Has anyone read the article in the Street Trucks Jan. 2002 mag. about the Big Bad Rad. on page 36? Ford may have a point in replacing the Radiator 2.02inch w/ the 1.02inch radiator. Granted they should not of charged us for the large radiator. Please don't flame on this! I just thought that this was very interesting in light of all the discussion on this topic. In short the article explains what happens if you install a radiator that is too large for the other components inthe system. Please read the article because I will not type it all out here!

 

peties3

Why don't you attach the article so all of us don't have to go and buy the mag.

 

I am not only keyboard illiterate, but also computer!!
I would not know where to begin. I will see if the mag has a web site

 

This kind of make sense when you sit and think about it. If the radiator is too big/efficient, then there'd be a big fluctuation in the temperature of water getting into the engine from the radiator. i.e., the thermostat would shut down, the water in the radiator would cool off drastically, then the cool water would enter the engine when the thermostat opened again. Could be a problem in the winter time and you'd have to drive around with an air dam over the radiator like the semi trucks do when it gets cold.

Of course, one would hope that Ford would engineer a radiator that wasn't too efficient for winter conditions.

 

True. But the radiator, big or small, meets the cooling specs. I'm not going to get into the big is better issue, I think if they can designe a radiator that's just as or more effective but smaller, go for it. However, in the context of that article, I don't think it's a fair comparison. Whether you have the bigger radiator, or had the smaller one replaced, ford spec'd the radiator in that application and both meet that spec.

I'm with Dennis on that; why would ford engineer a radiator that wasn't efficient, in most conditions.

None the less, that's a great article to read if someone decided to go out and spend that $100 and replace their's with something too big thinking they were getting better cooling.

 

Yhe article goes on to explain the effects of the amout of density that a larger radiator has and a the need for a larger fan to pull air through the denser radiator

 

Hello everyone,

Ford did not replace the 2.20" radiator with 1.02", ford replaced it with the 1.42". As I understand the 1.02" has been standard and there is an upgrade for heavy towing which is the 1.42" which used to be the 2.20". I believe ford just screwed up and are just trying to cover up. If I was to by another f150 I would put on the 1.42" rad because the 1.02" is just not sufficient. To drastically change a radiator from 2 inches to 1 inch on the same size engines and trucks they had to have been really screwed up in their engineering. I still say that what they reengineered was the 2.20" to 1.42".

 

peties3,

No flame intended. Let's not kid ourselves. Ford changed the rad to save money. Yes, too big is not good, even in the summer but Ford is only trying to save face in light of a mistake. Those who were around for the ORP 5 wheel fiasco know better. When my hand is caught in the cookie jar I always say "I was cleaning it, and I was just removing to cookies to do a better job".

Regards

Jean Marc Chartier

 

Hello Jean,
I agree that Ford got caught red handed. And by no means do I agree w/ the way they handled their mistake. The question is: Is the bigger Rad. going to cause problems done the road?

 

The bigger rad will pose no problem what so ever. What Ford is doing is creating doubt in people's minds to defuse the mistake thay made. My 97 with the 4.6 and 5 speed had the 2" rad. The winter months had no ill effect on the truck's cooling system at all. I was in Quebec for some -30° temps and the truck performed flawlessly. The heat was constant and the guage never wavered.

Regards

Jean Marc Chartier

 

The 2" double core radiator was used in the tow package for years without causing problems. All I've read from the hundreds of posts on radiators speak positively of this radiator's performance. Is there any reason to believe there's an issue, now? The double core radiator was my choice when it came time to replace the skimpy standard one. The truck runs well, operating temp is consistent, and the heater will run you out of the cab. I agree with JMC, Ford econo-engineered a smaller tow radiator(1.42") in the beginning. After that, it's conjecture as to why they went ahead and installed standard radiators in tow equipped trucks.

 

Many people have been towing succesfully with the new "high efficiency" 1 inch and have not had any problems. The real issue is that consumers were led to believe they were getting a bigger (1.42") radiator when they purchased the ClassIII towing package and they did not. I cashed my check and so far have not had any problems with my 1 inch. Long term who knows, too soon to tell. If anything breaks while under warranty or my extended service plan Ford will fix it.

 

I tow my 6000 boat 1000 miles to Canada up hills in overdrive, in the middle of July on a day when it was honestly 95 degrees with my "little" radiator and the temp gauge doesn't even move. Granted you guys want what you paid for, I can understand that, but the standard is plenty sufficent, I have proven it.

 

Proven it here also...summer temps in Georgia well over 100 degrees with light towing...without a problem using the 1.02 radiator. I took the cash instead of the upgrade. I don't have a reason/need to get the larger radiator. Even driving the hell out of the truck from time to time has never caused a cooling problem here. Either the Mobil-1 works well or the smaller radiator is JUST FINE.

Not to happy FORD tried to pull a fast one, however they have made up for it and I am not going to quit buying F-150s because of this.

 

The issue w/ the larger rad. in yhe article is that there may not be enough air flow over the radiator because of the densit of the thicker rad. This translates to less cooling capacity if you have the stock fan. Just an added thought. I am no expert!!