I have a shut off in the heater hose line, radiator was bought 18 months ago, has maybe 2000 miles on it. I can hear the fan clutch disengage at like 2800 rpms, its brand new also.
ESU

 

Rad was delivered today, so after getting home from work at 1730 I had to install an alternator in my sons 91 dodge. It mounts underneath the motor instead of topside. After that was done I figured I'd pull the vette out of the garage and at least start taking the old rad out. Apparently Mr Murphy and his law were working tonite so it took longer than I expected to get it out. By 2000 I had it out but with work tomorrow and still having to pick my son up at his job I packed the tools up , pushed everything into the garage including the vette, no easy task by yourself, and hopefully will be able to get the new one in tomorrow. Capt Ron, no one wishes you were closer to give me a hand than me right now. I'm real glad there wont (shouldnt) be any fabbing done to get this ready I'm just dog tired. Need a beer and off to bed, will update tomorrow,
ESU

 

Finally finished, rad is installed and filled, shroud and seals in place, lets see what happens, keep your fingers crossed.
ESU

 

Was it a true direct fit? Was it a difficult install? Did you install the electric fans. Just looked at the weather and looks like your getting a break from the 90's up there. Maybe you will get a few more hot days so you can truly get a feel for the switch.

 

Fit just fine, better than my last copper/brass rad. That one seemed a touch too wide and didnt sit properly in the support. Plus the lower neck was at a right angle not curved like stock. The Dewitt rad was a perfect fit, sat right in the support perfectly, the lower neck was curved, the tranny hook ups were in the right spot etc. Plus it was light enough to manipulate by myself, unlike the brass rad. Only thing I didnt like is that for 500 bux They could throw in the 4 little rubber bumpers that the rad sits in . Even my prior rad gave you those included. Only problem was the drain petcock wouldnt clear the support so I just installed a regular plug. I didnt install the electric fans yet, I want to see how it works without them. Hopefully in a few weeks they'll be listed in the 4 sale section of the forum.
ESU

 

I droped the t-stat in hot (190*) water and it did open so I don't think that the t-stat was bad, I think that by pulling it out it just helped the flow match what my water pump and new aluminum rad!

 

Got it on the road today and cant say either good or bad. Took a ride to our corvette clubs picnic. A combo of street and a short 1 1/2 mile hiway run. On the way to the picnic the temps stayed at the 180 mark for awhile then started creeping up , by the time I got to the picnic it was reading about 195. This was with no a/c. Return trip used the a/c and got as hi as 200 so its definitley not keeping it at t-stat temp of 180 deg. However, if it keeps it at 210 or less it will have been worth it. I need to do a decent length hi way trip to be sure.
ESU

 

Yea, a mile or two is no problem for me either. Just curious, what was the temp up in NY today. I checked on my weather program and it said high 70's. Was actually a little cooler here today high 80's. My car seems really intune to the ambient temp. I installed a new temp sending unit in the head, as you may recall mine had been moved to the thermostat housing. Temps seem to be about the same. I am going to order a new set of radiator seals tomorrow. One question, is your heater core intact? Mine has been disconected and a call to the previous owner confirms that he had it blocked off because it was leaking. Just thinking of things to think about. I do recall that replacing a heater core was about the number 2 on the forums hate to do list. Don't really worry to much about heaters down here if it's cold drive the truck! But if it's a cooling issue?? I am actually getting (and have been) a little confused about what temp our cars should be running. I went to one of the sites that were mentioned on this or the other thread and they said 220 was ok???? I don't know but that seems warm to me. The car drives fine no pre-ingnite, no boil over???
I only know one thing to do at this point, and that is to go fishing tomorrow. I will do some thinking then and start back on this Tuesday. Have a good weekend!

Capt. Ron

 

Temps up here in NY actually got pretty hot today, had to be 85 or so. I have a leaky heater core also and am not looking forward to tackling that job. 220 is about the limit that I would feel comfortable at. Doesnt give u much leeway if something else goes wrong. Will post again when I can get another hot day and take a decent hiway cruise. Hopefully the summer has one or two left.
ESU