Modine still the go-to OE radiator?

[fattycharged]

With my E46 slowly coming back to life, I figured I would ditch the Mishimoto radiator I picked up almost a decade ago and get it back to stock cooling. Please advise, I couldn't quickly find the answer in search, so apologies in advance for the new thread.

Figured I would snag the 15% off at FCP and get on with it.

[Tbonem3]

They got bought. I think the name changed, but recent reports have been good.

[elrichmeister]

Looking at current pricing Nissens is the most expensive, and Modine and Genuine are similar in price on FCP Euro. Is that normal?

https://www.fcpeuro.com/BMW-parts/M3/Radiator/?year=2004&m=20&e=196&t=6&b=9&d=600

[Bry5on]

My recent (installed 1.5 yrs ago) Nissens had cooling issues under throttle in high ambient temps, even on the highway. Eventually at 15k miles it burst the seal on the inlet side of the radiator. Switched to NSF/modine after warranty replacement and no issues so far, but it’s been fall/winter.

[D-O]

Put an all aluminum Koyorad in mine when the OEM radiators were on intergalactic backorder. So far, so good.

[nextelbuddy]

I have a nissen in my car bought in 2017, it's been all motor and forced induction to this day and still no issues, stays nice and cool.

I bought another Nissen for my S54 touring project this year and will be installing it soon.

[fattycharged]

Looking at current pricing Nissens is the most expensive, and Modine and Genuine are similar in price on FCP Euro. Is that normal?

https://www.fcpeuro.com/BMW-parts/M3...&t=6&b=9&d=600

looks like someone at FCP noticed, the BMW rad went up almost $100 since you responded

[George Hill]

looks like someone at FCP noticed, the BMW rad went up almost $100 since you responded

Wow, holy cow. I saw that yesterday and was wondering why anyone would buy the Modine at that price delta, but now its a bit harder to justify.

[elrichmeister]

looks like someone at FCP noticed, the BMW rad went up almost $100 since you responded

great 😑

[fattycharged]

great 😑

of course it wasn't me who bought that "underpriced" BMW unit either

[DI46LO]

Timely thread - was about to do the cooling system overhaul on mine in the spring. Is all OE the play or are there some good aftermarket options out there now?

[cornerbalanced]

Put an all aluminum Koyorad in mine when the OEM radiators were on intergalactic backorder. So far, so good.

Also have a Koyorad in my car. Both coolant temps and oil temps have been noticeably lower—the rest of my cooling system is refreshed OE apart from viton o-rings.

With hard driving in the summer, my coolant temp never goes past the middle. Just recently on a long highway drive (40 degree ambient temp) my coolant temp was steady on the first dot and my oil temp was steady at ~180 degrees (well below the middle).

[uberchris]

Bumping an old thread with some new info. I recently started a cooling system refresh after seeing higher than usual temperatures on track. After disassembly, I'm fairly sure the issue was the old, corroded, and clogged AC condenser. But I went forward with the refresh anyways.

After reading this thread, I ordered the Modine marked OE from FCP Euro. I received an NRF box, with what I feel to be a marginally worse than OE part inside. Specifically, the NRF radiator:

• uses a different type of plastic than the genuine BMW unit, that feels poorly casted and cheaper
• is noticeably lighter overall (I made sure the original radiator was completely empty before making the comparison)
• is a few mm thinner
• has a metal fan bracket attached with pop rivets as opposed to the plastic
• came with several bent fins (though otherwise appears to be brand new)

Here are some pictures showing the two side by side. The NRF unit is probably fine, but definitely a step down. For me personally, I'm going to splurge for a new genuine unit, or maybe even the do88.

[bavarian3]

+1 to uberchris sentiment. I wish I had gone with Genuine.

The fins are very soft in comparison, and I had fitment issues.

[bmwfnatic]

+1 to uberchris sentiment. I wish I had gone with Genuine.

The fins are very soft in comparison, and I had fitment issues.

Wouldn’t have made a difference, you get the same thing, we concluded that in another thread on this forum.