Cooling Woes

[m3f_bl79]

OK, so heres yet another cooling overhaul thread.



My original plan was to just order the bimmerworld overhaul kit with their Al radiator, along with their SPAL fan kit and be done with it.



Unfortunately Im told their radiator is on back order and they arent even sure if they will be making it anymore.



So now I go looking at other radiators with the mishimoto drawing my eye. After some searching I find that it is a PITA to mount with the stock shroud, which also makes me wonder about the SPAL kit from bimmerworld. So now Im looking at the zionsville shroud with alloy expansion tank and the mishimoto shroud with the 16" SPAL fan.



Is my best bet just to buy the:

-Mishimoto Radiator

-Mishimoto Shroud(which includes fan...?)

-Stewart water pump

-New thermostat and housing

-OEM expansion tank and cooling sensor

-Maybe a fan wiring kit? Or is that included with the shroud.



Im a bit confused about the whole thing and would like to get these parts ordered ASAP.



Also, anyone have the best place to order the shroud and radiator from Mishimoto for cheap?



Thanks guys

[m3f_das borgen]

mishimoto radiator with Zionsville shroud/tank





http://www.m3forum.net/m3forum/showthread.php?t=329781



fan wiring is NOT included with the Zionsville kit but you can get a relayed wiring harness on ebay for 12 bucks (liek I did )

[m3f_cracky]

i just mounted my mishimoto with the stock shroud...wasnt a pita at all.

if you look on bimmerforums (m3 section ) theres apparently some shop in cali that will send you the mishi for a good price.

lower than they advertise.


edit: Boombop racing

[m3f_bl79]

OK thanks guys. Anyone have any experience with the Mishimoto fan shroud? Im drawn to it just because its ~300 cheaper than the zionsville(when including fan) and I like the idea of just having it mount right it without any modifying, a huge plus when its hovering around 20* and you have no garage to work in.

[m3f_Supered ///M]

i just mounted my mishimoto with the stock shroud...wasnt a pita at all.

if you look on bimmerforums (m3 section ) theres apparently some shop in cali that will send you the mishi for a good price.

lower than they advertise.



edit: Boombop racing

+1 mishimoto with stock setup is not a PITA at all. What you will need to do is get out a dremel and modify the shroud a bit (if you want the overflow hose to sit nicely).



You will also need a couple bolts/zip ties to hold the shroud to the mishimoto radiator and the holes might not line up properly so maybe you'll need to drill a hole. I wouldn't use the shroud not lining up properly with the radiator as a reason to not use mishimoto setup with stock fan assembly. I maybe spent an extra 10 minutes modifying my shroud so things fit nicely.

[m3f_Synenergy52]

+1 stock. I've done quite a complete cooling systems on BMWs (including a few E36s). I don't see what the big deal is about the stock radiator. Lets say you put in a (insert your favorite alum radiator here), what about the rest of the stuff? Thermostat, belts, tensioner pulleys, water pump (assuming you didn't install a stewart pump). You're going to be "in there" anyway. A new stock radiator is only $150 Once you put in a new stock system, you won't be in there for another 80,000 miles or so. That's quite a long time, a few years for most. Just save the money. I like everything in my cars to fit properly. No cutting, dremeling if I can help it

[m3f_cracky]

Its hardly a big deal to do that modification. It really isnt. You are talking about taking off millimeters of a plastic tab...it fits properly.


that said mine didnt require any modifcation. maybe I got lucky but I have about 1mm of clearance in that area,which is more than enough. I just bolted it in.

+1 on the bolts(M6 x12 is what i used). You need two of them.


The mishimoto rad shroud does have some bad fitment...at least according to most. Read more on bimmerforums before you buy.


I did the fan delete mod(checking understeer.com) so i have no fan...ok not fully true. My aux fan is functioning properly. All is well right now. I may add an electric fan over winter for the added protection. But how its been operating in these temps. The fan would not have even turned on yet.

[m3f_bl79]

OK, Ill more than likely just get the mishimoto and adjust the stock shroud accordingly. Then I can probably just use bimmerworlds kit to mount up the SPAL which I assume would work just as well on the mishimoto as the oem radiator, Ill have to ask them.


Thanks for the help guys.

[m3f_Supered ///M]

one other thing that wasnt mentioned. The mishimoto radiator has holes that are too big for the rubber grommets that hold the stock radiator clips in place. You'll probably want to seal them in place so the radiator doesn't move

[m3f_bl79]

Yeah I had read that. I think someones solution was to just wrap it up in electrical tape a few times. Sounds good to me?

[m3f_cracky]

ya I used electrical tape. no biggie.


the spal will work well on the mishimoto. Though youll likely have to make custom fan mounts. (easier than it sounds)

[m3f_das borgen]

one other thing that wasnt mentioned. The mishimoto radiator has holes that are too big for the rubber grommets that hold the stock radiator clips in place. You'll probably want to seal them in place so the radiator doesn't move

it was mentioned in the thread I linked

[m3f_Supered ///M]

it was mentioned in the thread I linked

i didn't open ur link

[m3f_JPoland]

But how its been operating in these temps. The fan would not have even turned on yet.

So long as you're not spending much time stopped or at very low speeds then it probably hasn't but if you do idle for a while once the car is up to temp it will kick on, the low outdoor temp won't do a thing if you're not moving.

[m3f_cracky]

True to a point but it would have to be for a while.


For me,no traffic light is that long to have to worry about it(at least so far since its cold now). Even in traffic and really low speeds its been good so far. Max temp (my gauge reads from the tb coolant line off the head+my gauge has a peak and hold feature) has been 191-192 F for me and its only hit that once or twice.

My car runs between 185-189F(fully warm) so far since Ive done the mods. Ambient temps have ranged from 9-37F.


Youd be surprised at how much of a difference the colder ambient temps make..even just sitting there. (especially since its been rather windy lately)


On one of my older turbo cars in the summer...i would hear the fan frequently...in the winter it rarely if ever came on. But it can get really cold here.

Even parking the car for 1/2 hour -1 hour in the cold winter,the coolant temp will drop below 170 and my stock gauge will be hovering below fully warm for the first bit when I get back in. It wont do that in the summer time. You would have to park it for a lot longer to get the temps down that much.


Temps can and do get down to -13F at some points during the winter around here.

Avg winter temp is more in the 15F range. Just giving you an idea of the what ambient temps I see and have experienced over the years.

The fact that its been mostly windy here since Ive done the mods is definitely playing a roll in all that. And everyone will experience differences in their set up/environment.


Edit: just went through a long drive through. idling for about 10 mins.Not super long ..but enough..and temps actually dropped. Held steady at about 183F.

I do have a stewart pump.