REVIEW: Radiator Cooling Panel

[ghx407]

Item: Generic S13 radiator cooling panel



Claim: "The radiator cooling panel will help improve airflow through the radiator, thereby improving your cooling system's efficiency while also improving the visual appeal under your hood."

Price: $30 (bought locally)

Test: Drove to seller, recorded peak temp, bought/installed cooling panel, drove back home, recorded peak temp (temps monitored with a Techtom MDM-100). The drive is about 45 mins. each way; used the same roads (mostly highway), same speeds (70-75), and same driving style. Elevation and ambient temp variations were negligible.

Result: Peak temp without cooling panel = 198 Peak temp with the cooling panel = 196 Overall improvement = 1%

[Nali]

1%?Nice!....so i take it might as well just spend that 30 bucks elsewhere.

[KAbezon]

Well doing a review on a cooling product in November probably isn't the ideal time to do so...I would go as far as to assume it would probably work much better during summer months

I say try it again then and report back

[keith0486]

so in other words it serves more for looks then cooler cause 1% isnt very much to help with cooling.

[s13_chris]

Yah I think it'd have better results on a warmer day. Kinda hard to make cold weather even colder.

[Dire91]

The average climate in Florida in November is like 79 degrees or something.

[KAbezon]

exactly...unless it is hot enough to really make your cooling system work (79 is not gonna make your cooling system break a sweat), like during the middle of summer, I don't see how a test of a product like this is during this time of year is going to show anything else than minimal gains considering the cooling system is already working efficiently (considering you don't have any issues with it beforehand)...

Do that test when it is over 100* and I bet you'll see a bigger drop in water temperature with the cooling panel than without, however there is only one way to find out...test it during the right time of year...

[gumby74]

Considering I live in central Texas (currently averaging mid 80's with summers hitting triple digits) with several trips to the southern most parts of Texas (where summer is roughly 9 months long at triple digit temps.) the differences are still negligible. On average water temps stayed at 190* with spikes about 5* higher.

On the long stretches of highway the e fans kick on less frequently and for shorter bursts. In city driving however when airflow is minimal I noticed the same thing. The e fans kicked on less frequently, but once I stop at an intersection or whatnot, the panel does nothing. Water temps hold steady at 190*

Does it help? Yes it does. Is it worth paying more than say $50... no. It is far more effective (at it's worst) than some other cosmetic things being done in the name of enhanced cooling though.

[KAbezon]

I have never had one on any vehicle I have owned, and living where you get 3 months of 110+ temps, I have never needed one, as long as I maintain the cooling system. So in that respect, I doubt this panel would really help more than keeping your cooling system running effectively, and would not be worth anything more than what the OP paid...however I bet the panel would work maybe slightly better during the summer, which is definitely something to re-test then...

[S14toRPS13]

$30 and atleast you saw a difference. Even if it was a minimal improvement. Most people spend more than $30 on drinks, so I don't think you'll be missing that $30 too much.

[bigwhiteboybob]

I've had one since i installed my SR. do i notice anything? no not really and the car has been driven in fl the entire time i've had it"3 years". but for the price i dont mind. all it does is help the air travel from the intercooler to the radiator in stead of escaping threw the top. sounds like a plus to me. and it looks nice if you get it powder coated along with the valve cover. you just dont see that big gap that would be there with out it.

pros - can help cooling, makes the engine bay look cleaner.

cons - for 30 bucks you cant go wrong...\

hope this helped






Modified by bigwhiteboybob at 2:39 PM 11/7/2009

[Razi]

I made one of these myself, I also had the extra parts that go on the left and right sides to cover everything.

I've driven with it on and off and it didn't make much of a difference.But that doesn't matter to me, it's main purpose is to hide my intercooler when the hood is popped.

[rico05]

Spend $3 on washers and bolts, prop the back of your hood open and call that panel a $30 tool/part shelf. I have one installed for that sole purpose.

[S14toRPS13]

Spend $3 on washers and bolts, prop the back of your hood open and call that panel a $30 tool/part shelf. I have one installed for that sole purpose.

True, I saw an article proving the hood prop method really works. I don't run my car hard enough to need to prop up my hood though. Plus I'm not a fan of the way it looks.

[94_240sx]

I have the most expensive cooling panel ever made for s13.

[Razi]

LOLIs it made by Yashio factory or something? Some cooling panels are like $120!That's why I just made my own.

[White Comet]

True, I saw an article proving the hood prop method really works. I don't run my car hard enough to need to prop up my hood though. Plus I'm not a fan of the way it looks.

link to that article? i'd be curious to read it

[S14toRPS13]

link to that article? i'd be curious to read it

Here you go:

http://www.importtuner.com/tec....html

[xX RB Xx]

link to that article? i'd be curious to read it

some corolla guys do that, we also remove the weather stripping by the hood and remove our grills, but our cars naturally run hot so we gotta do whatever we can to cool them down.

[zeedakay]

renova ftw. good luck finding one though

[bigwhiteboybob]

renova ftw. good luck finding one though

o0o0o0o0o pretty...that would match my carbon spark plug wires cover how much you pay and where you get it? let me know when you need money!! ill take it off your hands.

[zeedakay]

i found it used obviously since it's discontinued. $75 or somethin i think. i'll prolly not need money and if i did i doubt it would come from a functional part of the car. try and find a mold

[bigwhiteboybob]

i found it used obviously since it's discontinued. $75 or somethin i think. i'll prolly not need money and if i did i doubt it would come from a functional part of the car. try and find a mold

i know but its nice and figured i would throw that out there ima search for my own it would match my newly painted gunmetal grey engine bay o so nice.

[94_240sx]

renova ftw. good luck finding one though

Yup! Couldn't find one, so I went with original one that Renova panel was made off of.

[hai1206vn]

funny how you used a simple highway trip to judge the effectiveness. This test should be done on the track after hot laps. I have no idea if this panel does anything, but the condition you get on the street is way too easy on the cooling system.