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Any other options for radiators out there? I was told multiple time over the week end that the front of my car smelled of antifreeze. there were no leaks from the engine, it wasn't burning coolant, and the coolant level never went down drastically. But I think it may be weeping just the slightest bit from the tubes/ tank junction

Taking that off my wish list.....

I know of two guys with Mishimoto rads on their Evos and have no problems. Im surprised both Koyo and Mishi fail so hard on the Legacy rads.

I had them "fix" my endtanks with a metal/epoxy mix they use. They sweat it into the ends like you do with copper water pipes.

Curious how well it will hold.

My epoxy job has failed. I need a new radiator, has anyone found another solution or had a recent Mishimoto?

OEM is more than up to the cooling job, and should last the life of your car at this point.

mike-tracy wrote:OEM is more than up to the cooling job, and should last the life of your car at this point.

Even on my race car? That's what I need it for. I am skeptical of the stock keeping up, that thick Koyo with strong fans had a hard time keeping up at the Colorado hill climbs once the air got thin.

bmxpunk wrote:

mike-tracy wrote:OEM is more than up to the cooling job, and should last the life of your car at this point.

Even on my race car? That's what I need it for. I am skeptical of the stock keeping up, that thick Koyo with strong fans had a hard time keeping up at the Colorado hill climbs once the air got thin.

Hmm, I don't know with 100% certainty of course. But there are a couple GC impreza and legacy rally cars that are running OEM SS radiators. Noticed them at the parc expose at Oregon Trail and Olympus Rally this year. I know that's not exactly the same as a hill climb in high altitude, but these guys really push their cars hard.

The stock radiator should be able to keep up just fine. You could also add some Redline water wetter to the cooling system. This will improve the heat transfer capabilitys of the coolant.

How did you check/know the Koyo wasn't keeping up?

unfortunately I can't take the laptop with me so I don't have numbers but when I drive that car around hard, the fans kick on and turn off within about 30 seconds. At Hill climbs I fill the overflow bottle and the fans will stay on for over 5 minutes straight. I am running 2-12" Spal fans. I want to do some ducting once I figure out which radiator.

The fact that the fans are turning on isn't a bad thing and not necessarily an indication things are getting too hot.

The stock radiator with stock fans are more than capable to keep things cool. The stock fans are ducted, which draw more air through the radiator compared to Spal fans.

Still looking for a radiator option. Anyone recently bought the Mishimoto?

Its definitely the fans, maybe moreover the lack of ducting around them, that isn't helping my cooling issues.

I ran the car tonight just to make sure the cooling system was bled. Was playing around with the infrared temp gun... WOW! Of course the fans kick on at 200* but just after the they shut off, the fins behind the fans drop to 150 while the fins on either side of the fans are still 200! and that's with 25* temps outside!

Tyler,

Do you have a picture of your setup with the fans and radiator?

Here is the best I could do in the dark. The fans are offset closer to their respective inlet and outlet.

Tyler,

You really need some ducting on those fans. They really are not very effective with how they're setup. Was it a space issue as to why you got rid of the stock fans with the ducting?

I still maintain that the stock radiator in good working condition with the stock ducted fans is more than capable of keeping the engine cool. Adding some Redline water wetter to the cooling system helps as well.

Have you tried the stock radiator, with stock fans, and the appropriate amount of water wetter? What percentage antifreeze to water do you run?

It was a bit of a space issue. I may or may not have hit the front of the car on a ditch and used a tow strap to pull it back out when I was younger to hide it from my parents.... I may use this winter to cut out the radiator support and replace it/build a better skid plate support.

Also, when I did the swap I didn't have a stock radiator, I went with the Koyo from the get go. I don't think i have the stock fans anymore either.

I run 50/50 for coolant with water wetter since this is Wyoming and more than once in the last 365 days we have seen -30F temps. To be honest I drove it last night to our cross country ski race after work.

I have 2 or 3 pairs of legacy turbo radiator fans if you want to purchase a pair.

You had me convinced on a stock radiator Josh but SoA only has one left (maybe) and its $310. It's still a possibility though. Ordered new radiator supports so I can get everything square and will go from there

I have an aftermarket OE replacement one on my wagon for 7 years now holding up fine, including autocross duty. Don't remember the brand though. They have the same size core as OEM.

If you can find a koyo replacement radiator with plastic endtanks that would be comparable to the stock one.

I've been looking for almost 2 hours now and can't find the Koyo A1819 or C1819 anywhere, nor a modine or fluidyne equivalent.

Anyone had any experience with a Spectra? Also I have seen conflicting reports that the stock radiator was 2 row while these replacements are 1 row.

Maybe time to throw in the towel for another R1819 or come up with something from a newer car?

Of course maybe I am just over-thinking all of this as per usual...

If you guys are interested in coming up with a better solution, I can talk to the guys over at Griffin radiator to see about how much they could make one for. They don't have anything for the legacy turbo yet, but if I tell them the problems with other aftermarket radiators they may be able to help. I figure if we have a few people willing, they would be a reasonably priced alternative (probably not the cheapest, but quite possibly better quality for a comparable price). I used to work literally next door to their production facilities, and I could find some time to run by their facilities.

I would be interested as long as it wasn't more than an OEM one.

bmxpunk wrote:

mike-tracy wrote:OEM is more than up to the cooling job, and should last the life of your car at this point.

Even on my race car? That's what I need it for. I am skeptical of the stock keeping up, that thick Koyo with strong fans had a hard time keeping up at the Colorado hill climbs once the air got thin.

Old post, but worth rehashing.

The stock Legacy turbo cooling system is incredible. I run the car HARD on 15 mile rally stages in the summer and my water temperature actually decreases slightly because its pushing so much fluid at high RPMs. Stock radiator, VF11 turbo, regular old Prestone 50/50 mix and stock pressure cap.

As long as the stock radiator is still going strong I'll stick with it. Even if it blows or gets punctured by a stick/rock during my off-road high speed excursions, I'll replace it with another stocker.

MConte05 wrote:

bmxpunk wrote:

mike-tracy wrote:OEM is more than up to the cooling job, and should last the life of your car at this point.

Even on my race car? That's what I need it for. I am skeptical of the stock keeping up, that thick Koyo with strong fans had a hard time keeping up at the Colorado hill climbs once the air got thin.

Old post, but worth rehashing.

The stock Legacy turbo cooling system is incredible. I run the car HARD on 15 mile rally stages in the summer and my water temperature actually decreases slightly because its pushing so much fluid at high RPMs. Stock radiator, VF11 turbo, regular old Prestone 50/50 mix and stock pressure cap.

As long as the stock radiator is still going strong I'll stick with it. Even if it blows or gets punctured by a stick/rock during my off-road high speed excursions, I'll replace it with another stocker.

You guys have me convinced, It's just finding the stock one that has me worried with 1 left at any Subaru warehouse in the US. What are the chances after that is gone they will bring in more for a 20+ year old car. Maybe I will snag it. Unless someone knows of one used...
MConte- are you using any type of oil cooler?