Thread: Cross-flow radiator in vertical position?

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Have any of you had or seen cars with cross flow radiators turned 90 degrees to fit within 30's era grill shells? I can see no negative aspects of this as long as the fill neck is either turned 90 degrees or relocated on the top tank. Another option would be to use a remote fill tank.

Sounds like an aluminum radiator add to me.
Here's another point of view:
Testing is the key to improvement in any industry. In order to obtain accurate test data and information you must have the right test equipment. For example, if you were measuring increased horse power the dyno would be the appropriate tool for the job.
Testing thermal- dynamics and heat transfer requires a more complicated measuring device capable of duplicating almost any kind of driving condition as it relates to the flow and heat transfer of automotive coolant. ThermoDynamic Inc. was chosen for the task of developing such a device, having developed test instruments for many of the major automotive manufacturers.
It was learned, for example, that core design has more bearing on temperature drop than material (copper- brass verses aluminum). Also learned that 2 rows of 1-1/4" aluminum tubes had only a 3-degree advantage over 4-rows of 1/2" brass tubes at 65 m.p.h and a 2-degree disadvantage at idle. Given the added core thickness of the aluminum radiator we had expected a greater temperature drop...but, it wasn't there.
Our test of similar core designs proves conclusively that aluminum radiators offer no real temperature drop advantage over copper and brass. On the other hand, aluminum radiators weigh about 2/3rds as much as copper and brass units and if your racing, that 9 to 12 pound difference could be real important.
http://www.usradiator.com/testing.htm

".......Have any of you had or seen cars with cross flow radiators turned 90 degrees to fit within 30's era grill shells?......."

I ran a vertically mounted crossflow for about 15 years in old 58 Chevy. Bottom line it worked fine. Any competent radiator shop should be able to handle the modifications to the tanks that you'll need (my application called for relocating the top hose fotting and radiator cap neck).

After the radiator is in place your biggest concerns will be the fan and shrouding to make sure you can move enough air through the radiator to keep the engine cool.

I see your doing a 37 Dodge, when I get back to work on it I'm building a 37 Dodge Pick up. I've looked at several of these and in many cases the engine is set to low for a mechanical fan to be used (I've set mine up with the engine located higher in order to use a water pump mounted fan). I'm not a big fan of electric cooling fans or aftermarket flex fans. My own personal experience is they do not cool as well as a good clutch fan or (if I have to use a flex fan) a stock Ford 7 blade flex fan.

I have a modified 78-84 type, Chevy Truck radiator mounted vertically in my 36 Hudson Terraplane. This was a 4 row. It is shortened a couple of inches with a Hudson top tank added to it. Stock trans cooler is now in the bottom. It works great!

Thanks for your replies and help guys. While I’m aware of many of the details associated with radiators and cooling systems, I’m far from an expert. Your formulas and other technical feedback are helpful as well as personal experience.

I started my project by finding an OEM (new) radiator that would simply fit within the core support and “seemed” adequate based on the original application for that radiator. The only radiator I found that fit the need at that stage of my project was a Modine 3-core model made for 67 Mustang w/302, AC and automatic. However, I’m some 3 years further into my project and have upped displacement and horsepower significantly (imagine that!). I have since found that not only is there a 4-core version of the same radiator but know of many aftermarket radiators made for early Mustangs.

However, it is hard to pass up the low cost and easy availability of the many cross flows on the market. Hence my original post question. The Mustang radiator is small (roughly square @ 18” x 19”). I have plenty of room to go further in the vertical direction and as a result, have been looking at an 18” x 26” which appears to be very common. Certainly, any trimming of perimeter brackets is nothing and expected. I’ll be using an electric fan and shroud package from a Taurus. I had a plastic flex fan in place but have opted to go this route and know several using the same package with very good results. The shroud is also very smooth in appearance which makes it blend well with the rest of the parts. I had the same thoughts initially Mike but gave in to the fact that all newer cars use electric-only cooling fans. I also like that they only run as needed which is usually never while running down the road. Parasitic horsepower loss from mechanical fans can be quite large.