Best Cooling Modifications?

[dftsilvia]

on my s14 w/rb25 i run
oem clutch fan
mishy rad
psm swirl tank
oem 300zx tt t/stat.

crusing on highway, 170*. stop and go 180*. drifting 180-190.

no oem plastics, removed gasket on cowl under the hood. no hood spacers. and i drift with my hood and bumper on.

[Sleepy_Steve]

On my car I've done a couple things.

• Mishi rad, eliminates plastic end tanks.
• Run distilled water w/ water wetter.
• Drilled 2x 1/8" holes in the thermostat to eliminate bubbles in the head.
• If I needed more air flow, I'd run the clutch fan, but I only use the electric fan in traffic now, so I don't need more air flow.

Never gets more than 190 on track even when its 105degrees out... But it is just an NA KA.

Other than the radiator, the best cooling mod I've done has been for the brakes. Removing the dust shields and running 3" ducting to the front rotors has been the best investment I've ever made in my braking system.

[Boost_Fiend]

s13 sr20det
I live in Florida and it was hot as hell this summer. Used to have a problem overheating on the highway, so I revamped my cooling system

Mishimoto Radiatior/ w Fan Shroud
Nismo Thermostat
Water Wetter/ Distilled Water

Never had a problem since. Although, I am running both of my fans on all the times. I need to get a fan controller

[gretz]

320whp, mishimoto rad, no shrouds, clutch fan...

170 - 178 degrees is the most i've seen...

[Chay G]

ebay 2.75 radiator
ebay hoses
nismo thermostat
VW Jetta MK4 Dual Speed Fans
Modified Jetta MK4 shroud
Custom Cooling Plate
97% Coolant
OEM 2011 Shellby GT500 hood vent

i've never seen it over 170° in our summer (110°F )

[boyou2]

egay radiator, 100% coolant, OEM fan and fan shroud, it never goes over 90°C

[Pandapants]

Originally Posted by foxystyle

How much of a difference does a pbm swirl pot make? In temp numbers.

It depends. I've read a user claim a decrease of 10 degrees after installing a coolant breather tank and re routing coolant lines in an rb25/s13. I've seen similar numbers in my rb20/s13 by just eliminating any coolant line above the filler point on the radiator. Either way, it's an affordable reassurance, so why not.

[waxball88]

Originally Posted by !Zar!

KA fans have more blades than a SR as well.

I can't attest to this statement.

But i can say my stock ka clutch and shroud with a thick alum rad stays super cold at all times.

[RurouniMidnight]

remember CANSSS method, as in cansss stay cool.

C lutch Fan
A luminum Radiator
N ismo Thermostat
S tock shroud
S wirl pot to help system stay bled
S amco hoses for cool factor

[pony5oh]

Damn! Some Great Info All!

And Yes...Looks like this has turned into the "Cooling Thread"

So, from what I am hearing I am going to say that I should be fine with my current setup....I dont think my thermostat has been replaced in a while, so I will check that and bleed the system...then go the distilled water/water wetter route.

No crazy scoops or cutouts needed?

[Pinggg]

Koyo Radiator
ISIS Fans And Shroud
ISIS Thermostat
ISIS Hoses.
- Been running these on my car for about a year with about a bunch of trackdays, never once overheated. My car also sounds like a damn hurricane up front from these fans pulling so much air!

[bladetech8]

Does the KA fan assembly even bolt up onto an SR fan clutch?

[s13javier]

oem fan shroud
oem clutch fan
water
water wetter
isis aluminum radiator
isis rad hoses
no front bumper
spaced hood 1 1/2 in.

and my car runs at 140f city highest ive ever seen my car get is 175f on the track on a hot ass day like 91f at florida during the summer.

[RandallSharp]

What about a radiator cooling plate?

[!Zar!]

Originally Posted by s13javier

oem fan shroud
oem clutch fan
water
water wetter
isis aluminum radiator
isis rad hoses
no front bumper
spaced hood 1 1/2 in.

and my car runs at 140f city highest ive ever seen my car get is 175f on the track on a hot ass day like 91f at florida during the summer.

Your car is running too cold if it is just chilling at 140.

Running too cold is just as bad as running too hot.

[Edwin562]

My set up on a stock s13 Ka24de:
-CX Racing Radiator
-OEM Hoses
-OEM t-stat
-Sonic Motor Efans w/ no shroud
-75% Coolant, 20% water, 10% Wet Wetter

average temp: 150-160
hot days:175-185
Cold days: 145-155

Had this set up for about 2 years now. Zero issues, never overheating, tracked twice during the spring.

[dwnshft2drft]

I think it makes a difference. The coolant swirl tank idea came from the subaru's engine cooling system as stock

[usdm180sx]

Originally Posted by Luvs2slide

^ This is the a cooling thread right? Never said nothing about preventative Mx.

Why would you recommend something that would mess up the cooling system in this thread?

[wildkong]

something wrong with ur setup. my efans dont even work and my shiet is nice and cool driving and freeway, unless im on traffic or at a light. ether u need to bleed shiet or u got a cheap radiator..

[usdm180sx]

Originally Posted by RurouniMidnight

remember CANSSS method, as in cansss stay cool.

C lutch Fan
A luminum Radiator
N ismo Thermostat
S tock shroud
S wirl pot to help system stay bled
S amco hoses for cool factor

This is cool haha except I have the dme cooling panel instead of a swirl pot.

[Chaluska]

A luminum Radiator
N issan OEM Thermostat
A ltima electric fans
L ower air duct paneling

as in, Need to be ANAL about staying cool.

[Chaluska]

Originally Posted by wildkong

u need to bleed shiet

fixed...

my car can run without e-fans all day, unless im in stop and go traffic, with NO airflow across the front of the car... once you hit above 30 mph, the air that is being pushed into your radiator is stronger than the fan pulling air through....

[thefro526]

Originally Posted by dwnshft2drft

I think it makes a difference. The coolant swirl tank idea came from the subaru's engine cooling system as stock

Just throwing it out there:

All a swirl tank does is constantly bleed the coolant system. Air in your coolant system dramatically lowers the efficiency of the system (since air carries less thermal energy away than water or coolant) which can lead to over heating or getting weird 'hot spots' from time to time. Most people will notice that their car needs to be bled when the temp gauge will randomly jump by 20*F or more then drop back down once an air bubble has passed the sensor.

Just in case anyone didn't know how a swirl tank works. IMO, it's a worth while investment, especially at $60 or whatever an inexpensive one costs these days.

[CrimsonRockett]

Surprised no one has thrown this up.

[doke! ドリフト]

COPPER RADIATOR...seriously nobody here running one?? Aluminum blows, also a 25 fan and shroud are key

[Chaluska]

if your system has been bled, there shouldn't be anyway any air can get back into the system, i don't understand where you guys are getting that info from. If you are low on coolant.... very low, or have a leaking head gasket, i dont see how air can magically form in the radiator system...

swirl pots / surge tanks are intended for fuel systems, to keep a constant amount of fuel availible for the engine... Thats it...

unless you like wasting money and time on something that is useless...

[Chaluska]

Originally Posted by ry-guy

COPPER RADIATOR...seriously nobody here running one?? Aluminum blows, also a 25 fan and shroud are key

doesnt copper radiators still run the plastic end tanks? that is the weak spot of the radiator.. plus copper will varnish alot quicker than aluminum will corrode..

[doke! ドリフト]

My 3 core does not have plastic end caps, use 50/50 or distilled mixture and not hose water and you'll have no corrosion issues. Doubt you'd ever own it long enough to see any corrosion If you keep a clean system.

[doke! ドリフト]

Stock copper rads have plastic ends maybe that's what your thinking of?

[thefro526]

Originally Posted by Chaluska

if your system has been bled, there shouldn't be anyway any air can get back into the system, i don't understand where you guys are getting that info from. If you are low on coolant.... very low, or have a leaking head gasket, i dont see how air can magically form in the radiator system...

I guess a more appropriate term would be a coolant breather tank. Most people refer to them as swirl tank because of how the coolant swirls in the tank if it's doing it's job.

And yes, you are correct, if a system is perfectly bled, in theory there's no way to get air back into the system, though on the half dozen or so cars that I've had the experience of bleeding the coolant system with, I've never been able to - or seen anyone get 100% of the air out of the system, there's always air in it a few days later. Maybe I and those who I know suck at bleeding coolant systems.

Also, on some engines (Not any Nissan Engine I've encountered though) there's no bleeder valve (1JZ's for sure) or any other easy way to bleed coolant other than doing the funnel/upside down bottle to radiator cap method - which I'm not particularly fond of. A breather tank is just extra insurance and makes the bleeding process easier.