Simple question: will a radiator off of a VG33E Frontier fit a 2wd 98 KA24DE Frontier? Are the inlet and outlet in the same relative place? Will the fan shroud bolt to the mounts? Thanks!
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1998 Nissan Frontier XE/2wd/5spd 1 owner, 264k miles
1985 Olds Cutlass, 350 Chevy, owned for 14 years
WANTED: 1968-1973 Datsun 510 or 1991-1994 Sentra SE-R http://www.myspace.com/junkyardengineer
Simple question: will a radiator off of a VG33E Frontier fit a 2wd 98 KA24DE Frontier? Are the inlet and outlet in the same relative place? Will the fan shroud bolt to the mounts? Thanks!
It works. I ordered one from Keystone Automotive for a 2001 Frontier SC with the supercharged 3.3 and it fits just fine. I paid $270 with tax brand new. No more overheating, but definitely not cheap!
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1998 Nissan Frontier XE/2wd/5spd 1 owner, 264k miles
1985 Olds Cutlass, 350 Chevy, owned for 14 years
WANTED: 1968-1973 Datsun 510 or 1991-1994 Sentra SE-R http://www.myspace.com/junkyardengineer
Oh, forgot to add that it is 85 degrees out tonight and it barely hits the 1/4 way point up the factory gauge. The SC rad is a 2 core instead of the 1 core the other trucks got and has a 1 7/16in thick core as opposed to the 1 in thick core other Frontiers got. The dimensions are identical and all of the mounting tabs and screw holes are the same as well. The place I bought it from was not a normal auto parts store, but a aftermarket collision parts wholesaler that deals with the public, so it is available to anyone at that price. Advance Auto Parts wanted $460 for the 4 cyl radiator, the same as Courtesy Nissan's site did. Shop around for these things if you need one because the savings can be substantial.
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1998 Nissan Frontier XE/2wd/5spd 1 owner, 264k miles
1985 Olds Cutlass, 350 Chevy, owned for 14 years
WANTED: 1968-1973 Datsun 510 or 1991-1994 Sentra SE-R http://www.myspace.com/junkyardengineer
Do you feel that the SC radiator cools the engine any better? Also is the radiator you bought an OEM or an after market upgrade? Meaning that the original OEM specs being the same and not modified.
Just curious because if it cooled the engine better this could be a considered an upgrade to the non SC frontiers.
Installing a larger radiator isn't really supposed to make the engine run cooler, rather it allows the coolant in the radiator to cool down quicker as well as provide greater coolant capacity. The temperature of the coolant in the water jacket inside the engine is controlled by the thermostat which job is to keep that coolant in the engine until the thermostat opens at the set temperature, allowing the hot coolant to be transfered to the radiator. If the coolant inside the engine is too cold, it will allow the efficiency of the engine to be compromised and will also hinder its ability to burn off the moisture in the oil due to condensation when not running. In other words, just because you install a larger radiator, under normal conditions it doesn't necessarily make the engine run "cooler," nor should you want it to. Nissan coolant gauges usually have the needle run almost dead center in the gauge when the cooling system is operating properly and equipped with a Nissan thermostat. If the gauges is operating properly and is only going up to 1/4, I might suspect either the thermostat was partially stuck "open" or that an aftermarket thermostat is installed. In my experience, I've found that some aftermarket thermostats tend to run the engine a little cooler than the genuine Nissan 'stats. If one really needs to have the engine "run cooler," then the best way is to replace the thermostat to one that opens at a lower temperature.
Installing a larger radiator isn't really supposed to make the engine run cooler, rather it allows the coolant in the radiator to cool down quicker as well as provide greater coolant capacity. The temperature of the coolant in the water jacket inside the engine is controlled by the thermostat which job is to keep that coolant in the engine until the thermostat opens at the set temperature, allowing the hot coolant to be transfered to the radiator. If the coolant inside the engine is too cold, it will allow the efficiency of the engine to be compromised and will also hinder its ability to burn off the moisture in the oil due to condensation when not running. In other words, just because you install a larger radiator, under normal conditions it doesn't necessarily make the engine run "cooler," nor should you want it to. Nissan coolant gauges usually have the needle run almost dead center in the gauge when the cooling system is operating properly and equipped with a Nissan thermostat. If the gauges is operating properly and is only going up to 1/4, I might suspect either the thermostat was partially stuck "open" or that an aftermarket thermostat is installed. In my experience, I've found that some aftermarket thermostats tend to run the engine a little cooler than the genuine Nissan 'stats. If one really needs to have the engine "run cooler," then the best way is to replace the thermostat to one that opens at a lower temperature.
Just to add to the above:
The only reason a larger radiator will allow the engine to run cooler is that it allows the cooling system to reject heat (transfer heat to the atmosphere) at a higher rate. This is only a problem if the radiator cannot "keep up" with the heat generated by the engine.
Typically, the only times where the radiator cannot keep up are under sustained high loads (e.g. pulling a long grade while towing with the A/C on) when excessive heat is generated or when airflow through the radiator is limited. The later case might be in traffic where speeds are low. In this case the clutch fan is supposed to engage to pull more air through the radiator. Debris on the front of the radiator (actually it will end up on the A/C condenser), damaged fins, and missing or damaged fan shrouds will reduce the amount of air going through the radiator. These are things that should always be checked if overheating is an issue.
There is not a single Nissan factory part in the cooling system of my truck. The Thermostat is aftermarket and designed to fail in the open position as not to overheat the engine should it fail. The waterpump is from Autozone, The radiator is a factory style part from Keystone and made by Koyo, etc. I wonder if the thermostat is bad because of the low temperature at night, but during the day (95+ outside today) it runs right in the middle of the normal range ( just below half on gauge) as it had done since I bought it new. I figure the old radiator was probably partially plugged, so I replaced it with the biggest one I could fit without modifications. I figured that if it was some other problem, the truck was acting like it needed increased capacity so I would give it all I could. Plus, it didn't cost that much more than the standard radiator. Anyhow, it's a cheap upgrade if you have a 4 cyl that you tow with or run off road and could use the added capacity. It takes a little longer to warm up, but it should be fine for the pizza delivery application I have planned for my truck.
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1998 Nissan Frontier XE/2wd/5spd 1 owner, 264k miles
1985 Olds Cutlass, 350 Chevy, owned for 14 years
WANTED: 1968-1973 Datsun 510 or 1991-1994 Sentra SE-R http://www.myspace.com/junkyardengineer
I started noticing the differance between aftermarket and OEM t-stats when I replaced the t-stat on my 97 HBody as "preventative maintenance" when servicing the cooling system. I am the original owner and the needle on the coolant gauge always (with the exception of when the fan clutch started going south) stayed dead center or just a hair below in the gauge range after it warmed up to operating temperature. It didn't matter if I was in 100 degree heat, dead of winter, stuck in traffic or cruising down the interstate....I installed a Stant t-stat that was the same 185 degree rating as the original and the needle never went over 1/3. Figuring it was defective, I sent it back to Advanced Auto parts with some under the breath "grumblings" and exchanged it. New Stant t-stat and same results. finally was able to get a new Nissan t-stat and threw it in....needle was back at dead center.
Lessons learned:
-you get what you pay for.....maybe
-stick w/ OEM parts from the vehicle manufacturer for less headache..most of the time
-if first you don't succeed...try, try again
-if it ain't broke, don't fix it!
-replacing your thermostat three times in a row results in really clean coolant!
If I have trouble getting it up to temperature this winter I will probably go back to a Nissan part. It's just such a pain in the ass to gain access to that I won't bother unless it becomes a real problem. It's getting pressed back into service as a pizza delivery truck in the next few weeks and I am just happy that it is no longer overheating. It seems to stay at the right spot once it gets hot and never varies. But yeah, Nissan factory parts are usually better than aftermarket with the possible exception of the swaybar end links and the horn. Those things are worthless from the factory as I have broken several of them. I put the Energy Suspension end links for a Chevelle in it and that fixed the problem with that. The horn I put in the other day was from Autozone and is a generic replacement-I'll see how it fares. Oh, and the front crank seal is a POS as is the A/C compressor clutch from the factory, but that's not too much to complain about in my book. ( I have a seal from Carquest and the comp. is a used one from a junkyard)
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1998 Nissan Frontier XE/2wd/5spd 1 owner, 264k miles
1985 Olds Cutlass, 350 Chevy, owned for 14 years
WANTED: 1968-1973 Datsun 510 or 1991-1994 Sentra SE-R http://www.myspace.com/junkyardengineer
Should a '98 radiator have needed replacement if the coolant was replaced every two years? Even in Arizona my '88 Mazda B2200 is still on its original, even my '94 Suburban (and of course my 98 Frontier)....but my '71 VW doesn't even have one...
It all depends on the car and how it was designed. If the radiator was marginally sized to begin with, it could become plugged up with rust, etc over time, even in a maintained car or truck. Mine was maintained and had only 100k miles on it and it went bad with no signs of corrosion in it. I am mystified as to why it did so, but in my case it did. It may be that the radiator was not big enough to have enough tolerance in it's capacity to compensate for age. My truck has 265k on it, so anything is possible. I am just happy that it cools well now.
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1998 Nissan Frontier XE/2wd/5spd 1 owner, 264k miles
1985 Olds Cutlass, 350 Chevy, owned for 14 years
WANTED: 1968-1973 Datsun 510 or 1991-1994 Sentra SE-R http://www.myspace.com/junkyardengineer
The same thing just happened with my dads 01 S/C Frontier.
It was also well maintained yet it started running warm.
It turned out to be the radiator.
It only cost $169 at Advance Auto.
They charged you $270?
The N/A V6 was 100 bucks more for some reason.
Advance actually wanted $450 for the 4 cyl radiator, which is why I went where I did for it. Basically, I was sick and tired of the problem and had little time to shop for it. It was $250 without tax at the local collision parts place.I had found it on Ebay for $190, so to me it didn't seem too bad.
__________________
1998 Nissan Frontier XE/2wd/5spd 1 owner, 264k miles
1985 Olds Cutlass, 350 Chevy, owned for 14 years
WANTED: 1968-1973 Datsun 510 or 1991-1994 Sentra SE-R http://www.myspace.com/junkyardengineer
Advance actually wanted $450 for the 4 cyl radiator, which is why I went where I did for it. Basically, I was sick and tired of the problem and had little time to shop for it. It was $250 without tax at the local collision parts place.I had found it on Ebay for $190, so to me it didn't seem too bad.
WOW, I can't believe Advance was going to charge you 450.00 for a radiator. Here is the piece of the puzzle as to why your radiator failed. The Water. In Florida we have hard water, which is full of minerals and metals. Once that water is added to your coolant system, it starts to work by building up deposits in your radiator core, eng block, heater core, etc... Any metal that the coolant touches. will start to get a deposit and mineral buildup. Then you slowly begin to get poor heat transfer. The way around it is to use distilled water. Works great in the battery too. Anyway, you can get it at the grocers for about .75 a gallon. I don't use anything else. Get a jug of water and coolant and make yourself up a 50/50 mix for top ups or refills. Glad you got your truck working.
Last edited by nissanmadness : Aug 26th, 2007 at 01:54 PM.
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