Cool!

After a lot of research I have found a standard off the shelf radiator to replace the leaky old one I had. The old radiator had a 308 by 570 matrix, the new 377 by 628, the new one is almost 10% bigger, and only has one in and out, unlike the old one that had 4 (breather, overflow and in and out).

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As you can see in this photo it is significantly bigger and at a tad over £40 a steal! While fitting it today if have made all the brackets but also changed the cooling fans to work in series at stage one and parallel at stage two. By doing this the fans are quieter and more likely to last longer. The old air guide I had made in front of the radiator has been removed, but I’m building a full four sided guide that should work significantly better. If it works I will also do the same for the intercooler on the other side.

I have two hoses I still need, but I’ve bodged it together for now to test, and I should have the new ones in a few days from ASH. I’m also looking at a type two Renault 5 overflow tank which has two in/outs and an overflow meaning I can plumb it in using the heater matrix take offs at the back of the block, which has the added benefit of helping me fill the block with coolant without air locks.

The front cycle wings are still off as I need to prevent the stress fractures from getting worse. The small cracks in the gel coat are because of air turbulence over the indicators causing the front edge of the cycle wing to oscillate. I’ve had this before and hopefully a simple aluminium reinforcement under the cycle wing should suffice.