Cooling upgrade question
 

Would this be accurate hierarchy (albeit inverse...in that the higher the number, the better the capacity) in "cooling capacity" of an miata? (assuming NB miata)

1) Stock radiator
2) Stock radiator + SM hood louvers (SMHL)
3) Stock radiator + reroute(RR)
4) Stock radiator + SMHL + RR

5)-8) repeat with additional capacity with CSF 42mm
9)-12) repeat with additional capacity with Supermiata cross flow 31mm
13)-16) repeat again with TSE radiator 76mm

Is this correct? There's probably some interweaving that could go in there. For example...a stock radiator with reroute and singular louvers, would possibly cool better than a CSF 42mm without a reroute or louvers, etc.

For a car that's running n/a within little to no track duty - what cooling setup (assuming radiator is shrouded properly on all 4 sides) would be more than sufficient for, say cross country trip with mountain inclines and 100F degrees outside - while having fun on windy roads, etc?

If I had $400 to improve my cooling system (stock rad, stock shrouding, no reroute) - what would be the most cost effective path to getting better cooling? Reroute ($250) + stock rad replacement ($80)? Stock rad ($80) + louvers ($200)? CSF rad ($220) + louvers ($200)? stock ($80)+ louvers ($200) + shrouding (...?)?

If you only have $400, i'd put my money on re-route + ebay 55mm radiator + stock fans. Replace later with swag radiator.

I'd vote for coolant reroute + ebay aluminum radiator and a single Spal fan. A 2nd one can be added if needed. Proper shrouding required as well.

2 votes for qmax reroute and ebay radiator...$250 and $150 respectively. Ill have to trim the stock fans to fit the thicker radiator correct?

It was tight, but I did not have to trim anything to install this one: https://www.ebay.com/itm/GPI-Aluminu...kAAOxyVLNS5HVQ

Depends on your sway bar, in my experience. It's not a huge deal either way.

Another vote for a reroute, aluminum radiator, and stock fans. Add venting later.

I’ll throw in another option, the koyo hyper V core 32mm. Fits like stock, with extra capacity and great cooling. Sounds like you’re shopping on the supermiata site exclusively. Which isn’t bad, but they make race car products. Although they all work on the street as well, the reroute has a decent sized bypass hole that slows warm up time, especially if it’s sub 50 degrees. And hood louvers are AWESOME, but let rain and dirt get in your engine bay. For instance my pulley rusts cause the belt rubs any paint off and the vents allow water in. little things like that to keep in mind.

Personally for a naturally aspirated street car id put on a brand new under tray and air guide, a koyo radiator, and call it good. I do have some experience with a 150hp NA with AC like this, in 100* weather, but not a bucket load of daily driving, so others may chime in saying it’s not enough.

Thanks for this. Yeah shopping around in goodwin and supermiata. I was looking at qmax primarily for easier install alongside "better" for not much more.

Goodwin still has a sale on those csf...radiator, so thats still tempting at 42mm while being $80 more than the ebay ones.

Good notes on the vents. Damn. Though it doesnt rain THAT much in socal, definitely a thing to note. I should do an experiment to see how well a stock type radiator cools with SMs louvers.

Sway bar is still stock, so it seems the ebay radiator should be minimal trimming if any.

Tray is still in good condition...will inspect the current airguide though.

Yeah in Southern California, you probably won't have too many issues with rain or cooler weather like me.

I've got a hyper v that I bought used from another member on here probably two years ago. I had it on my 99 for about a year but got a deal on a supermiata csf and threw that in with a q-max last year. Still in good shape but would reccomend a good flush. Anyway I'd be willing to let it go for pretty cheap. Shoot me a pm if you're intrested and I could send you some pics. Located in AZ btw.

Thank's Nbcavolo! All good for now. I'd rather have a brand new or VERY low mileage one.

Indeed...it rains a weensy bit more in Oregon.

No sweat man figured I'd throw it out there just in case :)

I have one of the setups you mentioned so I figure it was worth commenting. I have a track-only NB with CSF 42mm radiator, coolant reroute, and the Singular Motorsport hood louvers. Stock N/A power, no rad ducting, and stock undertray.

I can't get the car up to temperature with this set up unless it's a hot track day, for example a typical August day in VA of like ~90 degrees and 90% humidity. Pretty much anything less than that and the car runs cool even at full send. This past weekend was ~65 degree ambient temp and my water temperature was between 136 and 142 for the entire session. In the morning sessions I couldn't get out of the 120s. As soon as I get some air flowing through the car the water temp plummets.

The reason I say that is because I agree that an upgraded radiator and coolant reroute and decent fan should be more than enough to keep your non-tracked car perfectly cool even with some spirited driving. I was very surprised by the efficiency of the hood louvers when I added them, which is great for cars that need the cooling efficiency. In my case, however, the louvers have pulled me out of the car's desired temperature range. I'll probably start having to tape off part of the radiator or louvers on cooler track days to see if I can get back in the 175-190 degree range where the car is tuned to be from the factory.

Thanks Quigs. That's actually exactly what I wanted to hear. From all this, reroute + louvers + stock radiator would be more than enough. I guess that's also what supermiata was going for with their lightweight system. More of a... if there's air freely flowing through the radiator, you actually don't need that much radiator - emphasis on the "freely flowing".

That is what thermostats are for.

Definitely reroute before hood louvers, but remember that reroutes are more for even cooling than for overall cooling. You haven't said (or I missed it) what year your NB is.

Bbro, some reroute-equipped cars let enough coolant by the tstat that in cooler weather they can struggle to get up to full operating temp.

My car has this problem, and it's due to the fact that I drilled two small holes in my thermostat to increase flow to my remote-housing tstat.

running myself a N/A 1.6 track rat car for now. Its missing the radiator shrouding and tray. and has no condenser. and 180* thermostat with bleed hole.
down here in florida it gets a little warm out on the track after a while. it has also never really liked highway speeds unless i turn on the A/C to get the fans to kick on.
it does take for ever to get to temp. but I made the bleed hole a bit large on purpose to prevent spiking and to allow some wiggle room in case the thermo sticks closed.
I would also never need a heater in florida.

I Am going with Vraptor hood lourvers for aero benifits and then the LRB radiator should tray. to replace the missing one.

It might be over kill but the car is only driven to and from the track. and some spirited sunday funday drives.
and i think the louvers will benefit me also with reduced front end lift.

I'll give another example. On our Champ Car (NA with BP4W @ ~140whp) we run a stock (Koyo brand) radiator, with a reroute, stock fans, and ducting with no water temp issues. We have small hood vent, but its over the header (we were attempting to draw out exhaust heat).

I've not had a problem with either of my cars coming up to temp in even as low as 40F weather (They do take a couple minutes longer, but they get there with no problems). The only reroute i've ever had that would prevent operating temp in normal conditions was the Begi Racer Reroute. If your car is exhibiting the same symptoms of that POS, then something is wrong.

In my opinion. If a vendor is telling you that their reroute has the same symptoms, then listen to them i suppose. But i don't have that problem with their reroute. ;)