My '82 Explorer has what I think is a fairly light-duty radiator although the truck has the C6, A/C, and 351W. The part # that I've found on the top of that unit is ED-E2TH BLA. And, the radiator itself w/o the tanks measures roughly 27 1/2" wide, 19 1/2" high, and 1 1/2" thick.

The '82 Lariat XLT parts truck, which was equipped identically to the Explorer, has a radiator that is 2 1/4" thick but matches the Explorer's radiator in all other dimensions. However, I can't find any #'s on it.

Given that the Lariat's radiator is 50% thicker I'm planning to send it off to a radiator shop, assuming I can find a good one in the Tulsa area, and have it gone through before pressing it into service. But, I guess I'd better ask you'uns before I spend the money to have this one gone through: Is there another radiator that would be significantly better?

My intent is to use the truck to tow whatever I want to tow, short of a huge RV, in the OK heat that has been know to get to 114 degrees - and use the A/C while doing so. Yes, I know there are concerns about the load rating of the truck, and yes I'll have an add-on tranny cooler, but want your input on radiator selection.

 

Make sure you compare the price of a new radiator at the parts stores to having the other one dipped and cleaned. If you go online to autozone or your favorite parts store, plug in your truck, they usually have a selection of 2 or 3 radiators for your truck. They may even have one bigger than the large radiator you have already. I bought a all aluminum radiator for my diesel off ebay, and have been happy with it so far.

 

I just replaced the radiator in my truck (86 f250 5.0 manual 4x efi) and upgraded from a 1 row to a 2 row. The new one's a spectra CU1451 and got it for $110. One thing I ran into was that the new radiator didn't allow me to directly attach the fan cowl to it so I had to engineer something that allowed me to attach the cowl to the radiator. Took about 10 minutes to figure that out. Other than that, for my truck anyway, everything else fell into place.

 

What engine did the parts truck have in it?

 

The parts truck also has a 351W. Pretty sure he said it had the exact same engine/trans/rear axle ratio as his truck.

Gary, I bet you could buy a new radiator for less than the cost of having the old one gone thru. Just buy another one exactly like the parts truck has. There are only 2 physical sizes of radiators for these trucks (not counting 460/diesel engines). The other size is much smaller, and was a 6 cyl no A/C, like my truck has.
The difference is thickness, which is dependant on the number of "rows". The thicker it is, the more rows it has, and the better it will cool.
If buying a new one, go with as many rows as possible, providing the cost doesn't go up by a huge margin. Usually, a 2-3 row isn't but a few dollars more than a 1 row, but it's worth so much more here in the summer.......

 

If the parts truck has the 351 then there will be no problem putting it in the other truck.

It's just the difference between super cooling and/or A/C, and regular cooling without A/C.

The only problems arise with the differences between the cooling systems on the 300-6 compared to the v8's.

The 300-6 flows backwards to all the others and the cap is on the other side, etc...

--------------------------------------------------

300-6: Standard and Extra Cool: 13 quarts : Row 2: Core width 21 5/8": Core hight 19 5/8": Core Depth 1 1/4"


300-6: Air Conditioning and/or Super Cooling: 14 quarts: Row 2: Core width 27 1/2": Core hight 19 5/8": Core Depth 1 1/4"



---------------------------------------------------

302-8 and 351W: Standard and Extra Cooling: 13 quarts (302) or 15 quarts (351W): : Row 2: Core width 27 1/2": Core hight 19 5/8": Core Depth 1 1/8"

302-8 and 351W: A/C and/or Super cooling: 14 quarts (302) or 16 quarts (351W): Row 3: Core width 27 1/2": Core hight 19 5/8": Core Depth 2"

 

Gary, I am in the Tulsa area too. I just rebuilt my 302 and C6 in my 86. I bought a new radiator from autozone. Its a 2-row. I have been driving it around today and it has stayed cool. Its all aluminum. My motor is still breaking in also so it should be creating a little more heat. Its done just fine.

 

x2 on the Autozone Super Cooling aluminum rad. Temp gauge is rock steady since I replaced my original on my 351W last month. We're just getting into the SC heat, and have had a few 98* days, stop & go driving in the city with no problems.

 

RW is right, the parts truck had the same engine (351W), tranny (C6), and gears (3.50) as the Explorer, and both had A/C.

As for aftermarket radiators, I had already looked online, but what I'd found at Amazon as well as elsewhere was ~$250 and most of those use plastic tanks. But, with your urging I checked O'Reilly and found a 3-row all copper and brass at $140. And, they have a 4-row although it isn't availble on-line so I'd have to call the store to find the price. Further, both have limited life-time warranties, which in O'Reilly's case is transferable.

We don't have an Autozone in Skiatook, but I can check w/them as well. In any event, new at $140 w/a warranty does look better than dropping that kind of money into reworking one. However, that doesn't fit too well with the "Honey, look how much I saved with the parts truck" line.

Anyway, thanks!

 

LOL. I don't have that problem anymore......
Of course, it cost me nearly everything I had, but it was worth it.