Upgraded Ron Davis Radiator

I can't speak for him and it does sound like he's not running the flexalite controller with thermostat, but mine came with a probe you stuck in the radiator fins near the upper radiator hose. I believe this is where the instructions tell you to install it for the most accurate reading.

 

I didnt use anything special, just a switch that activates the relay that turns the fan on. I have had thermostatic controllers fail on me in the desert, and thats no good lol

 

Thanks again. If I go with the electric fan, I'll be going with a thermostat controller. I'm sure I'd forget to turn on the fan and screw something up. A number of controllers have an option to wire in a manual switch as well.

 

When your build get to where mine is at, you don't forget important things anymore. There is no room for laziness

 

@Torspd did you just use washers to secure the water pump pulley or did you find something else to make up the thickness of the clutch fan base? I’ve got a RD setup on order and looking for something a little more aesthetically pleasing than washers.

I’ll try and get a P/N from them when they complete the radiator for anyone that wants a taller FJ unit with an integrated tranny cooler for the auto. Maybe save someone the customization costs...

 

Neither. Just the nuts themselves. They work fine.

 

I went back through some of your installed pictures, looks like you have the aluminum NST pulleys. That’s probably the extra thickness needed. The stock steel pulley is thin enough material that the shank of the water pump stud is exposed, preventing the nuts from seating. Looks like three standard washers would be required per stud. The nst pulley must be about right to not require washers.

 

You are absolutely correct. I had forgotten about that.

Do you have the original waterpump nuts installed? They are countersunk on the underside to allow them to fit over the shank, more so than a regular nut.

 

I have the original pully and nuts and can confirm it needed spacers still. About 1/4" or slightly less to make up

 

Only took a mer 16 weeks, but here she be. This is a slightly taller version than the Tacoma spec It has an integrated tranny cooler that the Spal fans were shifted around to accommodate the ports. It also has an integrated recovery tank, so you don’t have to get creative with a new tank location. In retrospect, I may have been able to spec out mounting tabs similar to stock locations to remount the factory tank. However, that certainly wouldn’t have been as shiny.

I’m pairing this with my Autocool guy NB-100 pulse width modulation controller and Bussman RTMR relay box, for power distribution. I’ve drawn out a wiring schematic, and it’s actually turning out to be quite a bit more complex than a simple set of relays. I’ve been uping my wiring game with use of tech flex and MetriPack connectors. Should look good and provide silent, factory like control of the fans.
I’ll report back in a couple of weeks once I get in.

For reference to those that have the TRD supercharger: the overall depth of the unit is 7-1/8” deep. The driver’s side fan motor is directly inline with the supercharger tensioner bracket’s long threaded mounting rod. There SHOULD be just enough space to slide the bracket off for belt changes. I’ll see if I can get a picture of the clearance.

 

Thanks, and I pretty much blame you for this. I really don’t think I needed this much radiator, but as you know things have a bit of a snowball effect and the one you got just looked so good! Anywho, because I wanted the integrated trannny cooler, recovery tank, and temperature sender ports this made the need for a custom jobber. I wasn’t able to capitalize on your efforts to avoid them. At least now if anyone else has an auto and wants to pay out the nose for a sweet piece of engine bling, they have a predesigned option that should save them several hundreds.

Also, for those that question why not just implement a stand alone auxiliary tranny oil cooler, the answer is simply that while an auxiliary cooler is more effective at cooling, an integrated cooler will actually warm the oil quicker as well to bring the tranny to temperature quicker. Ron Davis actually recommends an auxiliary in addition to the integrated cooler just for that fact.

 

You've done well, my friend.

 

Just an update on my radiator and fan controller setup: I've had it installed and fully functional for a few months now. The radiator and fan setup does an amazing job at holding target temperatures! It's also awesome to have the fan controller speed up the fans when the a/c is turned on. The a/c is almost instantly blowing cold, cold air.

I have a couple of significant take a ways from this setup and experience:

-I used Autocool Guy's a/c timing relay "Ice Box" for the a/c signal. I tapped into the a/c clutch fuse location in the engine compartment fuse box. It has been flawless and it was sooooo much easier than my original target of getting the signal under the dash. The FJ and Tacoma are not the same here, so the posting above with the "acid" wire did not work for me. The Ice box is essentially a basic timing relay. It was $50, but it was hard to find a good timing relay on its own that was less expensive.

- the current model of Autocoolguy's fan controller doesn't work perfectly with the SPAL fans. The frequency of the pulse widths is too short resulting in loud buzzing/vibrations that can be felt in the drivers seat. I detest this. The fan and temperature control is top notch, but the vibrations are unlivable. Darryl (Autocoolguy) says he's had a lot of requests for a high frequency controller to combat just this issue. I will be installing one the day its available. He an others have had great luck with this controller and MarkV fans and other stock style fans. I'd honestly switch the superior spals out, if it didn't mean that I'd be jacking up my beautiful shroud. One other solution might be the new generation of PWM fans that SPAL is releasing to the OEM suppliers. They are an all in one kit that looks promising.....but the shroud will need to be designed for them.

- The "160" degree thermostat from URD. So most 1gr-fe trucks with stock thermostats operate from 185-195 degrees F. After market thermostats are advertised at what temperature they start to open at, but not what they maintain. With my massive cooling capacity this thermostat relegates the engine to operate from 191 to 199. This is where the URD thermostat that I recieved opens and the temperature its capable of maintaining. If you want to maintain lower temperatures than the stock thermostat, then I recommend you find the unit that @Torspd posted up once upon a time. I have one and will be installing it asap.

Final thoughts. The Ron Davis radiator is beautiful. It functions brilliantly. The fan controller's function is absolutely awesome and would provide silent operation, but the SPALs don't play nice with the current controllers. Would I do it again? I'm not sure. It was insanely expensive, probably the only costs I've ever not shared with the missus. I think one might be money ahead to get a CSF radiator and make a custom shroud to fit a common after market fan. The dual spals I have are basically overkill many times over in my opinion. I have yet to hear them be pushed hard.... I'd definitely go to an electric fan in heartbeat though.

 

Great review!

My fans are controlled very simply by the kit offered by Ron Davis. Simple and works, but I would like it to operate more like yours.

It is just ON, once the 187 temp is met, until the engine is turned off. No variable speed, nor independent control.

However, then engine can be push extremely hard, and it keeps it well in the safe zone.

 

Thanks! I love the setup and wanted to make sure that before anyone else invests in the same setup, that they know the whole picture as I still have one issue I'm trying to track down. The controller is sweet. You can use the knob on the front to set the target temp, so you could simply turn it down to the warm setting (targets a lower temperature) and it will ramp the fans up at lower settings for track days, then turn it back up to a more livable setting for street use. Or you could simply hit the override switch to bypass the unit and get full fan speed on command (in case of failure or if you want just want them on). While I haven't had any reliability issues, it is a custom made electronic device, Ron's relays are going to be the most reliable control mechanism and will save you a couple of pounds of ballast. Either way, I'd wait for a high freq update before buying one for use with SPALS.

 

@Torspd @DocME
How have your radiators been holding up?

 

Awesome, zero issues here.

 

Good to hear. Looks like Autocoolguy has the high freq controllers now.

 

@DocME , what is the part number of that overflow reservoir? I made mine, but that one is much better.