new/old radiator? (1 Viewer)

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Feb 25, 2003
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Whats everyones experience with some of the new OEM replacement radiators? I'm looking at one for an FJ60. It says that its got copper and brass 'top quality' innards, but I've read a couple of posts from people who've had trouble with aftermarket radiators. Its a good price, slighlty more than getting a radiator refurbed at a shop. Any opinions on cleaning up the old one vs. buying new?

If the former, can anyone recommend a shop (expected service and price) in the Denver area?

Thanks a bunch
 
I replaced mine with an aftermarket radiator and so far no problems. Fit and finish was really good. I can't recall who the manufacturer is.

The bad news is, i forgot to put the shrowd back on -- that goes around the fan to help concentrate the air from the fan to the radiator -- and i haven't done anything about it yet.
 
I got one for my Fj60 from coolcruisers.com $200 good fit and finish and it runs much cooler now. pretty freakin hard install, you SHOULD remove the grill and a.c. condensor, I didn't and it cost me more time :dunno:
 
I couldn't believe it, but www.radiators.com had the exact right radiator for my '71 FJ40. It was $110 including a lifetime warranty and a free cap. Also, I called to ask them how many rows it was. Ended up being 3 (which was what I wanted) but the guy said that if I ordered it over the phone with him right then that he would ship it for free. Sure enough, got it a few days later, fit perfect, great quality, and only $110. IMO, it was a no brainer!

Also, it was REAL easy to install in my 40!
 
A few years ago I had my factory Radiator recored by a local shop at that time he made it a 4 core and added three pass. Three pass forces the waterto go down up down before exiting back to the motor this will increase cooling significantly and a great alternative for those of you with borderline cooling issues. Unfortunatly I recently sprung a leak (twisted the Radiator to many times) and was still having cooling issues with my FJ40 so I have finally sprung for a becool raditor hoping this will fix any heat problems I may have now and in the future. The cheapest I found the becool was through www.carradiator.com you can't order these online so you will have to call and talk to the tech guys and mention becool it takes a little longer but $540 was almost $100 less than anything else I had found.
 
I purchased a BeCool Aluminum radiator for my FJ-40 (Chevy 350 powered) over two years ago. I don't know if it was the same radiator you received or not. Mine actually was made for a 55-57 Chevy, so I had to make serious modifications to get it into my Cruiser. Nonetheless, it is the radiator that BeCool said was being sold for FJ-40s with 350 engines. They knew I was heavy into 4-wheeling.

The good news is that this radiator does a remarkable job of cooling. The bad news (for me), is that my radiator failed after two years. I mention this only so that you will be aware of a potential failure area. It failed at both lower corners where the sides are welded to the lower tank. The 1/16" thick aluminum sides cracked (due to fatigue) and left the lower tank hanging by the tubes. Finally, one tube fatigued where it was welded to the lower tank, and that is when I noticed the leakage and all the fatigue cracks.

I sent the radiator back to BeCool for inspection/repairs. BeCool sent me another radiator. I thought that was very fair of them.

When I received the new radiator, I mounted everything in rubber. Only time will tell if this has made a long-lasting difference in reliability. One thing is for certain........if this one fails prematurely, I will be going back with a conventional copper/brass radiator mounted in the original U channel that the Cruiser cam with. I'm not convinced that thin aluminum can take the punishment (twisting and flexing) that I'm giving it.

Best of luck with yours........

Tazman
 
One more vote for radiators.com - that's where I got my replacement. From what I read, the factory rad is pretty weak, and I wanted new one not associated with the Toyota org. It fit perfect, the service was good, I haven't had any problems with it and it was only $110 (and free shipping/lifetime warranty) - I wish that everything else had been as easy.
 

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