After the second turn of the key or the push of a button, the engine in your car starts working and so do other types of systems. One of them is the cooling system which is made of different components with the main one being the radiator. The radiator is a large metal component that essentially takes off the heat from the coolant that circulates through the cooling system and engine block.

There is also the expansion tank which is what holds the coolant as well as the hoses which let the coolant run through from the tank, to the engine block, radiator and then back again to the tank. This is done continuously so that the engine doesn't overheat.

Important Features of Car Radiators

Fan

What helps to keep the coolant, well, cool once it goes back to the engine block are the fans. Radiator fans can be either electrical or mechanical. Know that mechanical radiators are far less efficient as they can consume more power in order to provide the same cooling effect. Electrical auto radiators, on the other hand, are a far better option since they consume 20 HP less than mechanical ones.

Core

Based on the radiator's core, there are two designs you can go for and those are cellular and tubular. A car radiator with a tubular design has fins placed around a series of tubes that connect to both the upper and lower tank. This makes tubular automotive radiators less reliable since an issue in one area can affect the whole radiator.

Cellular radiators don't have this issue since their design has a honeycomb layout. This means the coolant flows through the spaces between the hexagonal shapes while air passes through the tube. This makes a radiator with a cellular core a more reliable option.

Material

The majority of car radiators you'll come across are going to be made out of either aluminium or a combination of copper and brass. Aluminium radiators are more popular nowadays because they don't add that much weight and they are more efficient than copper-brass radiators. But copper-brass radiators are more durable and they're also a lot easier to repair, but keep in mind that they're also much larger.

Hoses

Although quite an essential part of every cooling system, radiator hoses are often taken for granted. Hence, you should look for hoses that are made to last as long as your radiator and even longer if possible. It's for the best that you go for a set of tubes that are made of EPDM and preferably on the wider side too.

Flow

One thing to remember when looking for an automotive radiator is no matter what you get, the coolant needs to flow as freely as possible. This will account for wider hoses, larger radiator tanks and going for a cellular design amongst other things.

Tubes

Another factor that affects coolant flow is the tubing of the radiator. In the same way, hoses need to be wide and strong, tubes need to be too. In fact, they need to be much stronger and wider in order to maximize their surface area so that the radiator works more efficiently.

Quantity

The number of rows a radiator comes with affects how well the unit is able to keep coolant well under its boiling point. The more rows of tubes there are the better the radiator is at keeping things cool. But keep in mind that more rows mean you get a larger and heavier car radiator. This can be a disadvantage if you're preparing for the track.

Types of Radiators

Downflow

A downflow radiator is one that has its tanks placed on the bottom and top. This makes for a radiator that lets you have the inlet and outlet hoses placed wherever you want. These auto radiators are found on older vehicles which is why they have a narrower grille. But because of their design, downflow radiators are quite limited when it comes to their cooling capacity.

Crossflow

Radiators that don't have a limited cooling capacity are known as crossflow. A crossflow car radiator has tanks on the sides of its core. This is why most modern cars have wider grilles but also a more efficient cooling system since crossflow radiators have a larger core. This way more heat is removed as coolant passes through the radiator more slowly. You can find crossflow radiators in both a double and triple-pass design which further enhances their cooling ability as it increases the number of times coolant has to move through the core.

Final Words

While once upon a time overheating was quite a common issue in cars, this has been largely resolved with the introduction of coolant and radiators. Nowadays automotive radiators have become even more advanced and thus newer vehicles are even less prone to overheating unless you're deliberately trying to make your car overheat.