Big Bird WS6

iTrader: (9)

ok a few guys have over heated and stuff with there APS f-body,

and i would love to buy the complete BeCool kit(like barnet did)

but will the LT1 radiator work for now? just to get me by. or what if i buy the BeCool radiator and use my stock fns and stuff?

thanks
Big Bird

calongo_SS

iTrader: (7)

I will be trying a LT1 radiator when it starts warming up again. It's worth a shot for <$150 vs ~$700 for the aftermarket stuff.
I'm pretty sure someone on here tried it but I haven't heard any results.

SStolen

iTrader: (22)

I have an LT1 radiator. Sure beats spending $400-700 on a be-cool and others. I got it brand new last summer for $137 shipped before the price of metal went up. I think it's $165 now. I had to buy three radiators before I got the right one. I bought a 95 LT1 radiator everytime but everyone retrofits the LS1 in its place now. I bought it the first time not even thinking it would be different. The second time I asked them to meaure first, they said they did, but it was still wrong. The third time I switched company's and got it from Radiator Avenue. They had it in stock, they checked the size for me first, they were absolutely great to deal with, it shipped fast, and they had the best price- go figure.

Fyi, you'll have to cut a notch out of the top of the radiator to make it clear the intercooler. Only takes two minutes with a cutoff saw.

I didnt run it until fall so the hottest it got outside was maybe 85*. My temp's pretty much stayed in the high 160's/low 170's all the time. I'm not anticipating any problems this summer but I don't make a habit of driving my car in 100+ degree heat anyway. I know some of you Texas boys don't have a choice though. I think this and some water wetter will hold the temps down just fine.

Btw, I know some people ran aftermarket radiators with the APS kit but I really don't see how they fit. I had a hard enough time getting the LT1 in there and its only a half inch bigger at 1.43"

Big Bird WS6

iTrader: (9)

^ ^ ^ ^ can you post up pics of the cut you are taking about?

MY99TAWS6

iTrader: (3)

Where you live don't see much problem. I didn't see much where I live in the few weeks that did have the kit running but it wasn't the hottest part of summer either.
There are a couple other things you can do. Edelbrock makes a high flo water pump and seen similar ones on ebay.Would also add water wetter even to normal 50/50 mix of antifreeze should still take things down a bit. And run 160 stat and set fans to come on all the time or at least come on at lower temps than stock. With the above maybe can get by without changing radiator. I was interested in that ron davis rad if it works but if the lt1 barely fits then doubt the ron davis would. Maybe someone will get one in there and show us how its done.

calongo_SS

iTrader: (7)

I've tried water wetter, fan settings, 160 stat, the car still ran pretty hot down here in the Texas heat.

MY99TAWS6

iTrader: (3)

Ok..that high flow water pump could help but an lt1 rad might be good idea of course too.
Are you 100% sure you took out the intercooler protective packing cardboard between condenser and intercooler. It would be fairly easy to leave it in there. And did you follow the aps instructions and cut the cathedral shaped holes under the car which allow airlow.

calongo_SS

iTrader: (7)

It would be easy for a retard to leave big cardboard sheets covering the intercooler. I am not a retard. You'd have to really be in lala land to leave that on there.
Yes I cut the holes like the directions say to.

The car has never actually boiled over, it just runs a little on the hot side.

MY99TAWS6

iTrader: (3)

Actually the inner cardboard between the intercooler and condenser could be forgotten as it says in instructions to keep something in front of condenser when fitting the intercooler to protect it. The outer cardboard of course is much easier to notice if its still on there. Not trying to say you are stupid just throwing out ideas for you.

Darren P

iTrader: (1)

maybe that is why everyone that has this kit and lives in a warmer area has overheating problems. I think that I will run out and check mine right now to make sure.

MY99TAWS6

iTrader: (3)

Darren again sorry if you think I am throwing out the obvious but it would be possible to leave that inner cardboard in. A year or so back my car started overheating badly in not even that warm a weather. After a lot of grief the cause turned out to be a plastic grocery bag had been sucked up there and blocked airflow.It didn't take much.

Now it said in the aps manual a bigger rad or whatever might be necessary.
I also said that don't yet have experience with really high temps and won't till summer.
I am fortunate that dont' have to drive the car as its not daily driver but will take steps to insure it don't overheat if see it starts to.
One tip and again its more an emergency tip is to run your heater full blast, this can keep boilover away and temps down but of course is not a permanent solution but it has saved me with some of my cars in the past.
Also good idea to have a manual fan override switch maybe so can force the fans on if necessary.

exodus

iTrader: (15)

Manual fan switches are good, but if the pcm and thermostatic switches for the fans are working properly the switches wont make much of a difference as both of the fans should be running anyway if the temp is past the setpoints for the second fan.

myfast70

iTrader: (38)

Have any of you guys ever tried RMI-25? All of the local GN guys run it and never have overheating problems here in the Az heat. I run it in all of my cars without a single problem. The best thing about it is that if you ever end up pushing water into your oil it WILL NOT screw up the bearings or corrode like anti-freeze will. I found that one out when I bought my GN with a bad head gasket. The oil was full of water and everything looked flawless!! I will never run a car without it again.

calongo_SS

iTrader: (7)

Is it basically the same thing as water wetter? I've been running that.

TNTramair

iTrader: (15)

I havent had a chance to run it during the summer as of yet but since ive had mine on the road since sept, ive only had one issue with it overheating and that was due to it needing somemore bleeding of the coolant system. since than, i havent had any issues. it does run a little hotter than it did before obviously but hasnt overheated.
i guess ill have to check into an Lt1 radiator if i have issues come summer.

myfast70

iTrader: (38)

No, not really. I don't know the actual dynamics of it but I do know it works out here in Az which means it should work in most parts of the country. Itconditions that whole system at the same time. Just click the RMI link in my post and see what you think. I was pretty surprised when I an all out GN stage 2 car running 8's in the Phx heat at only 165* water temp after the run.

nastysupaspt

iTrader: (3)

I live in south florida and in the dead of summer with the A/C on i had no problems. Could there be air pockets in your coolant system ? I've had that happen to me before

bluehawk2

iTrader: (74)

I have a ron davis radiator and I will install the aps kit within the next couple of months..................I will do whatever I have to to make it work, so I will let everyone know how it turns out.........................that being said, I really don't expect a major problem with it, the Ron Davis fit almost like stock with my D1SC........infact it did fit like stock when I put the factory radiator holdown back on



the ron davis isn't much thicker when you look at the tank section and the section where the radiator hold down attaches

One thing that may help is removing the powersteering cooler and replacing it with a solid rubber hose................the freed up a lot of room between the upper rad hose and the waterpump pulley

Guess I will know either way in a month or so

MY99TAWS6

iTrader: (3)

Very interested in how you get it to fit in there. was thinking the power steering cooler thing would interfere. Please take some pics when you do it especially if you have to modify anything.

OneMean01

iTrader: (6)

we put my big BeCool in the car. It was a pain to get in there and barely fits but it fits. We had to shorten some lines and the power steering cool barely clears the fans and the pulleys but it works. We also had to modify the brackets that hold the radiator in but we made it work. Will try and get pics up, now have over 1000 miles on the car and ran it on some hot days and never got up to 190degrees.