Radiator for cobra

[CSCOBRA03]

What radiator do you track dogs recommend for a 03 cobra that is used for open tracking .Last year at Road America I was running to hot.I was also thinking about installing the head cooling mod.
My mods are larger inter cooler heat exchanger, 2.9 super charger pulley,tune,suspenson and brake mods and nitto nt01 tires.

 

[racebronco2]

A bigger radiator is not going to help much. You really need to get the air out of the engine compartment. You will need to also put a bigger pulley on, like a 3.10 or stock size depending on your cooling mods, outside temps and driving style.

 

[brkntrxn]

Carlos is right, you need to get the air out of the engine compartment to create a flow through the radiator. A lot of the guys on here have done great work in boxing in the radiator, a search may reveal some of their threads.

As for upgrading to a better radiator, I like my LFP unit. 18 fins per inch or something like that. A lot more capacity as well.

 

[wheelhopper]

I must be lucky with my '03 Cobra. I have never hit limp mode. One of the guys I track with says my car is an odd one compared to most other Cobras because of this.

I have a 2# lower pulley, a 2.8 upper, and a ported eaton. If your supercharger is not ported I recomend it. On top of getting you another 35-40rwhp, it will also heats the incoming air a little less. I also use a Fluidyne H/E wich probably help intake temps as well.

I would recomend the head cooling mod. I have it and if nothing else, increases your coolant capacity a little more. As well as doing what it is supposed to do, which is get that hot coolant out of the back of the drivers side head faster.

I also have ceramic coated long tube headers. This moves the hot exhaust away from the engine faster. As well as adding another 35+hp to the '03-'04 Cobras.

A lot of the OT guys will tell you not to worry about engine upgrades and to focus on driver improvement and suspension/brake mods. This is true to an extent. But my theory is since I have 500rwhp, my motor does not have to work as hard to get around the track as someon who is making 350rwhp. While a stock Cobra my be making this at 6000rpm, I am making that much at 3500rpm. Therefore my motor is going to run cooler at the same hp level.

Also, get a custom OT tune from your tuner. It will make a little less hp than your street tune but should allow the engine to run cooler by adding a little more fuel and pulling out a few degrees of timing.

 

[sonic cobra]

I'm struggling with cooling issues as well. I took the car to a local race car builder and he said the Ford engineers did a pretty good job boxing the radiator. His only suggestion was a larger radiator.I figure a larger radiator and heat exchanger can't hurt. I like the idea of coated headers to get the exhaust heat out of the engine bay, but prefer shorties or midlengths rather than long tubes. I really like wheelhoppers suggestion for an OT tune. Running a little more fuel should cool things down a bit. And I would rather do that than change back to larger pully.
I can usually get through the session by running the heater. That would indicate to me, that we need just that little bit of extra cooling capacity.
So at a minimum, I'm looking at Fluidyne rad and Gords HE and perhaps the JBA titanium coated shorties. The cooling mod will go in when the clutch goes or when the eaton goes for porting, whichever comes first.

 

[racebronco2]

I'm struggling with cooling issues as well. I took the car to a local race car builder and he said the Ford engineers did a pretty good job boxing the radiator. His only suggestion was a larger radiator.I figure a larger radiator and heat exchanger can't hurt. I like the idea of coated headers to get the exhaust heat out of the engine bay, but prefer shorties or midlengths rather than long tubes. I really like wheelhoppers suggestion for an OT tune. Running a little more fuel should cool things down a bit. And I would rather do that than change back to larger pully.
I can usually get through the session by running the heater. That would indicate to me, that we need just that little bit of extra cooling capacity.
So at a minimum, I'm looking at Fluidyne rad and Gords HE and perhaps the JBA titanium coated shorties. The cooling mod will go in when the clutch goes or when the eaton goes for porting, whichever comes first.

I must disagree with your engine builder. The radiator is not boxed in very good, it must be boxed in completely along with the heat exchanger. A bigger radiator and h/e will not allow your car to run any cooler. The only mod that will do that is bigger hood vents. Headers will help to keep the heat out of the heads but will not do anything for cooling. The smaller the pulley the hotter your car will run. I am going to long tubes but i was running jba shorties. Running richer might have small effect on running cooler but that could be due to not making as much hp. A ported eaton car will actually run warmer then a stock engine due to the add hp, more hp = more heat.

 

[wheelhopper]

Sonic cobra, you can get the Evenflow head mod kit installed with the trans and blower in the car. I had mine done at Excessive Motorsports in VA. It took the mechanic about 1 hour to get it installed.

Carlos, you are right about the loss of hp with my track tune. I do lose some horsepower compared to my street tune, but not much. 500rwhp for the track tune, 526rwhp for the street tune.

The way I look at it is every little bit helps. If I run 5 degrees cooler cause of my tune, another 5 because my ceramic long tubes, and maybe another 5 from the whatever other little I items I can do, it may be enough for me to avoid hitting limp mode and making my engine last a little longer. So far I have never hit limp mode. I have also run hard in 97-98 degree days. So my combo is working so far. My next plan is to install a KB 2.8H. That blower has to work much less to make the same power as the eaton. I think I should be able to run a little cooler with that as well.

 

[Lumpydogs]

A few years ago, someone had posted an article written about removing the Hood to Cowl Seal during track events and top speed runs. Evidently removing the seal allows for extra air flow out of the engine compartment and reduced drag. I have no idea if this has been proven or not.

Any thoughts???

p.s. The seal is on there to prevent engine heat and fumes/exhaust from getting into the cabin via the cowl vents.

 

[racebronco2]

Carlos, you are right about the loss of hp with my track tune. I do lose some horsepower compared to my street tune, but not much. 500rwhp for the track tune, 526rwhp for the street tune.

The way I look at it is every little bit helps. If I run 5 degrees cooler cause of my tune, another 5 because my ceramic long tubes, and maybe another 5 from the whatever other little I items I can do, it may be enough for me to avoid hitting limp mode and making my engine last a little longer.

My next plan is to install a KB 2.8H. That blower has to work much less to make the same power as the eaton. I think I should be able to run a little cooler with that as well.

I haven't read any posts/datalogging that indicates headers actually help our cars run cool. I didn't notice any temp difference when i installed headers. The main reason i installed headers is to keep the heat away from the exhaust ports. Installing the kb 2.8h will reduce engine temps as long as you run the same boost but why spend thousands for a few more degrees of cooling. Why not buy a carbon fiber hood. The hood i will have available soon will be modeled after the cobra hood with the opening 2 deeper. Testing i have done with the stock hood is decreased temps of 10-15 degrees for around 500.00.

A few years ago, someone had posted an article written about removing the Hood to Cowl Seal during track events and top speed runs. Evidently removing the seal allows for extra air flow out of the engine compartment and reduced drag. I have no idea if this has been proven or not.

Any thoughts???

p.s. The seal is on there to prevent engine heat and fumes/exhaust from getting into the cabin via the cowl vents.

I did some testing with yarn and it isn't true, above the hood at the cowl is a high pressure area and under the hood is a low pressure causing the yarn to go into that area at speeds as low as 20mph.

 

[sonic cobra]

I appreciate all the good info guys.
I am running just a 3.00 pully exactly because I didn't want to create too much heat. I haven't actually gone limp yet but I keep an eye on the temp gauge on the odometer while on track and it regularly hits 111 to 115*C which is too close to 240*F for me. With the heater on, I seem to stabalize at about 110C/230F.
If that little extra helps then the small, incremental improvements wheelhopper mentioned , should have a measurable benefit.
I was disappointed in the response I got from the guy who builds tube frame race cars (mostly funny cars and oval short track racers). Maybe he just didn't want to bother with what I told him would always remain a street car. I went to him because of jimmysidecar and others who have been championing the boxed radiator idea.
Truth is, no one I've spoken to on track last year would show me any work they did to increase air flow into and/or out of the engine bay. The solution I heard most often was to run with the heater on full blast with the vents pointed toward the open passenger window. Some of those guys already had the radiator and HE upgrades with the smaller pully and still ran with the heater on. Too bad Jimmysidecar is all the way out in texas!
I've been on this site since 2002 and never made a single modification without researching and confirming each mod with the SVTP guys before pulling the trigger. By doing so, I have not had to make a single post on the "mods you regret" thread.
I have a proper temp gauge in hand which I will install very soon(another tip of the cap to Jimmysidecar for his installation howto) and an infrared temp guage, both of which will help quantify the results with the new Rad and HE, I should have installed before the spring.
Nothing more frustrating than spending the first 15 minutes of a session reeling in someone who should be just a little bit better or faster than me and then pull up behind him and have to back off because the engine temps just went into the red!
In any event, an interesting mental exercise to help pass the winter months!
Oh! and by the way, I have always loved the looks of the stock Cobra hood! Makes the car IMO.

 

[wheelhopper]

I use the temp gauge in the factory cluster as well. Mine has never been any higher than 112c.

The reason I am switching to the KB is not only for the cooler running blower but I will run less boost, and get a little more power. The idea is to not only run cooler but to put less strain on the rotating assembly and heads from the boost. Now I probably would not buy the KB to do this, but I have had my 2.8H sitting in my garage now for over a year. Prior to that I had a KB 2.6 that I never even used. Once I got my hands on the 2.8H I sold the 2.6. A friend of mine gets the latest blower every year. So when the Mammoth came out, he sold me the 2.8H cheap, that is the same way I got his 2.6.

 

[racebronco2]

This mod will reduce you engine temps by 10 -15 degree. I made it so that it would still have the cobra hood lines. Should have some carbon fiber ones in the next few months.

 

[racebronco2]

I use the temp gauge in the factory cluster as well. Mine has never been any higher than 112c.

The reason I am switching to the KB is not only for the cooler running blower but I will run less boost, and get a little more power. The idea is to not only run cooler but to put less strain on the rotating assembly and heads from the boost. Now I probably would not buy the KB to do this, but I have had my 2.8H sitting in my garage now for over a year. Prior to that I had a KB 2.6 that I never even used. Once I got my hands on the 2.8H I sold the 2.6. A friend of mine gets the latest blower every year. So when the Mammoth came out, he sold me the 2.8H cheap, that is the same way I got his 2.6.

That makes perfect sense.

 

[TroyV]

This mod will reduce you engine temps by 10 -15 degree. I made it so that it would still have the cobra hood lines. Should have some carbon fiber ones in the next few months.

I'm in for a hood 100%. PM or email when you have it ready.

 

[camp upshur]

Racebronco2

Very nice hood, this is number one on my current project list. What are your thoughts on placing venting further aft atop the hood, such as SVT modeled one of their prototypes.

Reason for asking is that the stock (or enhanced) stock vents pose a fairly obtuse angle for the fan's wash (and the ambient heated air underhood) ??

Thanks

 

[racebronco2]

The reason i lowered the hood vents was to get a direct path from the radiator. The hood on my car does have them further back (per discussion with paul brown) but to get it done out of carbon fiber would cost more and the actual temp was about 5 degrees less.
Here are the vents

Here is thew front of the hood

Here is the rear of the hood, extended hood back 2 3/4 inches

 

[racebronco2]

When the fans kick-in i can feel the warm air just by placing my hand outside the car near the a-piller, car just idling of course. Here is another picture of the car from the front with a splitter on it.

 

[gregscott]

I'm in for a hood 100%. PM or email when you have it ready.

Plan on shipping two to the right (east) coast, where does the line form?

 

[Maynor]

Racebronco... what were the parameters and conditions you used to confirm the 10 - 15 degree drop in temp? If the hood really drop engine temps by that much.. I am so in!

One other question, that 00R wing and splitter.. where did you get those from. Those are the next mods to my car after the cage is completed this month.

 

[gregscott]

When the fans kick-in i can feel the warm air just by placing my hand outside the car near the a-piller, car just idling of course. Here is another picture of the car from the front with a splitter on it.

Are those 10th anniversary wheels?