In the thread on low cost DIY stuff post# 2 by theradioflyer shows a coarse mesh screen attached under the car over the radiator inlet. I was wondering if anyone can see any downside to doing this. I live in a rural area and got really tired of pulling leaves and other assorted debris out of my radiator this fall. I'm thinking this might be something I'll do while the vette is in hibernation this winter.

 

I did that mod over a year ago and it has really helped in keeping the junk out of the Rad, I also live out in the sticks and was getting a lot of stuff up there too.

 

Thanks. Looks like I'll be doing this mod when it gets a little warmer.

 

I've put the screen by Elite Engineering on all 3 of my C5. They don't prevent cooling, and do keep the trash out of the radiator. Well worth having one as there are really no negatives. If you have the skill and talent to make your own then all the better, but the Elite piece is a nice piece for not a lot of money when you consider your time.

 

Thanks, I'll take a look at that.

 

Of course there are negatives... I tested a screen 12 years ago, ran it for two years, and took it off. The reason?

because it prevented me from getting the little things, like grass clippings leaves, etc.. the thing that really clog your radiator and AC condenser. I found it to be less than desirable, over all.. will it stop plastic bag? yes ( sometimes ) in my research I've found that running over plastic bags purposely in my tests revealed that the plastic bag stuck to the screen some of the time. So over all a waste of time and money. the small stuff will still get through the screen, the stuff that really clogs things up..
Lots of people on this forum want to do something for the sake of doing something.. want to brag about the cool thing that they have done..
If you use a screen small enough to catch the little stuff it will quickly get clogged and defeat the purpose.

Vendors will make anything they can to make money, because they know how the after market business works. Corvette owners are easy victims of useless products. This doesn't mean that ALL after market products are bad.. I have a ton of after market products that have been fully vetted by me. Im only offering my opinion, and testing, and am man enough to point out the negatives of a well meaning product, that really dose not do what members think it does. if you want to prevent a plastic bag from getting sucked up it will do that.. but.... reaching up to pull a bag out of your AC condenser ( once or twice in a life time, which takes a few seconds ) is much easier then taking off that screen and then putting it back once or twice a year.. removal and reinstallation has to take 20 minutes compared to the 15 seconds it takes to pull a bag.. the screen will not prevent your Ac condenser and Radiator from needing to be cleaned yearly.

I made this screen for less than 5 dollars and ran it for two years... IM happy that it is no longer there..




Bill aka ET

 

Thanks for the reply ET. In looking for the Elite Engineering screen on-line I found several posts on different sites that said the same thing you did. Definitely something to consider before I decide if I'm going to do this. Don't want to make extra work for myself.

 

I'm with ET here. Unless you can remove and reattach the screen quickly (meaning in under a minute), I don't think it's worth it. If I've driven over a plastic bag or (larger) piece of styrofoam and I don't see it flying behind me afterwards in my rearview or side mirrors, I'll assume it got sucked up into the radiator, so I'll set the DIC to coolant temp and monitor it. If it looks like it might be affecting the temp, I'll pull over and reach under and remove it (takes just seconds to do). This has happened only once (that I can remember) in almost 11 years with my Vette.

 

I thought I might add this choice tidbit of information... ( CTI )

there are lots of things that people swear are a good deal... for example this throttle body bypass... its not only a joke, its a waste of time and money...

You can make a throttle body bypass, for less than 3 dollars, yet some vendors will charge you 15 dollars for this useless piece of garbage.. here is why... air flows through the throttle body @ 60 cu feet a second. if the air coming into the throttle body is lets say 100 degreesor less say its 90F.
the engine is running at 190F , the throttle body is 190 F. remove the coolant line and the throttle body will still be 160 F because its passively receiving heat from the intake. the difference in temp with an without the by pass is 30 degrees.. Ambient air is not in the throttle body long enough to change the in coming temperature by even 5 degrees... You would create more available hp by having 5 gallons less ( 30 lbs of fuel ) then using a throttle body bypass... just another useless piece of garbage, that someone could brag about as a modification...

 

Bought screen at HD took 10 minutes to install. keeps the loose crap out
just bent the back over top of the damper and attached the front to the bumper screws

 

Here's what I do - every time I clean the car I look up into the area in front of the radiator and see if there is any trash in there. If so, I clean it out. Takes just a couple of minutes and many times there is nothing to be cleaned out.

 

I made one and like the fact off cleaning big items off the screen before they reach rad/condensor. My shop has a pit that my vette lives over so getting to it is really easy. Really came n handy this fall with all the leafs being sucked up. I guess i am just bragging, really makes me feel like i am a ledgend n my own mind.

 

Don't shortchange yourself there, bjones. If you want to be "a ledgend n [your] own mind," then who's to say you can't be?

 

Its always good to try new things for yourself... you really cant learn how something effects you personally, unless you give it a try.
Many of us here have done lots of things and only offer our opinion, and experience based on time, cost , functional worth, etc.. some people have all the money in the world but have no time to do things they want or like to do.. Others have all the time in the world and no money to do it. to some people , the satisfaction of doing something yourself is worth the effort... Some people respect and appreciate other members experiences , Some other member will not. That's why this forum is here, some come for help, some come to offer help, some just come here to share a common interest. However there are also many who come here.. offering bad advice.. and nothing more than 1980's automotive technology.. ill conceived urban legend...The one single most important thing I tell people who come here is to be careful who you listen too.