Underfloor radiator??

I am fitting a v8 into my car. It was a real squeeze so I can't fit the radiator in the normal behind-the-grill spot. I knew this would be the case all along, there was not really another way. I was hoping to put it under the floor on the p***enger side, layed more or less flat, spaced on brackets and rubber cotton reel bobbins about 5 inches from the floor, with an electric fan either above or below the radiator.

What problems would this setup entail? It is not a road car, it is a fun, low budget strip car. It isn't particularly low either so ground clearence and scrub lines shouldn't hinder it too much. What about air pockets?

Here's a shot of the car so you know what this is going on:

 

Jeez, wouldn't it be a lot easier to cut the firewall and move the motor back a couple inches and/or move the grille forward a couple inches??

 

Get one of those radiator / fan ***emblies they use on Comp dragsters. Gary

 

Mount er in the boot?

 

I would think it would work as long as you fit it with some ducting to get the cool air in and then maybe some fins to direct the hot air away.

Could you mount it in the trunk behind the rear axle so it adds all of it's weight to the back axle?

 

I did that with a trans. cooler and it got destroyed by road debree that was kicked up by the tires

 

Run two radiators, one on each side, in the fender wells like on the Morris Mini.

 

you should angle the radiator up and down slightly making it face backwards and try to make the fan on top pushing down. This will keep the inside of the car from getting scalding hot right above it. If it were me though I would mount it in the trunk area with an open floor. Kind of like they do with extreme rock crawlers in the beds. They don't seem to overheat this way and I've seen it done in a model a before.

 

trunk mounted or 2 small radiators...

 

Like others, I would have cut the firewall and moved the engine back. Next step would be radiator in trunk with ducted airflow and fans. In floor would be my last resort.

 

Mounted under the floor, as others have said, would be the very last option I would choose. Mounting in the trunk allows for a larger radiator and puller fan and is away from road debris etc. You'll have to vent the trunk for air escape, and in my case with the 31 coupe, louvers would not allow enough air out and the engine wanted to run hot, so I ran a combination of louvers and holes in the trunk deck lid. Cool looking car.

 

you could mount it the rear, ala M60 tank style. You would have to modify the bodywork to conform and get a proper sized radiator...

 

I was thinking the same thing.

Lay it flat in the trunk and louver the trunk lid.

 

Let me understand. You are only going to run at the strip? If that is true, your options open up quite a bit.

 

My first thought too was simply move the engine back a bit. Looks like lots of room for that. If you're just racing it anyway, why even bother? Just a resevior with a fill neck.

 

It is a pain to make a p*** and sweat cooling while you are going back to the pits. Don't put it under the car. The suggested side mounts or moving the motor back would be my choices. I also recommend electric cooling fans. Put them on a toggle switch and turn them on after the run.

 

My guess is with the 4 lug rear end, most likely from the original car, you are only going to make one p*** and then you are going to have more problems than the car running hot.

 

Why not extend the frame rails in front and mount the radiator and grill shell. Going to have anything else on the front or just the shell ?

 

Looks like the consensus is to not mount it in the floor. I'll just add that I think it would get zero airflow in the floor, rendering it useless except as a potential heat-sink.

Snowmobiles have heat exchangers (radiators) mounted under their bodies, but they get sprayed with snow as they drive.

 

Are you kidding, on a drag car you have to set the engine back if you want any traction. The setup you have now will just burn up back tires.

5" below the car it is going to drag on the ground.

For a race car you don't even need a rad. Lots of dragsters don't have them. Or use a small rad if that is all you have room for. You will only be running for seconds at a time.

You could use a thin 2 core rad mounted under the car with a wire mesh shield. No fan.

 

I am with atomickustom, I would simply stretch the grille/fenders as needed....

 

This +1.

 

i have a kool idea that may work and not cost anything if your not gonna run a hood why dont you use some brackets and extend the radiator out forward enough for pulley clearance

 

you do not want that radiator in the path of the rear tire, if it lets go and dumps it will be bad.

P.S. no anti-freeze at the track not a good way to make friends.

 

Moving the grill forward would give it a nose heavy appearance, out of the question

 

I have changed enough Isuzu condensors to tell you that under the vehicle is a lousy place for any heat exchanger.

Forget putting a radiator under the car. Keep in mind any extra plumbing is a place for leaks, and ****py plumbing will always fail tech. inspection.

Hard to say what to do with it, that picture looks like Michael J Fox took it on a bad day with a 5 dollar cell phone.

Probably enough room inside that shell for a small radiator. maybe other ways as well, but without fenders or hood it is only a guess.

B.

 

I gotta agree, push the motor back

 

Take the time to move the motor back. You will gain room for the radiator and also get better weight distribution, closer to 50/50

 

that just sounds dirty