New radiator,...and fan

[wetminkey]

I've questioned the cars' original radiator ever since a 2017 minor front end collision in a parking lot. A 'weepy' moisture spot in the garage verified that it was getting worse. A friends' attempt at solder repair did nothing,...maybe made it worse.
Plan B: new radiator,...but then there's those bigger, highly efficient fans!
Anyway,...my car is auto tranny, so my choices were limited for the radiator. Bought my 14" fan from the same vender after calling to ask about fit. I was told that both the radiator and fan would fit just fine,...
Well, first the fan did NOT bolt up to the radiator - it is expected to be 'zip-tied', through the cooling fins, to the rear of the radiator. Vender told me that this method is "state of the art",...and I said "B.S.". I don't care if it is, I mounted my new fan properly, by simply fab'ing a short, straight aluminum bracket for the Spiders' 'third' fan mounting point:

The fans' mounting holes on the passengers' side are too close together to bolt into the nuts welded into the new radiators' mounting tabs, but new holes can be drilled into the new radiators' tabs to mount the right side of the fan (no pic, since there's nothing unusual to see - looks like a factory install,...except that the fan is HUGE!).
And, of course, the radiator does not just bolt in either! The mounting holes are about 1/2" too close to fit properly. But they can sure be "wallered out" to accommodate the radiator bushing and mount to the factory stud as designed.
Nice brass radiator, and very nice 14" e-fan - I like 'em! But I wish that I had been prepared for a custom install, rather than being told that it would fit,...
At least I'm able to alert future buyers.
Motor On!
Todd.

[RRoller123]

Agreed. Zip ties for this sort of application is utter nonsense.

[wetminkey]

The radiator is slightly lighter than the factory brass radiator, but of good quality, and of better cooling-fin design. Of eastern European manufacture, I think,...holes in the tabs just don't quite line up. And I swapped out the cap that came with it for my NAPA one,...
E-fan has a very nice, heavy-duty frame, and runs very QUIET, compared to my original! It has four mounting points and right-angle mounting brackets that insert into the frame. Again, I used the two on the right, and the upper left (with my aluminum bracket) - it will not bolt to the radiators' fan mounting holes. I would guess that the fan is of Chinese origin.
Easy install, once I figured out exactly how I was going to do it. And I must say, I really like it! 14" of fan lowers the coolant temp QUICK! It also uses less amperage than my ol' stock 10" fan - lighter too.
Nice upgrade for the Spider.

[DieselSpider]

I will be having to consider this in the future however there is no room whatsoever between the water pump on the diesel engine and the radiator for the engine driven fan so the electric fan has already been relocated in front of the radiator.

Zip tying a fan through the radiator tubes to me is just a recipe for failure since the ties after a while are going to wear through the tubes especially if your in a dusty or muddy location.

[SteinOnkel]

Your BS meter is correctly calibrated

If you want to take it to the next level, build a shroud. Air needs to stick around in the radiator for a bit, so having a back wall it can't easily flow through is great for heat exchange.

The cleanest way to do it is with some CAD work and a laser cutter. If you are good with cutting sheet metal, you can do it by hand.

I run this in the Derby: https://s-pautomotive.com/product/sp-radiators/

It's a beast of a radiator and the shroud works as well as it looks.

[unkelkennie]

I have a question for you about the fan..The 69 124 I have had the motor changed to a 1800 and the timing cover would not fit on because of the depth of the fan.. My question to you is the fan you purchased thinner than stock ?

[wetminkey]

Not by much. It's hard to guess the depth of the fan at the hub, but it comes within about 1/2" of my water pump pulley hub.
The fan's rear hub is much smaller than the stock fan, but the fan cannot be mounted to the radiator in a way to avoid the pulley's hub,...the rest of the fan is thinner than stock.

[unkelkennie]

Thanks