Vintage air/radiator & condenser fit

[candidochris]

Hello - I’m in the process of putting a vintage air system in my 79 FJ40.

I’m having a little trouble with the radiator being too close to the clutch fan. I tweaked the bolts where the rad support attaches which gives me enough room to move it so the condenser is against the front bib.

My questions are - should the condenser actually be touching the front bib panel?

Also, is there a secret to getting the rad support rods right? They make it impossible to get things lined up - I was wondering if there is a trick like adding threads or fabbing something up. I elongated the DS bolt hole which helped but it still feels like it’s more complicated than it needs to be.

Thanks!

Chris

 

[charliemeyer007]

If it rubs, then at some point it will rub a hole. Maybe a plastic shim. that you replace every so often. Never had issues with my 72's radiator going in or out during the 3 times I have pulled and put it back.

 

[candidochris]

If it rubs, then at some point it will rub a hole. Maybe a plastic shim. that you replace every so often. Never had issues with my 72's radiator going in or out during the 3 times I have pulled and put it back.

Got it - that’s what I was thinking. On a stock FJ40 is there a gap between the radiator support and the front bib? On mine the support was touching the bib but it had an AC system (that I’m replacing with the VA). The rad support rods were bent up so I chased down proper ones.

 

[jlizar]

Since I changed the engine, radiator, and added Vintage Air A/C, we cut a bit of the lip to create some extra clearance to avoid any issues with the condenser.