.
92 Radiator Purgatory (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter LetUsHoldFast
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Regardless, the one I got was a cheap piece of junk, albeit not OEM.
You buy cheap you buy twice.
- Thread starter
- #23
After no luck searching high and low on here in the classifieds and on Ebay for a used OEM, I finally pulled the trigger on a Shepherd all aluminum 3 row radiator, for $144, plus $20 shipping. I really wanted a 3 row, and couldn't find any Sillas for a 91-92 that were 3 row. So if this radiator ends up junk, I guess I'm only out $160, and not $300+/- for a Silla. The Shepherd does have a lifetime warranty, which gives me a little more piece of mind. When than arrives, I'll try to take detailed pics of the process, since I've read that some adjustments have to be made with the Shepherd to get the fan shroud to attach correctly.
I took my OEM into the local radiator guy (comes highly recommended by my Toyota guy I trust). The bottom tank had "rounded" due to heat over the years, so that it wasn't sealing correctly along the bottom seal on the DS corner. He tried to re-crimp the seal, stating that this would by no means be a permanent fix, but as soon as he did that, the seal starting leaking along the seem toward the PS corner. So it looks like I'm out of luck with patching my OEM.
Does any know if the guts in the OEM might be useful to anyone else who rebuilds radiators, or should I just send it to the scrap yard?
I took my OEM into the local radiator guy (comes highly recommended by my Toyota guy I trust). The bottom tank had "rounded" due to heat over the years, so that it wasn't sealing correctly along the bottom seal on the DS corner. He tried to re-crimp the seal, stating that this would by no means be a permanent fix, but as soon as he did that, the seal starting leaking along the seem toward the PS corner. So it looks like I'm out of luck with patching my OEM.
Does any know if the guts in the OEM might be useful to anyone else who rebuilds radiators, or should I just send it to the scrap yard?
The Radiator I received from Shepherd came in a Silla box. It's a three row. Your fan shroud should bolt right up since it's a 92. For the 1FZFE you need to modify the shroud.
Dan
Dan
- Thread starter
- #25
I just figured I'd let everyone know how the new radiator install went (Since I'm sure no one has slept since I've posted anything over a month ago). I went with the Shepherd, which like @Darne stated previously, came in a Silla box. I've had horrible luck with items damaged in shipment, so I was nervous about getting a something as breakable as a radiator in the mail. Everything looked fine while unboxing.
All the welds and everything looked good on it. It came with new hardware for mounting and for all hose connections. But I was a little worried when I pulled it out of the box and saw that it was slightly not square when stood upright...
BUT then my little helper assessed the situation and assured me that we could make it work...
All the welds and everything looked good on it. It came with new hardware for mounting and for all hose connections. But I was a little worried when I pulled it out of the box and saw that it was slightly not square when stood upright...
BUT then my little helper assessed the situation and assured me that we could make it work...
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- Thread starter
- #26
The radiator fit in there perfectly, but I did have to do a little "customization" to make it stay in there. It came with mounting brackets already on. The holes at the bottom of the mounting brackets where about 3/8 of an inch off from where the radiator mounts at the bottom. I was going to try using the mounting brackets from my stock rad, but nuts and bolts that mount the brackets on the Shepherd are welded together, so that guy wasn't coming off. The bolts on the Shepherd bracket were plenty long enough, so I just put a couple washers on each bolt to give my the length I needed.
EDIT: I forgot to add that the tabs on Shepherd to mount the shroud to were also about 3/8 of an inch too far apart, so I also had to drill those out a little. So all in all, it was pretty much a direct fit, with no major tweaks to get everything lined up.
Hopefully this will help anyone else who is considering one of these and, like me, doesn't have much experience and wants to know exactly what they're getting into before they jump in.
EDIT: I forgot to add that the tabs on Shepherd to mount the shroud to were also about 3/8 of an inch too far apart, so I also had to drill those out a little. So all in all, it was pretty much a direct fit, with no major tweaks to get everything lined up.
Hopefully this will help anyone else who is considering one of these and, like me, doesn't have much experience and wants to know exactly what they're getting into before they jump in.
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- Thread starter
- #27
Here it is all put together. I've been driving it for a couple weeks now. It's been warming up now, and my temp gauge has stayed exactly where it was with my OEM radiator - just a hair below the halfway point on the gauge. The top of the Shepherd doesn't have any sort of bracket to keep the line to the coolant reservoir in place, but my line was just the right length so it stays pretty taut simply laying there on the top of the rad.
Hopefully this thing lasts a while. Time will tell...
I also picked up my very first mod (at least not out of necessity). I now have actual cupholders! I was sick of spilling my coffee on my central console every other day, so I dropped $6 on this little gem. And the guy at the parts store said that it should add around 12 HP AND increase my mileage by about 1.5mpg. That sounded kind of fishy, but the guy had on a name tag and everything, so who am I to question a professional? I used the existing screw hole at the bottom of the original "cup/storage thingy" on the DS of the console, and just put a bolt through the top to give it some stability. I was hoping for it to be flush with th back of the console, but couldn't due to the parking brake. I mounted it as far forward as I could, and then made a notch so I can deploy my parking brake all the way. So it sticks out about an inch past the rear of the console. But hey - No more spilled coffee now! I'll have to wait and see what sort of impact it has on my gas mileage...
Hopefully this thing lasts a while. Time will tell...
I also picked up my very first mod (at least not out of necessity). I now have actual cupholders! I was sick of spilling my coffee on my central console every other day, so I dropped $6 on this little gem. And the guy at the parts store said that it should add around 12 HP AND increase my mileage by about 1.5mpg. That sounded kind of fishy, but the guy had on a name tag and everything, so who am I to question a professional? I used the existing screw hole at the bottom of the original "cup/storage thingy" on the DS of the console, and just put a bolt through the top to give it some stability. I was hoping for it to be flush with th back of the console, but couldn't due to the parking brake. I mounted it as far forward as I could, and then made a notch so I can deploy my parking brake all the way. So it sticks out about an inch past the rear of the console. But hey - No more spilled coffee now! I'll have to wait and see what sort of impact it has on my gas mileage...
The build quality/ welds on that thing looks horrible. Did you use toyota coolant? Don't burn yourself by accidentally laying your arm or hand on top of that thing. You should have just got a koyo.
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- #29
Believe me, once I found out that I wouldn't be able to get my hands on an OEM, Koyo was my next option. After a week of scouring the Interwebs any chance I could, I came to the sad realization that Koyo must currently only makes rads for 93s and on, since I had zero luck on any sight for a Koyo for the 91-92 3FE.
As far as coolant goes, it had green in it when I bought it last Fall. I drove it all the way from Houston to Tulsa with no overheating issues. So I just refilled with green. I still haven't gotten around to a complete tune up yet. When I get to that in the coming month or two (waiting on tax return $ so I can do everything all at once), I plan on flushing the entire system out (I didn't flush the coolant out of the block this time around), while I'm in there doing everything else.
And right you are about that puppy getting hot to the touch! I have an old thick blanket that I've cut up into smaller strips and will keep that in the back to lay over the rad in case I need to do anything while it's still hot.
I used a CSF on my 1991. Same experience - just like OEM including the price.
