How much radiator do you need for a 4BT?

[JHan]

The stock radiator for my Ford gasser 1/2 ton is about 1" too wide for a superduty or obs Dodge intercooler, and a newer Dodge intercooler is WAY wider than I care to try to mount - so if I decide to put a different radiator in it, what should I go for? I'm thinking an old 300-6 radiator would be too small, but a 6. 9 one would be major overkill, and they might be too wide also - anybody have any #'s on frontal area or anything? I've got a couple industrial ones with huge radiators, but I think they're a little extreme for a pickup app.

 

[fox]

My 4BT is in a 87 1 ton step van. Chevy. It looks like oem, it has an electric cooling fan and it never gets above 180 or so.

 

[JHan]

So is it about small-block size? I was kind-of hoping to go with electric fans also, since the whole idea behind this swap is to try to get some mileage out of it.....

 

[driverswanted]

I have one of the step van radiators in my garage that I did not use. I can take height, width and core row count measurements if you want. It would be a place you can start from. I have the 1985 Dodge 318 engine copper core in mine and it works fine.

 

[fox]

Mine measures 28 x 18 and is a 2 row core.

 

[DRadzierez]

Contact Nathen Cogar at 304 288 0989 he has played whith some 4bt's. Great guy

 

[ezcurra]

I suspect the step van (Frito Lay) are larger than they need to be. These trucks had Chevy V8's and when they received the 4BT I would guess they retained the original radiator.

Lee Alessi ran a stock M715 rad (sized for a 230ci I-6 gasoline engine) in his 4BT and he could never get the electric fan to kick in.