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In the process of installing the Volvo Intercooler, it was quite obvious that it wasn't going to work with the stock radiator.
“This engine bay ain’t big enough for the both of us!â€
So I went radiator hunting (Ted Nugent style) at the junkyards. My first choice was the Volvo unit from a turbo car, since I already had the upper and lower brackets from the same car, and it was designed to fit w/ the cooler. Problem is: the Volvo unit is heavy, and there is bracing beneath it on the car (which the T-bird doesn’t have), so that was out. I can’t remember, but I think the hose locations were reversed on this radiator (ie: lower hose is on passenger’s side).
Then I looked at the Ford Ranger and Bronco II radiators. Most of the Bronco ones are THIN one-core units. Some of the Rangers had 2-core radiators, with the upper and lower hoses in the proper location. In order to clear the boost pipes on the Volvo cooler, I was looking for a radiator that was similar in height to the Fox, but narrower. The Ranger is. However, it is about 2 inches taller than the Fox, and the pressure cap is part of a tube that sticks up, and it looked like it would interfere with the hood of the T-bird. Damn.
Then I found a MINT Saab 900 Turbo radiator. Hose locations are in the right spots, and it is smaller than the Fox but the Saab is a 2.3 turbo, so it should be the right size, right? The Saab radiator is 13†high x 25†wide, compared to 19†H x 30†W for the Fox radiator.
The Saab radiator looks like it was a recent replacement before the car was junked. And it has a twin 12†fan setup on it. Both work, so I wired them together, so it’s either both or none. That two-stage fan wiring is too complex for me!
So now the Saab radiator sits at the same bottom level as the old one, but it is 6†shorter, so it clears the intercooler boost pipes. To boot, it is narrower so I will be able to route some 3†air hose out to the grille between the radiator and headlight area.
Here’s the part that stumped me: no pressure cap on the radiator. First thing I did was to yank the t-bird overflow bottle, since on the 86 t-bird it’s enormous. I grabbed a Volvo bottle at the yard, and it has a pressure cap on it already.
Someone over at TurboFord helped me a little, as he installed a Volvo cooling system in his 88.
The Volvo bottle has a ¼†outlet on the top, and a ¾†outlet on the bottom. The Saab radiator has the two 1 ¼†hoses, plus a ¼†outlet at the top. This is hooked up to the ¼†inlet on the overflow bottle. I took the ¾†outlet on the bottom of the bottle and ran that into the water pump inlet. To do this, I took the short section of hose (from the end of the coolant return tube next to the head) and teed into it, using some sturdy threaded pipe fittings.
Works great so far, and holds pressure. Supposedly the ¼†outlet on the radiator is supposed to draw air bubbles from the radiator to the overflow bottle.
I’ll try to take pics soon, so you can see how well the Volvo cooler fits in there with the Saab radiator.
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Phil 86 TC www.philds.net/tc/ Full 3" Exh, and Cat, 15 psi, 1.5" lower
“This engine bay ain’t big enough for the both of us!â€
So I went radiator hunting (Ted Nugent style) at the junkyards. My first choice was the Volvo unit from a turbo car, since I already had the upper and lower brackets from the same car, and it was designed to fit w/ the cooler. Problem is: the Volvo unit is heavy, and there is bracing beneath it on the car (which the T-bird doesn’t have), so that was out. I can’t remember, but I think the hose locations were reversed on this radiator (ie: lower hose is on passenger’s side).
Then I looked at the Ford Ranger and Bronco II radiators. Most of the Bronco ones are THIN one-core units. Some of the Rangers had 2-core radiators, with the upper and lower hoses in the proper location. In order to clear the boost pipes on the Volvo cooler, I was looking for a radiator that was similar in height to the Fox, but narrower. The Ranger is. However, it is about 2 inches taller than the Fox, and the pressure cap is part of a tube that sticks up, and it looked like it would interfere with the hood of the T-bird. Damn.
Then I found a MINT Saab 900 Turbo radiator. Hose locations are in the right spots, and it is smaller than the Fox but the Saab is a 2.3 turbo, so it should be the right size, right? The Saab radiator is 13†high x 25†wide, compared to 19†H x 30†W for the Fox radiator.
The Saab radiator looks like it was a recent replacement before the car was junked. And it has a twin 12†fan setup on it. Both work, so I wired them together, so it’s either both or none. That two-stage fan wiring is too complex for me!
So now the Saab radiator sits at the same bottom level as the old one, but it is 6†shorter, so it clears the intercooler boost pipes. To boot, it is narrower so I will be able to route some 3†air hose out to the grille between the radiator and headlight area.
Here’s the part that stumped me: no pressure cap on the radiator. First thing I did was to yank the t-bird overflow bottle, since on the 86 t-bird it’s enormous. I grabbed a Volvo bottle at the yard, and it has a pressure cap on it already.
Someone over at TurboFord helped me a little, as he installed a Volvo cooling system in his 88.
The Volvo bottle has a ¼†outlet on the top, and a ¾†outlet on the bottom. The Saab radiator has the two 1 ¼†hoses, plus a ¼†outlet at the top. This is hooked up to the ¼†inlet on the overflow bottle. I took the ¾†outlet on the bottom of the bottle and ran that into the water pump inlet. To do this, I took the short section of hose (from the end of the coolant return tube next to the head) and teed into it, using some sturdy threaded pipe fittings.
Works great so far, and holds pressure. Supposedly the ¼†outlet on the radiator is supposed to draw air bubbles from the radiator to the overflow bottle.
I’ll try to take pics soon, so you can see how well the Volvo cooler fits in there with the Saab radiator.
------------------
Phil 86 TC www.philds.net/tc/ Full 3" Exh, and Cat, 15 psi, 1.5" lower
Did you hear about the Lucas powered torpedo? It sank.
86 TC, 73 Mini, 64 Mini Van, Saturn wagon
Click here to beat a ricer.
86 TC, 73 Mini, 64 Mini Van, Saturn wagon
Click here to beat a ricer.