Taking the plunge: LS3 into '64 Tempest. Need help with shopping list. by b-man

4 minute(s) of a 224 minute read

Today's task was to mount the radiator and fans. Here's a look at the 24" wide Griffin universal aluminum radiator and OEM replacement late 4th-gen F-body twin fans and shroud assembly from Dorman.



Fabricated some suitable mounts for the radiator using some old 3-row radiator mounting brackets left over from my '64 GTO. I did a little blacksmithing and reconfigured the shape of the saddle, the original unmodified one is on the right. I was able to reuse the lower rubber insulators that were already on the Tempest core support which is made for the 2" taller heavy-duty and A/C radiators.



A look at the 4-row radiator mounts that are welded in place at the factory on A/C core supports, the bolt-in ones that I am using now are only used on the standard non-A/C radiator supports.



The newly reconfigured mount with the insulator installed being checked for fit.



In order to put the radiator at the correct height in relationship to the core support opening I made some tubular standoffs from some thickwall 1/2" O.D. stainless tubing just a tad over 1" long. Now the radiator core is centered from top to bottom in the core support opening, the radiator core itself happens to be exactly the same size as the opening (purely luck). After carefully moving things around to find the ideal location I drilled the four 5/16" mounting holes.

Passenger side looking from the engine side. This one is mounted directly over the old mount.



Driver's side looking from the front. This one was mounted 1" to the driver's side instead of directly over the old mount, this is just how everything happened to fit right.



Radiator is now in it's proper place and held at the top for now with a piece of wire, I still have to fabricate the top center support bracket.



Fan package with radiator hose holes marked for cutting. The 18" height of the shroud exactly matched the height of the core, good luck is again with me. The 26" shroud width matches up exactly with the width of the opening in the core support too.



Holes have been cut and the unit is set in place to check fit.



Looking from the passenger side you can see where I'll need to come up with some filler pieces to bridge the gap between the core support and the fan shroud.



The shroud will need the 4 corners notched some to bring the shroud in a little tighter to the radiator, by almost 1/2".



That's all for this weekend.

Stayin' on it.