Keep that engine cool...

[silverbullet]

...all for a little time and no expense. Got to be worth cleaning out your radiator even if you don't have aircon (nearly everyone in the Uk). As published on thesamba:

Ever since I purchased this Syncro, with an EJ22, it has always run a little hot in the summer months. When I replaced the engine, a little over a year ago, I installed a new radiator. When replacing the radiator I backwashed the condenser to clean out the bugs and dirt with a good stream of water. A bunch of bug guts and dirt came out. So I "thought" I was good to go. And was disappointed that the new radiator did not cool any better. It didn't make any difference in my coolant temperatures or my oil temperature. In the heat of the summer with the air conditioner going and cruising at highway speeds, the engine would always be running in the 200ºf range and my coolant temps would climb to where the high speed fan would engage, shut down the air conditioner compressor, and then it would cool off quickly and start the cycle all over again. Mind you this is in 95º-100ºf ambient temps here in Utah.

It finally dawned on me that when cruising down the road I should be getting enough RAM AIR effect to never need the fan to come on.

So this morning I decided to try something. I removed both grille covers and made a comb tool to clean out and space the fins in the condenser radiator. It took about an hour to meticulously clean and space each fin. It was interesting to note that before I did this, I could not see the engine cooling radiator through the fins. Afterwards I could see it with a bright light. I replaced the grilles and went out for a test drive.

WOW! I am seeing a 10º-20ºf drop in oil and coolant temps. My aftermarket sending unit for the engine coolant temp is on the hot side return at the radiator. Even on a very long steep climb at 7% grades the hot side never reached above 196ºf and the oil temp stayed at 193ºf. Before they both would have been in the 205º range on that climb. I also noticed that my transaxle was running about 5ºf cooler than it did yesterday in the same conditions.
So if you have noticed that your temps are running a little hotter than the past, this might be a quick fix for you. Just be careful when cleaning the fins and don't poke a hole.