Radiator replacement

[Danny]

Radiator replacement....  on MCI 102A3 when should I consider replaceing them?

Danny

[John316]

I don't know for sure, but maybe when it is necessary .

God bless,

John

[RickB]

check them with an IR gun to see if you have any hot or cold spots and run your hands lightly over the cooling fins. If they crumble when you touch em' they're done.
Obviously if you're having trouble cooling your motor in the summer heat or at altitude that could suggest a good look see as well.

Rick

[Doug1968]

Danny,

I am converting an 86 102A3 and I just completed going through the radiator shutters. While I had the shutters removed from the radiators I spend a fair amount of time cleaning around the radiators. I also used compressed air to blow out the radiators and I could not believe the crud that came out of each unit. If you think about how they work you begin to see why the get so compacted with filth. The blower system sucks the road film, rain, dirt, sand and whatever right into each radiator. I would recommend that you blow the core out now and then.

Each of my radiators had a rebuild tag attached to the radiator. Not sure when the rebuild was completed? Although they are kind of rusty looking I plan on leaving them for now. In the next couple of years I will pull them out and have them gone through once again and then they should be fine as long as I will have the coach.

I disassembled the shutter assembly and cleaned it all up, freed up the mechanism and replaced the air cylinders with an SMC unit. These shutter are very well built and should also last many more years. I wil be anxious to see if the pneumatic controls for the shutter are operational?

Let me know if you have your radiators rebuilt.

Good luck, Doug

[Jerry32]

so far mine are working fine. I never have had an overheat problem even in 100 plus temps . The  mechanic told me he thought all busses run hot and tried to get this one to overheat by pulling the cooling belt but the best he could get was 185 on his IR gun.  Jerry

[billy6941]

We have a fleet of E4500 and J4500 MCI coaches. We spray water through the radiators and charge air cooler regularly as suggested by MCI and you might be surprised how much dirt and junk we get out....Bill

[JohnEd]

There have been people post here that have recounted how they COMPLETELY resolved all their overheating problems with a stop at the coin op car wash.  Also made the comment that one quater was not nearly enuf.  Lots and lots of mud.

After that cleaning, I would certainly look at it with the IR thermo gun.

John

[JackConrad]

Be VERY careful using a pressure washer of any kind on an old radiator. It can easily destroy the fins.  Jack

[JohnEd]

Of course, Jack is right.  Even a brand new rad can have the fins "blown" off with a 10,000PSI washer.  The stuff you find in a car wash doesn't have much more than 1,000.  If 1K blows the fins off they are so rotted as to not be performing any heat sync/transmission function anyway.  But still, Jacks caution is appropriate.  Sorry, I didn't think to advise you.

Nobody that has ever done this has come out and said that they wasted their time.

John