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Best replacement radiator?


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The radiator in my 87 MJ is shot. I have watched several videos on replacing it, and have noted that the auto transmission connectors are different in some and require new hoses/connectors. I still have the original system with the overflow bottle on the firewall, and since i had no problems with it am planning to keep the original design. My question is what is the best aluminum radiator to use as a replacement for my original with no need to change hoses/connections? My MJ is a 4.0 with automatic. Thanks for your input in advance.

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This will be my next radiator. It will allow you to have open or closed system. You can use your old style temperature switch for the electric fan if you go open.  Most open style radiators don't have this.

 

  https://www.mishimoto.com/jeep-cherokee-xj-aluminum-radiator-1989-2001.html

 

 

https://www.mishimoto.com/engineering/2017/07/jeep-xj-cherokee-radiator-part-1/

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21 hours ago, PIKE said:

This will be my next radiator. It will allow you to have open or closed system. You can use your old style temperature switch for the electric fan if you go open.  Most open style radiators don't have this.

 

  https://www.mishimoto.com/jeep-cherokee-xj-aluminum-radiator-1989-2001.html

 

 

https://www.mishimoto.com/engineering/2017/07/jeep-xj-cherokee-radiator-part-1/

This radiator says 1989-2001 and my MJ is an 87 Anyone know if it will fit mine, or what differences there are between an 87 and 89-01?

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On 12/28/2019 at 10:41 AM, PIKE said:

This will be my next radiator. It will allow you to have open or closed system. You can use your old style temperature switch for the electric fan if you go open.  Most open style radiators don't have this.

 

  https://www.mishimoto.com/jeep-cherokee-xj-aluminum-radiator-1989-2001.html

 

 

https://www.mishimoto.com/engineering/2017/07/jeep-xj-cherokee-radiator-part-1/

No doubt the Mishimoto is an excellent radiator, but it IS PRICEY, at over $400.

 

Rock Auto carries a CSF all metal radiator for the late style XJ type open cooling system that costs about $250.   I used one of those in my 2000XJ and my current MJ.  Here in Phoenix, they do the job just fine under the hardest of conditions, as long as you have good coolant, hoses, and the correct thermostat.

 

I feel that it's a case of cost/benefit ratio.   The Mishimoto doesn't bring enough to the party to justify the added cost.j

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On my open system conversion in my '89, I used the Spectra radiator for the '91 and up XJ. No complaints so far - it fit well, but I don't have enough miles on it to notice any issues. It's also a manual truck with no A/C (currently) so I didn't feel like it was necessary to stuff the biggest radiator I possibly could in it. Cost was much more of a factor, and at like $60 the Spectra is really hard to beat. The temp gauge doesn't stay rock solid over the 2 on the gauge like it does in the 91, but I also didn't spend much money. I assume that the closed system version of the Spectra is exactly the same, just without a fill neck.

 

My '91 has the CSF 2671 3-row. It's an automatic with A/C, so I considered it important to have a large radiator with a lot of capacity. The paint doesn't stick for $#!& which is very annoying, but functionally not a big deal. The only time I've ever seen the temperature gauge touch 210 since installing the CSF radiator (except when my aux fan died) was on a very hot day, climbing a very long hill at 80 MPH with the A/C on.

 

Fun fact for us RockAuto shoppers: Check the radiator options for Cherokees as well as Comanches. They're the same radiator, but Rockauto carries a lot more options under the Cherokee listing than the Comanche ones.

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On 12/29/2019 at 1:09 PM, AZJeff said:

No doubt the Mishimoto is an excellent radiator, but it IS PRICEY, at over $400.

 

Rock Auto carries a CSF all metal radiator for the late style XJ type open cooling system that costs about $250.   I used one of those in my 2000XJ and my current MJ.  Here in Phoenix, they do the job just fine under the hardest of conditions, as long as you have good coolant, hoses, and the correct thermostat.

 

I feel that it's a case of cost/benefit ratio.   The Mishimoto doesn't bring enough to the party to justify the added cost.j

 

There's also plenty of horror stories about the build quality of the Mishimoto (which is not in any way made in Japan, don't let the name fool you, it's made in China) radiators and their other 'performance' parts.  I'd steer clear.

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Sorry about the price. But the topic was "Best radiator replacement"  If you look at the blog it looks like they went the extra mile.

11 minutes ago, DirtyComanche said:

 

There's also plenty of horror stories about the build quality of the Mishimoto (which is not in any way made in Japan, don't let the name fool you, it's made in China) radiators and their other 'performance' parts.  I'd steer clear.

 

I have there radiator in my 1997 Grand Cherokee V8 , very happy.

 

I also have a 1996 f350 Powerstroke, Mishimoto radiators are what everyone is replacing with there. have not seen the horror stories, sure there are. Just going on my experience and what others have said on the OBS Powerstroke sites.

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  • 1 year later...

 

On 12/30/2019 at 7:59 PM, mark corbitt said:

Went with csf 2572 will let you guys know how it goes, thanks for the input.

 

Following on up the csf 2572- how did your radiator work out, Mark? My 3rd cheap radiator in the last 5 years has just started leaking, so I am looking around.

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8 hours ago, Alan C said:

 

 

Following on up the csf 2572- how did your radiator work out, Mark? My 3rd cheap radiator in the last 5 years has just started leaking, so I am looking around.


Same here. Went with the Mishimoto and am never looking back. Mishimoto or Novak would be the two I’d go for. The novak has (2) 1.5” cores and is the absolute thickest I’ve seen aside from the original Griffin radiator which they don’t make anymore. 

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Thanks, hetdjc320! I did not know Novak made radiators and missed that in my search. Will look at them, too. I read a few reviews of Mishimoto that suggested it might not be an easy fit. How was the install for you?

 

And to all, to be sure, in what I wrote above asking about the csf 2572 I did not mean to imply that it is among cheap radiators. The last three I have had were plastic and aluminum and only lasted two years. The 2572 being made of brass, etc, looks like it might be a good option.

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8 minutes ago, Alan C said:

Thanks, hetdjc320! I did not know Novak made radiators and missed that in my search. Will look at them, too. I read a few reviews of Mishimoto that suggested it might not be an easy fit. How was the install for you?

 

And to all, to be sure, in what I wrote above asking about the csf 2572 I did not mean to imply that it is among cheap radiators. The last three I have had were plastic and aluminum and only lasted two years. The 2572 being made of brass, etc, looks like it might be a good option.


The Mishimoto dropped right in for me. I researched the subject extensively and it basically came down to the actual thickness of the cores. I had an all aluminum csf radiator and it had (2) 5/8” cores for a 1.25 overall thickness. The novak is the thickest and the mishimoto falls somewhere in between. The Mishimoto warranty is what did it for me. The novak is probably one of if not the best one out there but I haven’t had the best results with Novak’s customer support. I’d still run their radiator though if I wanted the best

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We put the Mishimoto in a '95 and are very happy with it - I think it's been about 18 months.  I recall some of the  brackets on the bottom that were separate on the stock radiator were built into the Mishimoto, but it did not cause a problem.  Only issue was in the overflow fitting - aluminum fitting into aluminum fitting and we snapped it off installing it.  I ended up getting it out, finding a close size brass fitting and using a tap to get it to work.  They should have had some kind of warning to use something on the threads (or maybe they did and we just did not read it).

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On 3/8/2021 at 9:15 PM, Alan C said:

 

 

Following on up the csf 2572- how did your radiator work out, Mark? My 3rd cheap radiator in the last 5 years has just started leaking, so I am looking around.

I installed the CSF and am very happy with it. 

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2 hours ago, oldmanche said:

We put the Mishimoto in a '95 and are very happy with it - I think it's been about 18 months.  I recall some of the  brackets on the bottom that were separate on the stock radiator were built into the Mishimoto, but it did not cause a problem.  Only issue was in the overflow fitting - aluminum fitting into aluminum fitting and we snapped it off installing it.  I ended up getting it out, finding a close size brass fitting and using a tap to get it to work.  They should have had some kind of warning to use something on the threads (or maybe they did and we just did not read it).

I used some pipe sealant gel and it gave me no problems but I could see how that fitting could bind up easily.

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  • 3 weeks later...
2 hours ago, Comanche1 said:

Anyone use jbweld for plastic radiator tank repair?

Not personally but if it’s prepped well it should hold up just fine. We used to use JB weld to seal up cooling ports on the 4.0 head when installing them on a 4.2 block

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On 3/28/2021 at 9:19 PM, Comanche1 said:

Anyone use jbweld for plastic radiator tank repair?

Yup. The head gasket went out on my Subaru (as they do) and blew out a seam on the radiator where the aluminum cap is crimped to the plastic body.

I was about 300 miles from home, at a friends cabin, with limited supplies but found some JB weld in his shop. I forget what I cleaned it with, but

remember it not being as strong a solvent as I would have wanted. Held for 2 month, probably would have even longer if I'd kept a better eye on levels...

But it went again, thankfully we'd finally found someone to do that  and other 120k work.

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