f2racer

iTrader: (1)

Hey folks, just wanted to share. I wound up breaking the plastic nipple on my stock radiator (which connects to the hose that runs to the AST) doing a complete coolant hose replacement on my FD. Was pissed as hell, but what the heck the cars does have 104k original miles on it. Did some research here and on the net and found out that RadiatorWorld.com sells CSF aftermarket radiators (you can pick them up or order them at most speed shops). Some folks here have tried the Copper/Brass ones with good luck, but they require capping 2 nipples as I believe it's actually a radiator for automatics. I was torn between trying one of the CSF radiators and going with a Koyo, but decided after reading some of the fitment issues on this forum regarding the Koyo, to try 1 row core all aluminum CSF radiator. Total cost was $214 to my door. Arrived today (only took 2 days from the days to arrive) and I've gotta say I'm impressed. It's definitely all aluminum and light as hell and the welds look really good. Didn't take measurements, but I'm guessing their site is wrong, it looks to a little bit thicker than stock (according to the site it's 1/16" thinner), so I'm guessing that fitment will be good. I'll be putting it in this weekend. I'll take some comparison shots when I get the stock rad out of the car.

Here are some pics.

widebody2

yeah I bought the same one on ebay....I paid some rediculous amount like 300 bucks. I actually read their ad wrong and thought it was actually thicker than a koyo. It is a bit thicker than stcok though. Fitment is perfect.

ManGaZeRo

iTrader: (1)

hmm.. I am really interested in the brass radiator... Can anyone vouch for it?

f2racer

iTrader: (1)

ManGaZeRo, there's less than a $40 difference between the brass/copper and aluminum... Do you have an automatic? Otherwise I'd go with the aluminum. I don't think brass/copper rads have as good cooling capability as aluminum. In any casee here's the thread I found regarding the brass/copper ones:

https://www.rx7club.com/showthread.p...t=csf+radiator

Mahjik

iTrader: (1)

Actually, brass and copper both have better heat transfer capabilities than aluminum. The problem is the weight of brass and copper which is what makes aluminum more attractive.

DaleClark

iTrader: (55)

Man, that's nice! I've never been a fan of the copper aftermarket radiators - all the 2nd gen aftermarket radiators I've seen cooled OK, but never as well as a good stock radiator.

For $215 it's damn hard to beat.

If it's as good or slightly better than the stocker, I think this would be a good setup for a street car. Dunno how well it would work with serious track duty - probably no worse than the stock radiator.

BTW, they also show a $272 aluminum radiator that's 2 1/6" thick as opposed to 1 1/4" thick, which is the thickness of the $215 radiator. The thicker one would definitely be an upgrade, or at least I'd hope so . The only question I'd have with the thicker one would be fitment.

Anyhow, thanks for the great info! Keep us posted as to how well it works!

Dale

Phantom Driver

o0o..That's a good price. Tell us how it is and give up some temperatures

DamonB

I bet that $200 radiator is only single pass. That doesn't make it junk but it won't cool as much as a double pass will.

ManGaZeRo

iTrader: (1)

Yup, I am a auto. Really rare to see aftermarket radiators that function with the trans cooler. The last competition auto radiator was like at 500, so I was fack that.

jeff48

RadiatorExpress.com has the following and they work great



1994 MAZDA RX-7 - 1.3 liter R2 RADIATOR Name Brand Replacement
More Info...

Our Price: $178.00
List Price: $385.00 Add To Cart

Larger View 1994 MAZDA RX-7 - 1.3 liter R2 RADIATOR All Aluminum Street Racing 1-Row Replacement
More Info...

Our Price: $288.90
List Price: $658.00 Add To Cart

Larger View 1994 MAZDA RX-7 - 1.3 liter R2 RADIATOR All Aluminum Track Racing 2-Row Replacement
More Info...

Our Price: $408.90
List Price: $914.76

f2racer

iTrader: (1)

Yes according to what I said before the $214 rad is the 1 row core all aluminum one, the 2 row core was $278 or something like that. I decided againts the 2 row core version because I didn't want any fitment issues and, my car has never really run all that hot because I've got the fan mod. The radiator is a little bit thicker than the stock one, but not the nearly 2x thick that you get with a Koyo. Cooling capability should be at least as good as stock which is entirely adequate for me (I don't track my car), plus the ease at which I broke that plastic nipple (you can imagine how brittle the plastic ends of the radiator are considering the nipple broke with a light pull), now I've got a little peace of mind to boot.

In any case I'll keep every informed about the fit and performance of the rad.

f2racer

iTrader: (1)

The old radiator came out today. The CSF 1 row core is definitely thicker. Probably by between 5-10mm. It's by no means a Koyo in size, but it should definitely improve temps some (simply due to all the sand/dirt/dust trapped in the stock radiator). The plastic ends are really brittle. I guess 10+ years of cooling a rotary will do that I was a little wary regarding this purchase because most of the discussions here were about Koyo and Fluidyne. Guess I got lucky trying something a little different. So far I'm very happy about the purchase and the $$$ I saved!

Comparison pics below.

f2racer

iTrader: (1)

Mahjik, my mistake, you're absolutely correct. Both brass and copper have better thermal conductivity than aluminum. My computer has an all copper heatsink for exactly this reason. Weight, durability, cost, and resistance to corrosion is probably why you don't see too many aftermarket radiators made out of brass and copper.

Thanks for correcting me, don't want to spread the misinformation.

f2racer

iTrader: (1)

Car's all back together. Fitment was good. Only 2 issues arose. First the brackets are (which are already welded onto the radiator, no need to use the old brackets) were a little bent, likely during shipping and needed to be opened up a bit with a screwdriver (see picture above). Second, since the radiator is at least 5 or so mm thicker than stock, you really need to push the radiator so that it sits as low as possible, otherwise, the IC shroud won't fit. Filled the coolant this morning. 3.3 gallons went in. The workshop manual says that the the stock system has a capacity of 9.3 quarts or 2.3 gallons, so the CSF single row core holds at least 1 gallon more than stock! And I've burped the coolant twice (probably added an additional 1/3 gallon or so). Will take my first drive tomorrow. Will report whether or not I see a difference in temps.

BTW, the stock radiator had foam glued onto the sides, the CSF did not. Should I glue some foam to the sides of the radiator?

Mr rx-7 tt

iTrader: (5)

What's the Fluidyne one or two?

rx7raca

Very good info, I think I know what radiator I'm getting now And it looks damn good too!

f2racer

iTrader: (1)

I believe that most aftermarket aluminum radiators are 2 row core. I do remember a discussion on a Mustang forum in regards to single vs multi row core radiators. To sum it up, I believe that 2 or more row core radiators work better if each row is at least a certain width. Unfortunately I don't remember what the optimal width is, but if each row is narrower than this width, it won't cool any better than a 1 row core radiator. Since the CSF 1 row core radiator is only a little bit larger than stock (as opposed to the 2x sized Koyo), I'm guessing that this is why it's only a 1 row core design (like the stock radiator).

In any case took the car out for a short drive (15 miles or so) for the first time since putting in the radiator. There's definitely some temp improvements. Highway cruising was about the same (180F, gotta figure that's pretty much what all radiators would do since that's about the temp of the thermostat), but in stop and go the temps didn't exceed 200F, never turned the fans on once (I've got the fan mod and usually watch the temps to turn the fans on at 210F, which used to happen a little too frequently with the stock radiator).

So far I'm very happy with the radiator and would definitely recommend it for anybody who's still mostly stock.

KaiFD3S

iTrader: (37)

looks like a good deal...

fd3s_rx7

iTrader: (13)

good info... I will be getting mine later this month.

f2racer

iTrader: (1)

OK, just a quick update. I've put about 250 miles on my car over the last 3 days (yes a 36 mile one-way commute will rack up the miles quick) since the cars been back together and I've only turned on the fans once, which incidently was while I was adjusting the idle (took a while longer than I had anticipated ). Temps on the highway float at or a little above 180F. Which was exactly what the car did with the stock (11 year old) radiator. But in stop-and-go / bumper-to-bumper traffic (which I was in for nearly 15 miles this morning on 495), temps never exceeded 210F, and the temps start to decrease the moment you get over 15 or so mph. In similar traffic (with the old stock rad), I used to have to turn the fans on to keep temps under 210F. BTW, I'm using a 60/40 distilled-water/antifreeze mix for anyone who may be wondering. I know I'd get better cooling from just water + water wetter (I've run it before in the summers, but even still would require turning on the fans in stop-and-go traffic), but with winter right around the corner... Just too lazy to change the coolant in another month or so.

So there's definitely some cooling improvement, not what you'd see with a Koyo/Fluidyne/PWR, but probably better than if I'd put in a new stock radiator.

I'm attaching some pics of the rad fit, which is very very close to stock.

rx7raca

I think this radiator would be good with vmount for fitment reasons and also it cools pretty well. I dont think the koyo is really any better unless its with a fmic. Just my opion though.

180sx-x

nice...im getting a Knight Racing radiator since ive heard some good things about it...any one have info on this companies rad?

chemicool

iTrader: (1)

Listen up folks. As far as radiators go, don't anyone buy the radiator from "Cool Radiators" on Ebay. They sold me this radiator for 315 dollars that was supposed to be "bolt on", "direct fit", etc. No modifications needed. BULLSHIT! The thing is too wide, too thick to fit the factory mounts for the A/C radiator, etc. *************! Spread the word.

scotty305

iTrader: (2)

Bump for a good thread, and I compiled some info about core thicknesses as well:


1.000" core: OEM Mazda 93-98 Radiator
1.100" core: OEM Mazda 99-02 Radiator

1.125" : Mazdaspeed Radiator (AWR / Ron Davis)
1.250" : CSF aluminum one-row
1.500" : Fluidyne (probably one row, due to thickness?)
2.047" : Koyo Racing (two row?)
2.062" : CSF two-row


Personally, I'm planning to buy this one-row CSF, because of the price and fitment.

-s-

M104-AMG

iTrader: (8)

If I'm going to run a thick SMIC, like the SR Motorsports, would I best served with the 1.25" CSF or the Koyo Racing N-Flow ?

Yes, I track-day the car (30-minute sessions in 90-100F w/80%+ humidity), and I have a dual oil-cooler setup.

I haven't overheated, but it will get to 230-F and I'm on a brass/copper one.

Thanks,
:-) neil