How much dirt could really be in there?

[Grizzly]

Originally Posted by MNBoxster

Hi,

Good Stuff! Seeing is believing! I have been recommending this to people ever since I joined this board.

My Esprit also has a low (3.5") front mounted radiator and cleaning it is an annual drill. Boxster owners should slate this maintenance at least every other year.

Contrary to what's been stated, adding mesh to the front of the radiators will not prevent this type of debris from accumulating in the radiators. It may prevent the largest debris from entering, and extend the maintenance period, but that's all. Just look at OHBox's pictures and see how much of that debris would easily have passed through a mesh of any sort to see what I mean. And, these types of mesh do restrict the airflow to the radiators to some degree, which in a warm weather climate can make a difference on operating temps. These have been tried and rejected by the Esprit crowd years ago for just these reasons.

And, one should be sure to backflush the debris with water or compressed air as quite a bit of it will only lodge tighter between the fins if you try to remove it from the front of the radiator/condenser. I would venture to say that properly cleaned radiators will reduce the operating temp of the car some 5°F - 10°F. This alone justifies the work. Hope this helps...

Happy Motoring!... Jim'99

When I removed the bumper to install the mesh the first time, I had much the same mess that Ohio found today. When I changed the bumper, everything looked pretty clean. Still, some grit needed to be flushed out, but nothing like the first time. As soon as I get my third bumper painted, I'm going to change it again (car got hit). Stay tuned, I'll let you know what I find...

I can't comment on the possible airflow restriction due to the mesh installation, other than I haven't noticed a temperature change. It seems to me that some pretty reputable manufacturers have chosen to use it on their high performance offerings.