Diesel cooling options and ideas

[LOGS]

Perhaps a body kit as such would give better cooling? Not for me though. I'm waiting out for aftermarket intercooler and radiator.

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[ThatStinging_Jeep]

I've been thinking about getting a radiator from this company named "Cold case" it's aluminum and its says its for a JL but the OEM radiator is shared on the 4 cylinders 6,and the 3.0 ecodiesel so I'm confident it will be fine.....hopefully

 

[tjZ06]

Now that summer is here, it is clear that the Diesel Gladiators will get hot if you push them ( towing ), and a LOT of us are pissed about it. Before I sell mine I want to do everything I can to see if I can make something work.

We have all heard FCA mention that the 3.0L was limited by its cooling and that is likely because they were not going to redesign the front end. Once I started dissecting mine it was clear there are plenty of issues with this current setup.
First off all the bottom 6" of the radiator is blocked by the plastic bumper.
Second, the horns should go somewhere else. Why block perfectly good airflow
Third, there are multiple types of grills that may help air flow. The Overland and Rubicon grills have decorative bezels that narrow the slots. The Sports and black grill option have narrow slots which adds 15% area.

The next hot day I get I am going to do a 30 mile out and back trip and document my Engine Coolant, Oil Temp, Trans Temp, and add another thermocouple under the hood somewhere. I will be towing my 5600 lb camper and try to hold 70mph.

Test 1 - Remove the grill completely and compare.
Test 2 - If changes were not significant I will add to it by cracking the hood open with spacers and straps to hold it in place. Hopefully it will allow more air movement around the engine.

From here I think the results will determine if grill modifications or hood vends will do anything and what the best case scenario would be. If either work I will consider removing the front bumper.

To get an idea of "best case" I would say start looking at the RAM eco diesel forums. They have much bigger radiators and the engine is basically the same. If they are doing well and not having towing issues than maybe we can hope for that. If they are also struggling with overheating while towing than it will be a sign to sell and move on ?.

I would like to keep this thread solution based if possible so if you have any ideas, lets get testing.

Very much looking forward to seeing your results. One thing, don't you mean the slots are wider, not narrower in the Sport and black grill options? Seems like the slats between the slots are narrower.

https://www.sbfilters.com/jeep-scoops/as-1015

I just ordered these. They are on backorder.

One guy left this feedback.

Interesting. I wonder how scientific that person's testing was? I would have thought you want to be pulling air up and out of the under-hood area, vs. forcing air in. But, results are results...

I've been thinking about getting a radiator from this company named "Cold case" it's aluminum and its says its for a JL but the OEM radiator is shared on the 4 cylinders 6,and the 3.0 ecodiesel so I'm confident it will be fine.....hopefully

It looks like you're right about the radiators being the same. For the 2.0T I see a Mopar radiator part number 68314786AA, for the 3.6 gas I see several part numbers (68272749AC, 68272750AC, 68314786AA) though obviously one DOES match the 2.0T part, and finally the EcoDiesel I see two part numbers (the same 68314786AA and 68263398AF). So, it looks like at least the 68314786AA number is common across all 3, so I would *expect* dimensions, mounting systems, and inlet/outlets to be the same for all 3 engines. As such, you're totally right that Cold Case has this radiator: https://www.coldcaseradiators.com/product/18-20-jeep-wrangler-jl-aluminum-performance-radiator

 

[am1978]

Interesting. I wonder how scientific that person's testing was? I would have thought you want to be pulling air up and out of the under-hood area, vs. forcing air in. But, results are results...

Probably not very….I’ll try it out. I have a 650mi road trip coming up, so I’ll monitor temps on that. After install, I’ll see what I get over time for temps…not going full on replacement of the cold intake.

 

[staying_tuned]

Yanking some of the sound deadening rubber baffling from the bay might help increase general airflow as well. I remember watching a video of a guy pulling at least 2 big chunks out. In his case he wanted to increase the clatter from the motor but I bet it also holds less heat.

 

[Odubi]

Absolutely we can. We aren’t limited by material quality, cost, time or the need for symmetry/modularity. It’s quite common to see an increase of 40% more capacity on an aftermarket intercooler because we can ditch the plastic end caps for cast aluminum. We can ditch legacy veins for a proper bar and plate config. All that applies to radiators as well. Tie in a quality active oil cooler etc. Don’t lose hope!

Issue with aluminum radiators is they all leak over time if you wheel. I’ve done my research and yes you run cooler but they can’t flex without springing leaks.

 

[ChimeraJT]

Yanking some of the sound deadening rubber baffling from the bay might help increase general airflow as well. I remember watching a video of a guy pulling at least 2 big chunks out. In his case he wanted to increase the clatter from the motor but I bet it also holds less heat.

Interesting, may need to look into this. A "quiet" diesel was never a selling point for me as I love the sound. Doubly interested if it helps with cooling.

 

[tjZ06]

Issue with aluminum radiators is they all leak over time if you wheel. I’ve done my research and yes you run cooler but they can’t flex without springing leaks.

If mounted properly the radiator shouldn't be flexed when the frame (or unibody like my WJ) flexes, at least to a reasonable extent. Pretty much EVERY radiator is aluminum now days anyway, I don't see many brass radiators anymore. The stock radiator is aluminum, it just has plastic end tanks and like all AL/plastic radiators they're most likely to leak where the plastic end tanks are bonded to the AL core.

-TJ

 

[ThatStinging_Jeep]

Issue with aluminum radiators is they all leak over time if you wheel. I’ve done my research and yes you run cooler but they can’t flex without springing leaks.

Are you talking about it leaking cause of the frame having some flex,interesting thanks for the info cause I do intend to actually wheel my new ecodiesel once I receive it in like 2 months but yeah :D

 

[ShadowsPapa]

Remember - when relocating the horns that sound is directional in certain frequencies. They must be heard.
The ends or openings of horns is almost always open to the air in front of a vehicle - be it below the bumper or other spots.

 

[dcmdon]

Some thoughts. The solution is some combination of:

1) install a larger radiator made out of a more conductive material (aluminum). Here is one option.
https://www.extremeterrain.com/cold-case-jeep-wrangler-aluminum-performance-radiator-moj996.html

2) Get more air to the radiator - like the op said, remove obstructions like horns and grill trim. Though I don't think this is really going to help much. Aircraft use much larger radiator or fins than the actual opening will cover. Think of the area between the grill and the radiator as a high pressure plenum. But it can't hurt.

3) Add additional radiators. How much space is there between the grill and the current radiator? Is there room for another radiator in front of the original? Additional cooling area will help, even if it reduces the efficiency of the current radiator. Essentially make an extra thick radiator by putting another one in front of the OEM radiator.

4) Add an oil cooler - (not in front of the radiator) - any heat you can remove from the oil means the less heat the oil will shed into the coolant.

Other ideas, but less practical.

5) help the engine make less heat. This really means make it so the engine doesn't need to make as much power.
a - Take off those 37s when you are towing and put on some normal 255/75 - 17 street tires. Look at aerodynamics.
b - Move the load as close to the Jeep as is possible without creating too much tongue weight.
c - put a tonneau cover on the jeep to reduce drag. If you don't have one, leave the tailgate down. That helps a lot.
d - Do you really need that 150# front bumper with the 100# winch attached to it? ;-)

6) build a pressure plenum between the grill and radiator. That way the air can't go around the radiator but must go through it. We used to do that on race cars and bikes to help with cooling.

7) work to maximize air extraction from the engine bay - flow through the radiator is a function of the pressure differential between the front of the radiator and the rear. If you open up vents and build a plenum you will maximize pressure at the front.

Now you need to think about evacuating the air from the rear of the engine compartment behind the radiator. I don't know, it may be well vented as is. But I think someone mentioned making the fender vents functional. One other option is an extractor vent at the back end of the hood. Like the old hot rods had.

Louvers like this will reduce the pressure under the hood. Though I think a couple of large ones at the rear of the hood will look better on a jeep.

 

[ShadowsPapa]

Tires- rolling resistance, mass............
Weight - takes HP to move. (tires, bumper, winch - how much extra weight is that over stock and is the extra weight of the winch and bumper taken into payload numbers)

 

[rharr]

no one mentioned a lower temp thermostat. banks offers one.

 

[jeepin48]

no one mentioned a lower temp thermostat. banks offers one.

Once the system gets to temp the thermostat would be fully open. We are overheating after that point So all that would do would be give us a head start unfortunately.

 

[rharr]

you are basically cooling sooner in the temp range, which would give the radiator a head start at shedding heat before you start to build it. Low temp thermostats aren't anything new and have been used for years. It's a cheap and easy mod to try verse some of the stuff talked about here..... horns being the cause for overheating....

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