Radiator Aluminum side panel fitment issues

[Mark_M]

Getting ready to attach the FF provided aluminum panels on the sides of the radiator and they don't fit particularly well as you can see by the attached photos.

image1.JPG

image2.JPG

As you can see in the first image to get the cut outs to line up with the bolts i would have to push the aluminum panel up far enough that there is a big gap . In the second image you can see how far up I have to go. It fits well at the top to the curve of the body but it also goes off the radiator at the top of the panel.

Looking for some advice on getting the panels to fit well.

Thanks,
Mark

[BEAR-AvHistory]

Did you give any thought to using Mike Everson's one piece panel?

[WIS89]

Mark-

I agree with Kevin's advice here. Mike's radiator surround is a great piece, and it really finishes off the opening nicely; much better than the supplied pieces in my opinion.

Just in case you need it: http://www.replicaparts.com/Roadster...nel%20page.htm

Good luck with your decision, and I hope I helped.

Regards,

Steve

[cgundermann]

Just finished days cutting, shaping and bending in an attempt to get all three FFR aluminum pieces close to fitting. I did have the Breeze adjustable lower radiator support, so I was able to adjust each individual side to close some of the the gaps, but - nothing is symmetrical or uniform with the gaps. I also ended up creating patches for the two slotted holes if you do not mount the lower oil cooler. For the side pieces - I also bent out past 90 degrees to close the distance/gap to the radiator (varying degrees from the top to the bottom). We will see how it appears and comes together once I get the pieces back from powder coating. I totally agree that this is a poor design - in an attempt to fit several different radiator configurations. Mike's piece looks much better and if I remember correctly, you can use it with or without the FFR pieces.

[Mark_M]

Thanks guys. I had seen that radiator surround and have considered it. Was wondering if i was jus doing something wrong on the aluminum pieces. Sounds like there is enough variability that maybe there isn't a great tight fit for the pieces. I considered getting some aluminum and creating some that fit better, I just wanted to be sure that is really necessary.

[ThickCobra]

Mark-

I agree with Kevin's advice here. Mike's radiator surround is a great piece, and it really finishes off the opening nicely; much better than the supplied pieces in my opinion.

Just in case you need it: http://www.replicaparts.com/Roadster...nel%20page.htm

Good luck with your decision, and I hope I helped.

Regards,

Steve

Steve,

I just ordered the radiator aluminum from Mike. Thanks for the suggestion.

Jay

[JRL16]

I agree that Mike Everson's piece is a much better answer to this area. Gives it a nice finished look.

[Avalanche325]

I made my own side panels. The FFR ones didn't quite fit. I just template them with some poster board. Jig saw and my trusty HF metal brake and I knocked up a set that fit.

The one piece, while a quality item, strays too far from the original look for me. Opinions.....everybody's got 'em.

[j.miller]

Trim, rivet, repeat.......just like the rest of the car. Anyone who sticks their head in there to criticize .....kick'em in the arse !...da Bat

[BEAR-AvHistory]

One of the advantages outside of looks is performance. Mikes piece together with the breeze top piece seals the radiator to the front opening. All the incoming air is forced through the radiator.

Have run a few summers daily driving in Carolina & my shroud is still sitting in its box unused & so far not necessary

[Avalanche325]

One of the advantages outside of looks is performance. Mikes piece together with the breeze top piece seals the radiator to the front opening. All the incoming air is forced through the radiator.

Have run a few summers daily driving in Carolina & my shroud is still sitting in its box unused & so far not necessary

The fan shroud is for when you are sitting still and the only air movement is being done by the fan.

[BEAR-AvHistory]

The fan shroud is for when you are sitting still and the only air movement is being done by the fan.

I understand that. What I am saying from a been there done that reality is at 100*+ ambient in stop & go, mostly stopped, traffic the coolant has never crossed the 210* hash mark on the water gauge. Oil is stable at 185*

At some point with a string of bad weather & will put the shroud in because I have it & everything helps. Have a number of small projects waiting for a bad week. Right now the car is out every day & I don't want to not have it available.

[David Hodgkins]

I don't think I'd worry about efficiency with the factory setup, although they don't really seal the area. (I'm talking small block here. A big block car needs all the help it can get, including a bigger radiator all together.) But adding the wrap around shroud does seal the nose better. And if you combine it with an upper shroud and then use a fan shroud behind the radiator will definitely pull a ton more air through the radiator instead of around it. I definitely run cooler than I did before I fully shrouded the front and rear of the radiator.

I kept the factory aluminum panels to act as a backstop (bulb seal and all) and then added the wrap shroud on top of them. I used thin .026 (I think) stainless steel. It came polished one side. I used this metal because it is "springy", which allowed me to roll it up into a ball and install it with the body on. You can't do that with aluminum. But it's too thin (IMO) to go in there by itself.

I made paper templates, then cheap corrugated steel to create a template, then cut the final pieces. The shape is different between a MKIII and MKIV.

I'm in full agreement that Mike's works just as well and is a lot cheaper, when you take in account all the templates I went through to get to the final shape.

I'm pretty proud of my nose job. I don't mean to show off... OK yes I do! Built, not bought:

[David Hodgkins]

...and as long as you're at it, get an upper nose shroud from breeze (or Mike?) or make your own. There's a pretty big (and ugly) gap at the top of the radiator that this panel blocks nicely, giving a much more finished look to the whole front of the engine compartment.

Here's the hole:


And this is the shape of the shroud:


I put bulb seal on the end:


Installed:

[Straversi]

I'm pretty proud of my nose job. I don't mean to show off... OK yes I do! Built, not bought:

Wow Dave, did you do all of that machine turning with this jig and a Dremel? That's awesome.
-Steve

[michael everson]

David. That came out awesome. I actually recommend installing mine the same way as yours. Just roll it up and stick it in the hole.
Mike

[j.miller]

David. That came out awesome. I actually recommend installing mine the same way as yours. Just roll it up and stick it in the hole.
Mike

And that's how we roll around here......."roll it up and stick it in the hole." No reinventing the wheel around this joint ! Iffin it aint broke, don't fix it !

[cgundermann]

And that's how we roll around here......."roll it up and stick it in the hole." No reinventing the wheel around this joint ! Iffin it aint broke, don't fix it !

I knew Da Bat could not help himself from that slow pitch...

[Mark_M]

Trim, rivet, repeat.......just like the rest of the car. Anyone who sticks their head in there to criticize .....kick'em in the arse !...da Bat

For sure!! Too funny.

[Mark_M]

David, thanks for the inspiration. Your car looks amazing. I may be with Avalanche on this one, but love all the ideas and the pictures. I have definitely considered the upper nose shroud to keep the air going through the radiator instead of around it. And I can definitely see the advantage of Mike's radiator surround. Working on some other issues now, but will post pictures of whatever i end up with!

[AC Bill]

The angle you set your rad at will make a difference as to how the aluminum side panels fit. Even using FFR's guidelines for the angle, I still had to cut the end at the quick jack frame area, to get them to fit nicely along the sides of the radiator. I also needed to cut out spots to be able to fit the bolts for the over-riders.

I added rubber D seals along those edges along the rad as well, to prevent any metal rubbing, from vibration or frame twisting.

[edwardb]

Since a couple others have weighed in with alternatives, I'll do the same. I didn't care for the supplied pieces either. Didn't like too much about how they fit, didn't like how they left the QJ bolts exposed (no reason for that IMO), and I didn't want to rivet through the body. I came up with this design that I've used on two builds. Incorporated a radiator screen into the design. I started with cardboard templates and then cut the aluminum. Powder coated and held in with bulb seal and a few screws. Has to be installed in pieces. The lower piece bolts to the front of the radiator and is a tight wedge fit into the front of the body. The side pieces are a tight fit against the radiator and body, with two screws at the bottom and another at the top into the 3/4-inch frame tube. The SS screen is from Speedway with a frame made from aluminum strips from HD. The splitter is from Dark Water. Doubt that it's functional, but I like the bling.

[DaleG]

One of the advantages outside of looks is performance. Mikes piece together with the breeze top piece seals the radiator to the front opening. All the incoming air is forced through the radiator.

Have run a few summers daily driving in Carolina & my shroud is still sitting in its box unused & so far not necessary

I'll add X2.

[ThickCobra]

I'll add X2.

I now have Mike's single aluminum radiator piece and the Breeze shroud and lower radiator support. Will the Breeze top radiator piece still fit with all of these items installed? Or, would I need to remove the shroud??

[BEAR-AvHistory]

It all fits with no triming


BTW its easier to add the Nomex Honey Comb before you put the body on. Don't ask how I know

[ThickCobra]

Thanks. And, I do have the Nomex Honey Comb installed. I can see how installing Mike's radiator piece prior to body install would be much easier. I now have 500 miles on my car and made a first attempt to install his piece. Rather tricky I may add as you need to fold it, insert it and unfold it. And then of course secure it.