cleaning radiators

[tonycarreon]

Originally Posted by bmussatti

Tony, please, I am not making fun of you.

j/k

no i didn't think that was what you were saying. i meant if it isn't dirty, feel free to make fun of me.

--

my recollection of family time, when i helped my dad do some project on his 1967 ford galaxie:
"daddy, what's that?", "why?", "what's that do?" "what's that for?", "why do i have to sit inside the car now?" *HONNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNK* "why do i have to go inside now?"

Tony, is your car running any cooler?

Randall, the neddle on my temp gauge is always in the exact same spot (when up to temp) since brand new.

[tonycarreon]

Originally Posted by bmussatti

Tony, is your car running any cooler?

honestly i'm not sure. i only drove it a few miles last night to make sure the bumper wouldn't fall off. i would be surprised if it ran any cooler simply because it wasn't ever really running hot. even in 2 hours of 0-5 mph traffic in 90 degree heat, it only got up to slightly above the 180 mark, which is where it usually sits anyway.

as soon as i do any distance i'll let you know.

[941MXVET]

Thanks for the video, thought I'd take advantage of this day off to try cleaning my rads.

This is what I found:











I'll be putting "cleaning rads." on my annual maintenance list!

Originally Posted by tonycarreon

honestly i'm not sure. i only drove it a few miles last night to make sure the bumper wouldn't fall off. i would be surprised if it ran any cooler simply because it wasn't ever really running hot. even in 2 hours of 0-5 mph traffic in 90 degree heat, it only got up to slightly above the 180 mark, which is where it usually sits anyway.

as soon as i do any distance i'll let you know.

You probably won't see any change on your gauge. It was running normal. Don't forget, more than 50% of our cooling comes from our large oil capacity. And Dr. Porsche knew how to do that pretty well.

[tonycarreon]

i totally agree with bmusatti, i really don't expect any change in temp. however, it's nice knowing that crud isn't there anymore, that's for sure.

941MXVET did you have any problems with any hidden nuts / screws? any missing pieces? what MY do you have? i assume you've never done it before? 1st owner?

[941MXVET]

Originally Posted by tonycarreon

i totally agree with bmusatti, i really don't expect any change in temp. however, it's nice knowing that crud isn't there anymore, that's for sure.

941MXVET did you have any problems with any hidden nuts / screws? any missing pieces? what MY do you have? i assume you've never done it before? 1st owner?

Mine is a '98 MY base model, I purchased the car in Dec '08, with very complete service records. I had most of my problems with those plastic rivits, broke a couple even using WD-40. I also had an issue with the center screw under the bumper, it had seen a few curbs, and had very little to get the screwdriver to grip on, needles to say I didn't reinstall it. I'll be looking for a fastener to replace it which should stand up to the inevitable curb!

As summer has come to northern NV, I've noticed a slight increase in where my temp needle sits ( from the center of the 180 to the 0 in the 180)


Again thanks for the vid, it went easer then I thought!

[RandallNeighbour]

Originally Posted by bmussatti

Randall, the neddle on my temp gauge is always in the exact same spot (when up to temp) since brand new.

That explains a lot. Bill, the 987's no longer have a real temp gauge. It will rise to the right spot before the motor is truly up to temp and only climb when the computer says it should so you will pull over and get the motor looked at. It's now like the crappy ones found in American cars. If the car's not overheating, that needle in your 987 will not show any fluctuation at all.

Mark and I have checked this out on his 987 at the track when he's been absolutely brutal to the motor on the track and that needle should have moved a little and it does not move past the operating temp reading it is programmed to display.

The 986's have a temp gauge that moves around when you drive the car, hence all the guys freaking out because they've never owned a car with a fully operational temp gauge before.

Originally Posted by RandallNeighbour

That explains a lot. Bill, the 987's no longer have a real temp gauge. It will rise to the right spot before the motor is truly up to temp and only climb when the computer says it should so you will pull over and get the motor looked at. It's now like the crappy ones found in American cars. If the car's not overheating, that needle in your 987 will not show any fluctuation at all.

Mark and I have checked this out on his 987 at the track when he's been absolutely brutal to the motor on the track and that needle should have moved a little and it does not move past the operating temp reading it is programmed to display.

The 986's have a temp gauge that moves around when you drive the car, hence all the guys freaking out because they've never owned a car with a fully operational temp gauge before.

Randall, how is Mark doing?

My needle moves for sure, just not much once the engine warms up. And the engine bay fan will cycle on or off as needed, as does the multi speed fans up front.

I am surprised dealerships don't recommend this service to pry an extra $1,000 out of our pockets at say a 60K service.

[RandallNeighbour]

Bill, Mark's doing fine. He's at the track every time the PCA opens it up for a HSDE. Some of the time he volunteers as a corner worker to get free entry on the next registration.

I gotta do that next to save $225.

Mark's needle moves up to "normal operating temp" rather quickly (actually TOO quickly if you ask Mark.) Then it sits right there no matter how the car is driven or operated... roll it down a hill in neutral with the AC off, turn the AC on full and sit in park, drive the piss out of it on a track, and that needle doesn't move unless the motor is overheating and then it shoots to the right and turns on the dummy light.

I too am quite surprised that dealerships don't offer this service. Lord knows they could make a pile of cash doing it.

My mechanic has told me more than once that I should take my house vac's crevice tool and tape it to the tube of my high powered shop vac and suck all the debris out of the front radiator through the grills from time to time. He's never recommended removing the bumper and separating the radiators though.

Originally Posted by RandallNeighbour

My mechanic has told me more than once that I should take my house vac's crevice tool and tape it to the tube of my high powered shop vac and suck all the debris out of the front radiator through the grills from time to time. He's never recommended removing the bumper and separating the radiators though.

Yes, I have done this. Easy to do. Not much came out though. Leaf blower still worked better.

[timothy]

Originally Posted by RandallNeighbour

I too am quite surprised that dealerships don't offer this service. Lord knows they could make a pile of cash doing it.

When I was but a newb, Park Place in Dallas said the radiators needed to be cleaned of debris at a price of $400 IIRC. It was suggested as annual maintenance.

[Bobiam]

There is some really good info here plus pics and vid. I had to replace a radiator last year, so I learned all this stuff then.

My advice....
- Have assistance when putting the bumper back on. It's a lot of lining up to do alone, and those rubbery intakes on the air scoops can be difficult to line up with the grill inserts.
- Do this job if it's been too many yrs to remember or you bought a 5-10 yr old car.
- Don't bother with this project if it's only 2-4 yrs, unless you have been experiencing cooling system problems.
- While you're in there it's a good time to consider rerouting the cable release for your trunk to the tow bolt hole area so it can be scagged easily by removing the snap on hole plug.

Question..........how are you guys cleaning this area with a leaf blower??? Sounds like a good alternative to use on a regular basis.
Personally, I've made a vac nozzle out of a piece of 1/2" copper tubing wrapped with duct tape that can easily reach the recesses through the grills. Cheap and handy.

Bob

[vath2001]

Just got done cleaning the radiators. The UTube videos is really helpful. The shop vac did the job.
Here's a pic of the debris before.

[edevlin]

I am going to clean my radiators in the next week or two. Very interested to see what is in there. They have not been cleaned for 9 years and 90K. When I have the bumper off I want to remove the grills and paint them as they have faded. Any advice for preping the grills for painting them black, type of paint to use or such would be appreciated,

Ed