[71nova355]

hey 3rd gen fam,
I have this autorad radiator that measures... large. lol anyway, i recently heard that the radiator support is actually meant or can be, to be cut larger for big block options which is good since I thought that the rolled indentation around the radiator opening was for support structurally. I followed another thread where the guy is building his wife a beautiful 3rd gen. anyway, that opening still isnt large enough, I mean it would prolly work just fine but if I were to cut it as big as I needed to reveal the whole face of the radiator,(larger than the dedicated indentation for big block radiators) would I be ruining the structural integrity of the support? has anyone done such thing and had bad stuff happen? im pretty sure if I felt it were weak I could strengthen it with a lil imagination. I guess I'm just looking for a lil kick in the ***, and some confidence. I do have an extra support if all else fails but perhaps can stop with the big block outline and leave a lil bit of the fins behind the support? I highly doubt i actually need every bit of the extra cooling space since it doesnt ever even get hot now, but i want to do it right. Thanks for the help guys. love ya, lol

 

[71nova355]

also at a total width of 32 inches shell just barely fit between the frame rails , but does. I will be fabricating a bracket or two but more or less it should set right in there since Ive ditched the charcoal canister and moved the 12 v. power converter toward the fender a stock hole farther. now i just have to get a battery relocation kit and dual fan relays. Im very impressed with the fans they use. maradyne? 18" and 12 or 14" i think. sealed, balanced and power reversible. hopefully they rock and don't cause any cussing. ive heard many good and bad stories about electric fans and my mechanical fan has always worked. I think im just going to buy that dakota digital fan relay with adjusting temp controller. I wanted to stick with maradyne but I couldn't order from there sight and I really didn't see a relay for two fans but im sure they have something. I do need to call autorad and order one of there radiator caps. they look so good. im a sucker for the aluminum. There work is soooo nice guys. expensive but so worth it. I just cant say enough about how great they were to me.

 

[PCPete]

Imo

As long as you only cut the vertical web to make the hole larger across the car, you should be fine, If you are looking at cutting the bent "flanges" at the top & bottom of the core support, then you are messing where you probably shouldn't, or you should figure out a way to replace that support.
We used to cut the uppers on our tri5's to get the 6's out and the V8's in, but the radiator bolted to both sides of the opening. Not so with your Nova. I think cutting the top would make the fenders and hood vulnerable to more damage if bad things happen.

 

[badbowtie557]

I've used the Dakota digital setup very nice unit can control fans separately to where first fan will come on at a set degree then secondary fan will come on at a higher temp! Best bang for your buck setup I've seen and will give a true digital readout of your actual engine temp!

 

[Rich74custom]

Im using the large radiator as well. I did just open up the area to allow flow to the entire fin area of the new radiator.

As far as the battery in the beginning i actually notched the radiator tank and the battery was under the radiator cap, it was wierd, it worked fine and never gave me a problem.

But when i did the ls swap i bought the same radiator again and just unbolted the battery try and turned it a little and made some quick brackets out of flat stock and bolted it back in. No need for relocating it.

Thats just a bad pic i took of the ac connections, But it shows the large radiator and battery moved a little.

 

[71nova355]

getting closer

thanks guys, the height is pretty close to right I just need to widen the support. Im getting closer to being able to drop her in. I went to tractor supply and bout 25 ft of 2 guage cable(that should be alright huh?) and I should have everything else I need to relocate the battery. I have a cheap hold down deal that will have to do till I can make an aluminum battery box. I also want to get a nice cut off switch. I could prolly just notch the original battery hold down shelf deal and get away with sliding her over but I have a pretty small, cheap duralast battery. Eventually il get a nice big expensive one and I suppose relocating will be just fine. Instead of spending the extra money buying a nice dokota or spal fan relay, I went cheap and bought one from the parts store but ive watched a ton of relay set ups online and if I add an extra relay I think i will be alright. granted both fans will run when they turn on thats fine with me. I dont feel like running one fan, until it proves to not be able to cool enough, and eventually turns both fans on is not that big of a deal. for now anyway. its also adjustable so i should be able to dial her in.

Ok, now my problem is whether or not I am able to cut the support up. I only have a small compressor so my air tools are damn near worthless. I will figure something out tho. thanks again guys