Sometimes the gauges do stuff up or you can be given the wrong sender unit, there are 3 different ones that I know of and the only way you can tell is by the colour around the top, there are white red and balck senders and they will al give different readings on a smiths gauge, drop into a rad shop and ask if they have one of the fancy infa red temp readers, point it at the rad top and bottom and see what temp it is running

Jon

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Roundies and Clubbies(except vans) are both ugly that is why I have Midas and a van
1293 Mini Midas Bronze,1275 Clubman van

Overheating in certain situations seems to be endemic for Minis, especially in the hot Australian summers. I don't think BMC produced an uprated 'tropical' spec radiator for the Aus Minis in ther same way for example that Land Rover did for its vehicles that were destined for warmer climes. Not sure about the Japanese Minis with aircon, did Rover equip these with uprated cooling systems?

For a long time I've run a Leyland Australia Calfornia Moke 4 core radiator with separate overflow tank, 4 blade metal fan and drilled thermostat. Doesn't seem to get overly hot except on 35+ days in slow moving traffic when the needle starts to slowly creep up. I did try an auxillary radiator (old Austin 1800 heater matrix I think) but this didn't seem to make all that much difference when crawling along in city traffic. And I agree it does nothing for the aesthetics of the engine bay.

Years ago it was common to see lots of Minis with their grilles removed for summer time, but this doesn't seem to happen much anymore and I did hear it may be illegal in some states.

Maybe an additional electric thermo controlled fan on the wing side of the radiator would help. I believe some racers suggest taking coolant directly from the rear of the block on the driver's side and routing it via an extra rad into the head though I've never tried this myself. Are the new 2 core rads any more effective than the 4 cores?

I've only heard good things about Waterwetter too, so must add that to the shopping list this summer.


Slide

Yes, i did try the water-wetter, but it lasted only two days, and then a welsch plug fell out on the dyno There goes thirty bucks of additive and another hundred in labour. Bugger. I'm a little hesitant to spend another thirty bucks right now...

I'd rather fix the problem, rather than just 'patching' it for now. Lets face it, its not a genuine fix, just a helper.

I'm thinking of getting the blanking plate taken out of the side tank of the rad, and returning the flow of the coolant back the way it was in the alfa. This is the only thing i have changed to the core, and it used to cool our other alfas fine. (don't ask, a scary part in our lives) I'm thinking of changing the way i mount it, too. I will make the rad into its own full-width shroud, so all air that comes in the front of the car must go through the core, not just go around it. I'll also put a normal filler on it, instead of the header tank.

Might have to build in a cold-air feeder for the weber, too

I'm just glad i don't have a story like Spaceboys' to tell, as it has only cost me $120 so far. I'm still 100 infront, i guess.

I have an AutoMeter capillary gauge in the car, but as yet i can't find an adapter to suit. It has the same thread as the Mini head, but is too long. Can anyone help out there

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As an alternative to the 2 core rad I've seen an alloy radiator on several minis lately (I think Ron Weller's orange super mini has one), its supposed to be made in Melbourne. Anyone knows anything about them - ie details, pruce etc.

I've got a 2 core in Barney (1293cc) and a Mini Deluxe one (with MiniMatic heater) in Ha-Ha (1360cc). Guess which one stays coolest...

Comp 2 core is no better than the Oz Deluxe/Cooper S one, IMO.

BTW the Oz S & Deluxe (& onwards) rads all have 16 gills/inch, are better than most early UK Minis (& Oz 850) which were only 12 gills/inch.

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DrMini- 1970 wasaMatic 1360, Mk1S crank, 86.6HP (ATW) =~125 @ crank, 45 Dellorto (38 chokes), RE282 sprint cam, 1.5 rockers, 11.0:1 C/R.

I still have the original 4 core out of the car... Are these any good? I've heard that the extra cores actually don't benefit because the air getting blown across them is already heated by the other 3.

These new fancy Alloy rads are damned expensive. Aussie desert cooler (the best in the biz) quoted me $695 MINIMUM for any sized rad. The alloy doesn't cool any better than the copper, but the coolant tubes are closer together, and they weigh around a third as much as the same in copper. But the price!! Ouch!!

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probably was because its a triple bypass radiator.

Ummmm. No. That was going to be extra.
Watch out with those alloy rads, too. They aren't easily fixed by the average rad shop and you can't just take the tanks off like good ol' copper.

I might just revert to the old flow in my rad, as this is the only thing i have changed since it came off the other car. I've seen many old-school race cars with cross-flow radiators, and they all seem to go to great length to keep the flow only going in one direction, with another return hose running back to the other side. They could've easily put a blanking plate in one side like i did, and keep both hoses on the one side, but i guess this just doesn't work.

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what i didnt mention was also that i broke a bolt off in the head for the thermostat housing..
so now i'm afraid to even go near it to replace the thermostat with a "hot climate" one.

gonna have to replace all the hoses too

I would be looking at the thermostat as its the cheapest solution and then looking at changing the flow around on the radiator.
Dumb question you put a plate inside and changed the flow why cant you change the radiator around and change the piping to suit then it will flow the correct way and most ikely cool it down. also what fan are you running and is it turning the correct way?
lots of info required to solve this problem.

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www.minicranks.com add me to your watch list and come back again soon, under construction.

Many X-flow rads were mounted with the `hot' tank slightly higher than the `cold' side. This aids circulation. Otherwise the water pump is pushing crap uphill trying to battle thermosiphon effect.

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DrMini- 1970 wasaMatic 1360, Mk1S crank, 86.6HP (ATW) =~125 @ crank, 45 Dellorto (38 chokes), RE282 sprint cam, 1.5 rockers, 11.0:1 C/R.

-Okay, so tonight when i got home i decided to let the pressure bleed itself out, by loosening off the top hose at the thermostat housing end... It let out a whole lot of air, then started to dribble water, so i retightened it at that and refilled it with water.
Except it changed nothing...

-Yeah, i am definately gonna change the flow back to how it was in the Alfa. And the fan? I'm still using the original Alfa four-blade thermo. Fits around the solenoid like a glove
-I use a switch in the cabin, as the thermo swich to make it all automaic would've cost me an extra $120+. I like my 5.95 swich and relay, thank you very much.


Anyone know where i can get an adapter to suit my AutoMeter Capillary gauge to fit in the Mini head? Its the same thread, but its just too bloody long.

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yep i stock them but any hydraulic place should be able tp help they are about $18 each and its a 5/8th to 5/8th adaptor you need.

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www.minicranks.com add me to your watch list and come back again soon, under construction.

Okay, so today i actually lifted the radiator, still all connected, and BLURP!!! There goes all the air in the system. It took another 300mls of water, and i hoped this may just do something to help. But, as it is actually a Mini, NO. No bloody help.

-I will try a Rover water pump pulley, maybe the slower pumping will help in some way?
-I know the thermostat is good, it always cools to the same point on the gauge when i get out of traffic, and that is as low as it sits on cold mornings. Would seem okay to me.
-The temp gauge would also seem okay, as i have prevously had an Electric AutoMeter connected, and 'red' on the factory gauge would appear to be around 200*F. *I think*
-So, i will now have to remove the rad, put back the ol' side-mount for a week, and get the coolant flow changed in the Front Mount. I should've done that today, in my day off, but i actually wanted a day off, not a day of working on Minis. And i just came back from Bathurst. (There's another story for later)

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