Hello all
From my talks with other british car owners, messages on this
newsletter and personal experiences with my own Sunbeam Tiger, I think
keeping the engines cool is a common thread.
My experiences are with a car that previously would run at ~220 (or
slightly more) on the freeway when the outside air was near 90. I had the
radiator recored, taking the advice of the local radiator shop: I had a
three row with normal size tubes installed in place of a four row with
smaller tubes. The rationale was that the greater flow would aid cooling
back to the engine. The aggregate wisdom (now) in the Tiger club is that
the optimium core is an XL that has specially designed tubes and fins. Keep
in mind that in Tigers, a crossflow radiator is used.
The next step, taken 2 months ago was the installation of a new
fan. FORD (I know, not a LBC) still sells a 6 bladed fan with a steel
center and aluminum blades that really pulls the air. Of course, for the
tiger, it doesn't just bolt on; someone has to enlarge the center hole to
1" and trim the blades down so they don't hit the steering rack. Once this
is done, it installs with minimal knuckle scraping on the radiator and loss
of blood. The fan pulls more air on the freeway than 55 (or 65 or...)
does! Fan noise is noticable near 3000 and at 4000 I'm ready to pull back
on the stick and take to the air. However, I can cool the engine at a stop
light by burning gas at 2500 rpm. Before, it was get off the freeway, take
the route that kept the car moving and park it for to cool. If I got stuck
in traffic, the temp gauage fell over to 250 very quickly. I am a happy
camper now.
Of course, the Tiger is still a very warm car to drive in the
summer. Top down, sun shining down, heat pouring off the transmission
tunnel (typical LBC, no heater in the winter, 260 cu in heater in the
summer :-) ). But I survive and love it.
FYI, the ford number for the fan is C9DZ8600A
the number on each blade is different!
My plans still include buying a second hood to have louvres put in and
maybe looking into an oil cooler. I have intentions of trying to stay
stock but may stray a bit.
John Hess, PhD Phone me 916 752 8420
Dept of Human Anatomy FAX me 916 752 8520
University of Calif Email me jfhess@ucdavis.edu
Davis, CA or leave me alone, your choice.
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