We all look forward to those beautiful summer days when we can take our Corvettes out and just cruise along, enjoying the ride and waves from fellow Corvetters. Unless, of course, your car is plagued with overheating. Nothing can spoil your day faster than having to constantly monitor the water temperature gauge, wondering when it’s going to hit the red zone.
This was the complaint to Mike Lossick, who owns a 1992 LT1 Coupe. Mike, whose Corvette is slightly modified (compounding the overheating problem), was running 220 degrees water temperature, which is typical of most late-models. And that was on a mild 85 degree San Diego day. The solution to his overheating woes was an aluminum radiator that is designed and manufactured by “BE-COOL”.
The “Be-Cool” aluminum radiator is a direct replacement for the factory radiator, and can be easily installed in your own garage in about 2-1/2 hours, using basic hand tools. Unlike other so-called “Bolt-on’s” the Be-Cool radiator drops right in, just like an orginal equipment part.
Aluminum radiators dissipate heat more efficiently than copper. However, the real secret behind Be-Cool’s success lies in its integral design. Unlike an OEM radiator, which has one row of 1×3/16 inch tubes and 18-20 fins per inch, the Be-Cool radiator is designed with two rows of tubes and only 14 fins per inch.
According to the engineers at Be-Cool, “Vehicles with little or no grille openings respond better to a core design using 14 fins per inch and a higher count of louvers per fin tan a core of 18-20 fins per inch and less louvers. An increased louver count is more productive than an increased fin count because the airflow through the radiator doesn’t get blocked as it would with a denser fin count.”
Other beneficial features include tank walls made of .080-inch-thick 3003 aluminum instead of plastic like the OEM’s and increased water capacity, thus making them less prone to leaks and improving cooling performance. These advantages provided a 25 degree drop in operating temperature on Mike’s Corvette. In fact, Be-Cool guarantees a 20 to 40 degree reduction in your car’s water temperature.
Once installed, not only is this radiator totally functional, but it’s alloy appearance looks very high tech. Too bad it has to be covered with the radiator shroud. One available option is the inclusion of an internal transmission oil cooler using a seven plate truck unit, as opposed to the standard three plate core unit. And that’s ideal to cool our hot running transmission, especially if it has a high-stall torque converter installed.
Be-Cool aluminum radiators are available for all Corvettes, not just late-models. And that’s important if you want to enjoy the performance of that number-matching midyear big block without fear of warping the original heads should it overheat. With a Be-Cool radiator, it will stay cool, and your engine will last longer and perform better.
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