Dewitt's radiator install questions
 

1. I'm having a problem with securing my Dewitts radiator via the upper surround brackets. This was a dual fan/rad kit sold by ecklers: https://www.ecklers.com/corvette/dew...-257713-1.html The stock surround bracket does not sit correctly on the radiator, because it rests on the upper left corner, which is larger the the area its supposed to sit on, so the bracket doesn't extend far enough over the radiator to support anything. I'm also missing the passenger side bracket, but don't want to buy it if it's not going to work any better than the driver's side. Has anyone ran into this issue before... and solved it? A custom aluminum bracket would work, but unfortunately I have no fabrication skills. You can see in the pick my temporary ghetto fix.

2. I no longer have the wiring instructions, and the temp switch is not connected, so the fans are always on when the car is running. Does anyone have the instructions in a pdf?
I e-mailed Dewitts hoping to hear back but nothing yet.

Also, I'm thinking I need to buy a foam kit, or make my own, to seal the radiator against the surround. Any recommendations here?



https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.cor...78a1326874.jpg
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Bought one have not installed it, i bought seals for the radiator and to seal it to the hood..not impressed, it did not come with the seal between the radiator and the condenser and the foam for the sides was just a littler shorter than the opening in the core support. I would not buy again, instead I would go to home depot find some foan and buy a tube of weather stripping adhesive as thats what I had to use to get the hood seals to stay in place anyway.

Which vendor did you buy the kit from? I was looking at Zips because it appears to be the most complete at a decent price. But I may end up trying to DIY.

zip
zs-115
zs-416

ah..thanks. Well I'll probably go the Home Depot route myself- save a few bucks and end up with a better seal.

You sure those brackets are on the correct sides? Gap seems a little too big.

Here are the fan wiring instructions Click here

The U-Brackets should fit directly over the weld. These will be a tight fit, just like the stock ones. Some people complain about that so DeWitts offers a more custom fit cushion. Click here

https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.cor...6c89f8faad.jpg


So based on your photos, the radiator needs to move to the passenger side.

I also noticed you purchased the 77-82 model and you have a 76. That doesn't mean it's wrong, late 76's used the 77 radiator. Measure the gap between the lower u-bracket to see which support you have in the car. The 76 radiator is 27.5" and the 77 is 26.25. The U-brackets will be about 3/8" over those numbers center to center. (Tip: measure from the outside of one to the inside of the other and you will have dead center)

Got it. Thanks a bunch.

I would consider Doc Rebuild for seals. They work well. My 2 cents.

Tom, couple of questions for you:

First, the bracket in your picture appears different from my bracket, and I'm wondering if the wrong year bracket is installed on my car. My car is an 80, not a 76. It has the original radiator support for a 1980. Your picture seems to show the bracket extending down about an inch past the top of the radiator, into the finned area. Mine stops short of that and barely extends into the finned area, which is why it offers no support. I actually have your custom inserts, and they fit perfectly, until I slide them over the weld (where they are supposed to be). In this position, the rubber pushes out beyond the metal bracket, because the bracket does not extend down far enough. I just can't get it to work.

In my picture, it appears my radiator needs to move over towards the passenger side, as you said. But it doesn't. It appears that way because I moved the support bracket over about an inch or so, so your insert would fit flush to the radiator, as I couldn't get it to sit right over the weld.

Also, the guy who installed my dual fans screwed up the wiring. He has both power wires running to one relay, no wire to the ignition, and no wire to the temp switch mounted on the end tank. Your diagram shows two relays. Is the 2nd relay necessary, or is the way it's installed sufficient? If it's needed, what type of relay do I need (asking because the installer obviously didn't follow the directions and may have used the wrong relay).
Lastly, what's a good source for the ignition lead? I'm thinking at my HEI cover terminal?

https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.cor...c4355f4c1f.jpg
This is the same unit on an '81

Do you have a close up of the support brackets? I'm trying to figure out how far the insert extends down past the bracket (or are they the same length?) I think my bracket is too short. Looks like the driver side bracket is installed just past the weld, rather than over it?

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The rubber horse shoes were pretty tight. I remember I had to install the fans afterwards due to room constraints, and I "think" I had to remount the fans a tad toward passenger side to clear the a arm bushings. I forgot to tell Tom about that.

Thanks. It's a little difficult to tell but I think we have the same bracket, and it doesn't extend down like the one in Dewitt's pic. Hmmm...

Maybe you already figured this out, but I THINK Tom's picture shows only the rubber cushion - the bracket would fit over the rubber cushion? It's been a few years since I put the radiator in our 79, but I remember the brackets not fitting all that great (it wasn't a DeWitt's radiator, it was just a stock brass radiator). Just a thought - since you're missing one bracket already - are you maybe missing both rubber cushions? (I couldn't tell from your picture or description if you have the cushion installed - if you do, then just disregard this post :cheers:)