My stock radiator is leaking a bit between the plastic tank and the core.. Has anyone here had any experience good or bad with the BPD full aluminum radiator? I'm having a hard time justifying almost twice as much $$ for a Mishimoto when in my mind any full aluminum radiator that doesn't leak right off the bat should be very reliable.

Thanks!

 

It looks to me like they simply modded a stock tank and added aluminum end tanks as opposed to the plastic ones. It's better than stock, but there are better options...

When mine cracked at the end of July 2015, I installed a Mishimoto radiator and my truck has been happy ever since.


Consider installing their 200 degree thermostat too. The monster seems to like that too.

I would also recommend sourcing something similar to the fumoto drain valve for the radiator drain. That is my ONLY complain about the Mishimoto radiator, other than that, it's awesome and keeps the truck nice and cool.

 

I have one. No real change in temps. I didn't expect any,but it is definitely more robust. My plastic one was pretty crusty from all the leaks.

 

While all aluminum rads may look cool to some, there is a reason stock uses plastic tanks crimped on. Aluminum expands and contracts with heat cycles, this causes it to work harden and eventually it will crack. The welded tanks will stand more pressure but our caps pop off at 16 lbs so that argument is moot. My original lasted 12 years and I put a motorcraft back in for under $160.

 

Where did you hear that? Aluminum radiators work great. The joints between the plastic and aluminum on the factory radiator is the weak point. Mine had been seeping for a long time. White crust all around the joints. I suspect that ford went to that design due to cost rather than expansion..

 

Agreed, they work great until they crack. In over 40 years working on airplanes I have seen enough cracks in aluminum, I don't have to hear it anywhere. A good example is the oil coolers on the small airplanes, they are made exactly like the all aluminum rad. With one exception, every one I changed due to leaking was cracked at or near a weld. The exception burst from over pressure due to congealed oil, pretty spectacular to watch but not fun to clean up. It's the nature of aluminum, plain and simple.

Most people won't keep the truck long enough for it to be an issue, but trust me it will crack.

 

Too many issues with plastic tanks and crimped seals. I installed 4 in a two month period....4 different types with OEM quality. They all leaked at the seal


I then installed a MISHIMOTO knockoff and it worked great until I truly tested the cooling system towing my trailer....POS had 17 less cooling passages than OEM. I downloaded a pic of a true Mishimoto and counted the cooling tubes/passages and it has 74, if you do the math the knockoff was almost an exact copy of the real mishimoto in every aspect down to the coolant tube count. Some will claim that they are "larger" and cool better but once you test the cooling system with a heavy load on a super hot day, that "better flow" seems to fall flat on it's face in the cooling department. Unloaded, this radiator was awesome.


OEM has 91 cooling passages, the BPD/performance has 88 cooling passages. Mishimoto at 700.00 is stupidly overpriced and a waste of money IMO. The BPD radiator is the closest to OEM without dealing with the plastic tanks and it is proven in many trucks. I for one can attest to it's performance.


My original lasted 6 years and finally cracked at the tank. The BPD radiator is sold by BPD but it is distributed by performance radiator. https://shop.performanceradiator.com...roduct_id=5515


BPD repackages the radiator since UPS seems to destroy packages....hence the shipping costs. I purchased mine directly from performance radiator but it took 3 radiators later to receive one that was not damaged by UPS, that radiator was shipped using ONTRAC


This is just my opinion based on my experience


Good luck
Joe

 

I would only buy a plastic tank from Ford, too many "OEM quality" products straight out of china.

Performance Radiator only sells 03-04 in all aluminum, 05-07 are plastic tank.

 

I have on 06 with a Performance Radiator and its all Aluminum. I did go thru BPD though. They might have them built for them. Its well built, with thick tanks and no plastic.

 

Thanks for all of the input so far! Is it worth changing the water pump while the radiator is out? Truck has 120,000 likely with the stock water pump.

 

I don't see any discernible differences in the years except for the trans line hookups. What are the main differences that would keep one from using the 2944?


Life is much easier with the radiator out. I installed the BPD pump, not out of necessity but because it is a solid unit.

 

I hate to break it to you my friend but where do you think most of that stuff comes from?

 

I did the BPD water pump while I was already there too.

 

I've had good luck with the bpd. The stock is a great option too, just didn't want to have to worry about sitting on the plastic tank while working on my truck. Can't be good for it, or the seal.

Only problem I've had with the bpd is the drain valve. I had to replace it recently, and noticed a couple drips under it again the other day.

 

You don't suppose it has anything to do with plastic being cheaper than aluminum, or crimping the tanks on being a much faster/cheaper assembly process than welding, or the fact that Ford would loose millions if these radiator's didn't go bad. Sure, the oil coolers in airplanes may eventually fail, but I seriously doubt plastic tanks are a superior design, or that the engingers that designed plastic tanks on radiators went with them for any reason other than the bottom dime.