What aftermarket radiator is the easiest to install for a DIY? I want to install it myself, but have never done a radiator install. I know that some of the aftermarket radiators require cutting the chassis with a dremmel and so forth. Is there a "drop-in" radiator?

 

fluidyne. I had no probs... dropped right in

 

They are all drop-in style radiators. I have a Koyo which is no different then any of the others. I had no problems putting it in. The benefit of the Koyo is it has a huge core.

 

KOYO all the way

 

So with the Fluidyne and the Koyo both it's just:
Drain rad
remove hoses
remove bolts and rad
drop in new rad
replace bolts
new hoses
rad fluid
done?

 

yep

 

Most 3rd gen owners choose a Fluidyne or Koyo when upgrading. The Koyo has a larger capacity. The Fluidyne fits better. I went with Fluidyne because fitment was a priority. Many Koyo owners have to change some things to get it to fit right.

 

No.

Nothing on this car is as simple as that. It's been a while since I did mine. As I recall, you have to remove the intake, intercooler, and maybe the battery on top. On the bottom, you have to remove the belly pan, and some AC stuff. Maybe loosen the sway bar. I recommend that you remove the radiator from the bottom of the car. The Factory manual does it that way. From the bottom, you won't have to bend the AC lines to the dryer/evaporator canister.

 

fluidyne

 

i just did mine, and did it from the top. Didn't have to jack the car or remove the belly pan. If you have a pump to drain the coolant from the top...that is the easiest way to do it. Total time of install was 2.5 hours. I did have to bend the AC lines, but they bent pretty easily, and it saved a lot of headache. And the AC blows as cold as ever, so no harm was done.

 

fluidyne all the way

 

Koyo is cheaper and bigger, why do you guys suggest Fluidyne?

 

I had the dealer install mine and was told if there were any fitment issues they would charge me more. Afterwards they said the fitment was exactly the same as stock.

I've never heard of Fluidyne fitment issues.

Some guys can install the Koyo with only turning the brackets but others said it was a major pita.

Don't forget you will need to get rid of the air in the system afterwards!

 

Fluidyne fits better.

 

Don't mean to contradict you but its way easier from the top.

The AC condensor is below the radiator and has to be moved if you want to bring it out below. I assume you could loosen the sway bar and slide the radiator out that way, but that is a lot more work.

Once you get the fans out the radiator comes right out from the top.

 

Easiest is stock.

Fluidyne fits better if you have SMIC like an M2 and M2 airbox.
Koyo is better for FMIC.

 

I actually did mine from the top, and it was a pain in the ***. My friend Greg followed the factory workshop manual, and removed his from the bottom. He said that it came right out. No problems. I didn't like the top removal due to having to bend the AC lines. If I did it again, I would go from the bottom. Bending those lines more than once increases the chance of breaking them, which would be very expensive to repair.

 

Bend the AC lines? Pump the coolant from the top?

If you pull it from the bottom you can simply loosen the brackets that hold the AC lines in place and suspend them with some wire ties. There is also a rather obvious drain plug in the middle of the radiator.

 

just what i needed ive been looking for a new radiator, but does anyone know if they are available in Australia?, i dont want to go through the trouble of getting one imported.

 

Just get a PWR, those are made in Australia, I believe. Or at least, it's an Australian company.

 

Some people don't have a lift they can go put their car on. Or feel like crawling underneath a car on the jacks that came with the car. I did mine out in the parking lot in front of my apt., and doing it from the top made a whole lot more sense to me than doing it from the bottom. And yes jackass, I know there is a drain plug in the middle of the radiator.

 

I removed my stock radiator from the bottom, which was so much easier than when I was trying to remove it from the top. However, I installed my Koyo from the top and that was a breeze because I was also installing my greddy fmic so I already had everything out of the way.

 

If you don't/can't/won't get under your car, how will you change your oil/tranny fluid/rear end fluid/coolant.

No need for immature name calling here.

Adam

 

Don't even waste your time with Mazdacomp or Fluidyne, get the Koyo. Bigger core, and that matters much more than fitment issues.

Fitment issues are minor. If you're modifying your car, learn to deal with these minor issues - otherwise you're just going to be doing bolt-on's like every other joe blow. If you never jump in and deal with problems, it surely won't help your mechanical ability.

 

It's not that I won't or can't...it's that it was easier to do the job from the top. Obviously for the other jobs you just mentioned...it is impossible to do from the top, so i would NEED to do it from the bottom. But if I have a choice between working on the car when it is on the ground...or crawling under it while its on factory jacks...I will pick from the top every time. And it was the rolling eyes icon that kind of pissed me off. It would have been different if he just stated his different opinion...but he had to do it in a sarcastic way. So yes, he is a jackass.

(by the way...with the pump you can remove every ounce of coolant from the top of the car...all you have to do is connect the pump to the small hose that goes to the AST that is on the bottom of the radiator. The pump will pull the fluid from the bottom of the radiator...thus emptying the entire system. So that is how I will change my coolant from the top)