Aftermarket Radiators

[majic79]

So I'm looking at Toyota prices for a radiator and trying not to have a heart attack - for the kind of prices they list I could get one custom made....

Has anyone used the Roughtrax or Milners aftermarket radiators? Are there any alternative upgraded radiators that people would recommend?

I could just bung in an external ATF cooler, but I don't fancy the hassle of also wiring in some sort of cooling fan (so I'll stick with the Toyota design)

 

[AndyCook]

Iv'e been using a roughtrax rad on my collie for last 4 years and its done the job. But these days I use genuine parts when I replace items.

 

[Tommo&Claire]

the gold plated solution is to speak to alli sport and they will make you one for similar to what toyota charge....

 

[AndycruiserguyLomas]

Lincoln Radiators 01522543631 have done my Landcruiser requirements for a while, they re core the old units. Last one I had done was a 80 TD auto 3 core copper unit was about £180, I have recommended them before.

Andy

 

[silvercruiser]

I changed my rad for a milners one when i first got the l/c. it was a brass end cap rad but it had a weep from a soldered joint on the auto trans cooler pipe, so they replaced it no hassle and they sent me one with plastic rad caps that looked identical to the original toyota one i took out so this has been good.

so it all depends where they are getting the rads at the time.

 

[silvercruiser]

the gold plated solution is to speak to alli sport and they will make you one for similar to what toyota charge....

Id love to spend out and have one of these especially as my car is the everyday wagon, but i think it would hurt taking it off road and getting it clogged with mud

 

[fridayman]

Next time I change the rad on my auto, I'm fitting a manual rad and another external transmission cooler (I already have one inline). My viscous fan is always on so I don't think another thermo fan is needed.

 

[majic79]

well, I bit the bullet and bought a rad from Milners - I needed to replace a shock absorber (I think I've got the original Toyota shocks here, they look about 16 years old!) so put it in with the order. Pleasantly surprised when it turned out to be a Koyo radiator - used them before and they have a good reputation, why didn't anyone tell me it's the size of a small house.....

Ordered replacement pipes for the rear heater at the same time, so I'll get all those jobs done at the same time

 

[Chris]

I have posted on here about the Koyo rads before. They looked very good. But you can't always guarantee that's what's in stock. When I was there they'd had a consignment just delivered (about 20) and nearly all of them were being shipped straight out to other parts suppliers in the UK. Milner are a true importer of parts and a wholesaler to the general motor trade. Can't recall how many cores they had though. I think it might have only been 2. Which for most uses is absolutely fine.

 

[Roger Fairclough]

One benefit of a custom rad would be to increase it's thickness to add more coolant and increase fin area.

Roger

 

[majic79]

My main concern at the moment is to keep it useable - money's a bit tight at the moment, so I'm just keeping it roadworthy and sorting out all the niggles. Once they're sorted, I'll be looking at power and economy primarily, I'll keep it on conventional AT's and only use it on mild offroad stuff. I've no plans to lift the susp/body, but I would like to make it more utilitarian - so winch, working lights, awning etc make more sense to me and then uprate suspension to match it

 

[Chris]

The Koyo rad will be fine. The 80 runs pretty cool really, it's a huge rad and even blocked with mud I don't have a problem. Custom stuff and clever bits aren't necessary here. Racing through the desert might be a different matter. But new stat, new rad and new coolant and you'll be good for years. I have removed my air con rad (condenser) so that there is a clear line to my rad. That way it's easier to wash out when I have been off road. I just need to put the roller blind back in somehow to use when wading. One thing that is very noticable is the power drop when the rad is blocked. The fan and consequesntly the engine has to work super hard to pull air through the rad. Mine was almost completely solid. I washed it out and put it back on and it was like someone had turned up the turbo. It went with a right 'woof' after that.

Chris

 

[geo-smc]

Bad news from me on the external oil cooler,i fitted an external cooler about a month ago.
Last night when i was coming up the M6 towing a trailer with a Land Rover discovery on it the transmition oil warning light came on.
this has never happened before and it was at night ,so its wasent really that warm outside.
Where do i go from here ,do i add a fan or go back to the radiator cooling it ?.

 

[Roger Fairclough]

Bad news from me on the external oil cooler,i fitted an external cooler about a month ago.
Last night when i was coming up the M6 towing a trailer with a Land Rover discovery on it the transmition oil warning light came on.
this has never happened before and it was at night ,so its wasent really that warm outside.
Where do i go from here ,do i add a fan or go back to the radiator cooling it ?.

A trailer and Discovery will be close to your max. permissible towing limit, so "warmed" up transmission fluid is inevitable. It is always possible to cool the oil to normal levels, it just needs a big enough cooler sited in a suitable place. How big is the cooler you fitted, where did you fit it and is there any obstruction to the air flow?

Roger

 

[fridayman]

If you bypassed the original cooler, try adding it inline instead. If you have a new rad you have no reason to worry about a failure for another 100k miles.

 

[tim falce]

A trailer and Discovery will be close to your max. permissible towing limit, so "warmed" up transmission fluid is inevitable.

I'd have thought a Discovery on a suitable trailer would put you over the limit for a 90/95 but probably still no reason for the fluid to overheat. One thing to be wary of with an external cooler is that they do have a habit of leaking. For the small difference in cost and hassle I'd be more likely to trust the original type of set up than take the risk of trashing my transmission.

 

[geo-smc]

A trailer and Discovery will be close to your max. permissible towing limit, so "warmed" up transmission fluid is inevitable. It is always possible to cool the oil to normal levels, it just needs a big enough cooler sited in a suitable place. How big is the cooler you fitted, where did you fit it and is there any obstruction to the air flow?

Roger

Roger,The cooler is a 13 row and it is fitted in the worst place possible,in front of the radiator just behind the front number plate,I drove 250 miles down with a twin wheel trailer and all was good.

 

[geo-smc]

I'd have thought a Discovery on a suitable trailer would put you over the limit for a 90/95 but probably still no reason for the fluid to overheat. One thing to be wary of with an external cooler is that they do have a habit of leaking. For the small difference in cost and hassle I'd be more likely to trust the original type of set up than take the risk of trashing my transmission.

I was thinkin the same thing,but i have towed bigger motors with a 95 auto before with no problems,only thing was the 95 was being cooled with the radiator.

 

[Roger Fairclough]

Roger,The cooler is a 13 row and it is fitted in the worst place possible,in front of the radiator just behind the front number plate,I drove 250 miles down with a twin wheel trailer and all was good.

The original oil cooler is sited to gain air flow. To replace it with a cooler which is shrouded, is counter productive. I used to rally an MG 1300. I fitted it with a heavy sump guard but nearly punched a hole in the g/box when a stone jammed between sump and plate. I put foam rubber in the space to stop this happening again and caused a substantial rise in temperature to the oil.

Either re-site the cooler or re-site the number plate.

Roger