Radiator Springs

So, Here's What Happened...

  One habit I've cultivated over the years after owning some "questionably maintained" vehicles, is to pop the hood and check the car out while I'm filling up the car.  So it goes with the Miata a.ka. "The Turtle".  Based on the stuff I've already fixed thanks to the previous owner, it's not only prudent but probably necessary.  So there I was, on the way home stopped off at a local gas station feeding the Miata what it needed to run.  The Thirsty Bitch.   Popped the hood to check the oil, coolant level in the reservoir bottle and did a quick general visual inspection to look for anything amiss.  Loose or missing fasteners, leaking hoses, nothing unusual....just a small puddle of coolant behind the Passenger side headlight.

Wait, What!!?!

Sure enough, there was a puddle of fresh coolant leaking down from the hose connecting the radiator neck to the overflow bottle.  The top end tank had coolant pooled on top of it, and showed what looked like coolant leaking between the tank and the radiator body.

$#!!*% 

Obviously, this needed to be fixed.  The idea of being stuck on some back country Kansas road at night, was not on my list of "Top Things To Do."  So in true Overachieving Gearhead fashion, I decided I wasn't going to just fix this issue, I was going to overdo it as usual, because I just can't seem to fix something or just leave it the hell alone.  Time for upgrades!

The Search Begins!

I started hitting up the various Miata vendor sites and  read over the various offerings from the usual suspects like  Mishimoto, Koyo, CFR and even some E-Bay off brands, that would probably work, but I didn't really feel like rolling the dice.  After some thought,  I eventually decided on a 37mm Aluminum Radiator from Koyo.


  Based on my research the Koyo seemed to be the choice for the majority of Miata owners who upgraded their radiators.  It's a physically larger unit than the OEM radiator, and features a two row core for enhanced cooling.  It's thicker, but not crazy thick like the CFR offering for the NB Miata.  Since I wanted to upgrade, along with fix the issue of the leaking radiator, this seemed like a good choice.  I was drawn to the Koyo because of its reputation, overall quality of the product, and the fact that it was supposed to be a basically Drop In install, with no fuss or no muss.  We'll come back to that later.

I placed an order and had it within a few days, drop shipped from the manufacturer.  Packaged very well, and arrived in good order.  Neat!

 I also placed an order from GarageStar for one of their Thermostat Housing Sandwich Plates. They make a lot of cool and unique stuff for Miatas, and this is a simple solution for a future mod that I wanted to do.

 This plate fits between the thermostat cover and thermostat housing, to allow you to install a 1/8NPT sensor to measure water temperature with an aftermarket gauge.  I planned on adding auxiliary gauges in the future, so this seemed like a good thing to take care of since I would have to drain the coolant to install the new radiator.

Why make a mess twice if you don't have to?  Right?!

The Road To Hell....

I've installed a ton of radiators into various cars over the years and have gotten pretty good at it.  Hell, one time on a first date, I changed my date's radiator out (So To Speak) in the parking lot of a Malibu Speedzone, before we went to dinner.  Unfortunately, this didn't really impress her and I didn't get a second date.  Pisser.

Anyway....

It's simple:  Drain Coolant, Loosen and Remove Hoses, Remove Mounting Hardware, Unplug Electric Fans/Connections and Pull The Damned Thing Out.  Installation is the reverse of removal, right?  Sure it is!

Got the old radiator out and transferred all the fans and attachments over to the new unit.  I even manged not to make a huge mess draining the radiator and removing the hoses, which is not a normal thing with me.  I was pretty proud of myself.

  I also went ahead and installed the GarageStar Sandwich Plate, along with new gaskets to ensure no leaks.

Went to drop in my "no fuss, no muss" radiator in and noticed a bit of a problem.   

The A/C Condenser Mount bolts, were poking into my nice, shiny new radiator.

Koyo's definition of "DROP IN" is different from mine, evidently.

The new radiator is both thicker and wider than the OEM unit, so there are clearance issues. Something, I should have realized beforehand.   After a few searches on the Internet, I discovered the solution to this issue was to "gently" bend the Condenser Core forward until the radiator DIDN'T contact the pokey bits of the Condenser Mount. 

Okay, I can be gentle.

After about an hour of gently wiggling, bending, cursing and several sworn oaths, I decided that I was tired of screwing with it and grabbed the biggest prybar I had and bent the Condenser as far forward as I could.  Sometimes, GENTLE doesn't get the job done.  At least in a timely manner.

With the core out of the way, the rest of the install went smoothly.  Bolted everything down, reconnected both radiator hoses, plugged the fans in and filled the radiator with a mixture of coolant and distilled water.  Started the car up and burped the system to remove any trapped air in the system, and checked for leaks around the sandwich plate and the threaded plug in the plate as well.

I moved on the upper radiator hose and checked it out while congratulating my self about being proactive and installing the plate beforehand to make sure I didn't make a mess in the future when it came time to install my gauges.

It was around that time, feeling ever so smug, that I noticed that Koyo had thoughtfully, already provided a 1/8NPT port in the top of the radiator, for an aftermarket temperature sensor. 

Well F**k Me... 

See, this is where my OCD kicks in and screws me over.

 Part of me is thinking, "Hey Man, just leave the plate in there.  It's not hurting anything and it's not leaking." 

However, The Anal Retentive Aircraft Mechanic in me says: "Get that unclean thing off of my car!.  It's not needed, and it really, really disturbs me by being on there and not being needed."


Guess Which Voice I Listened To?

So, yeah, I pulled it off and made a huge mess by spilling coolant everywhere.  Had to buy new OEM hardware for the thermostat housing because the old hardware was pretty nasty looking, along with more coolant and a new thermostat gasket.

All because my Inner Asshole is a shouty bitch.

After All That...

I'm happy to report that everything is working fine.  No leaks in the cooling system and all appears to be well.  The new radiator is a pretty nice looking piece that not only enhances the cooling capacity of the car, but looks pretty good doing it.  My only real hiccup (that wasn't of my own doing) was the Condenser Core clearance issue.  A few seconds with a  pry bar took care of that, and other than that it did just drop right in. You know, as advertised aside from the bit with the prybar and cursing.

  I can't wait to see if it helps keep the car cool for my upcoming track day in October.

I also have a really nice GarageStar Thermostat Sandwich plate, with about 20 minutes of run time, minus the gaskets.  Anyone wanna buy it?

*SIGH*

Alpha, Mike, Foxtrot....