I may be needing a new radiator here soon, and the guys at my local NAPA said they can sell me a brand new Modine radiator for my 87 N/A for about $180. Is Modine a good brand? I know J-Rat has one, but he's also got 3 fans set up in there. My plan, if I get a new radiator, is to also get an appropriate electric fan and put it in front of the radiator so it pushes air in while the mechanical fan pulls air from behind.

Any thoughts on this? Anyone know if this will work?

 

i don't think you will need 2 fans just 1 16" perma cool sucking air from behind and dump the stock one

 

$180?!?!? ****!! I paid 240 for mine...!

DAMN...!!

Soul, you need to get me an aluminum one..

 

I am currently thinking of ditching the 3 fans for a Black Magic, or a flex fan....Dunno yet. Ive heard some bad stuff about the Perma-cools..

rat

 

my perma cool lasted me close to 3years before it crapped out, but for the price ya can't beat em and they pull alot more air (cfm) then the black magic plastic crap. plus if someone owes you money or something you can shove there hand in the perma cool one and chop a finger a day off till they pay ya

 

Yeah Rat, the whole reason I perked up when Napa mentioned Modine was because I read about your success with it. Do the Modines hold more coolant than the stock radiator? Is there more than one type that Modine makes for the RX-7? And the $180 is their "preferred customer discount". Apparently the list price is somewhat higher.

So bottom line, Modine is a good brand of radiator? $180 is a good price for one?

Oh yeah, it comes with a lifetime warranty against everything - breakage, normal wear and tear, leakage, what the hell ever. It's covered. It seems like a good deal to me, but I've never bought a radiator before so I wanted to get some more input before making that my primary choice in the event I need one.

 

I like mine...It runs cool, has a lifetime warranty. No, its not an alminum Fuidyne, but I am not makine NEAR the hourspower that would require one. And 180 seems like a steal considering I paid 240 for mine (still pissed about that). Its an all metal construction, so the top of the radiator isnt plastic like the one that Mazda makes. So, I like it..
Rat

 

I think I'm going to keep the mechanical fan. I've heard from plenty of people that it does just fine. But I want to add an electric fan so it cools even more. Rat, you read my proposed set-up for if I get a Modine, what do you think? When brand of electric fan do you think would work?

 

Do you have AC? cause if you do, you arent gonna be putting a pusher on the radiator. There isnt space between the condensor and the radiator. If you are going for supplemental cooling, and your stock fan is working, there is no reason to get anything fancy, any old fan from a parts store will give you an additional 1000 CFM if you need it. Chances are, if you get a new radiator, you wont need it very often, if at all. With the Modine, at highway speeds, I shut my fans down..Temps dont move. Highest temps I have seen so far was in a drive through for 15 mins, with my A/C running on a 110 deg day. I almost hit the halfway point.

Rat

 

I do have AC. It's nonfunctional at the present, the compressor is shot. I will be resurrecting it one day though.

Does the Modine hold more coolant than a stock radiator?

So are you saying that having an electric fan behind the radiator pulling air through would be able add its flow to that of the stock fan? 2 fans pulling works as well as one pushing and one pulling? I know that it doesn't really matter at highway speeds, but in town I would want that benefit.

 

Okay...I am getting confused... I have 2 small fans that are pushing on the Condensor. All this really benefits is the condensor and the top part of the radiator. And the one main fan, pulling. HOWEVER, I am seeing alot of drain off of the alternator, to the point that I think that the battery is not getting charged (the main fan pulls 11.7 amps, and each 8 inch pulls 5.4 amps). SO, I am going to probably ditch the 3 fan setup, for a single Perma-cool, and ditch the other two fans. Then I am going to have my alternator custom re-wired for 80-100 amps. What does this mean to you? If you keep your stock fan in the bay, you could run the 2 smaller fans on the condensor for help in town traffic (the condensor blocks the radiator). But only use them in traffic.

As far as the capacity of the Modine, I honestly couldnt say... I just fill them to they are full.. If I remember it was about 2 and 1/4 of the big jugs of prestone/water. Plus the Hyper Lube additive.

 

What's the hyper lube for?

 

You can rewire alternators to put out more juice? How do you do that?

 

you have to have them rewound.... it isnt a DIY poject....

Jsin <----EDIT :i cant even spel myown nm

 

because he is a horny bastard! he even whacks it while he drives

 

Its a coolant additive, like Redline water wetter or something like that... It just helps the coolant flow better by breaking the surface tension of the water... costs like $6 at the parts store.

 

THATS RIGHT!! Yeah MoJoe, you have to take them to a local shop. In my case its gonna be Tucson Alternators. They can usually rewind them to higher numbers..

Rat

 

Especially when I get to drive your car....

and Im not cleaning up the mess...

 

Haha rat, that was funny

How much does it cost to get something like that done? (rewiring the alternater)

Should any alternator shop be able to do that?

 

BTW, how do you test a stock mechanical cooling fan? I just bought one online, and it got here today, so it's definitely cold, but there's some sizable resitance to turning it. Is it supposed to do that?

 

Honestly I have never done it before, but my guess is 80-100 dollars. Any reputable alternator shop should be able to do it. I was gonna get an S5 alternator, but its almost as expensive to have mine re-wound, and mine will put out more amps.

 

Yes, there should be resistance. And there should CONTINUE be resistance no matter how many times you spin it by hand. My fan would start freewheeling after 5-10 turns.

Rat

Hey, do you have AOL IM or MSM?

 

I don't have either. I don't own a computer so I have to get on from work.

 

Off the subject, but do you know if a t2 tranny would fit a NA? If so, how complex is the conversion? Is there any difference in functionality? Is it more cost effective to just fit NA tranny?