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55 Cold Case Radiator in 6 cyl Position

23K views 92 replies 18 participants last post by  Midlf55 
#1 ·
Just installed a Cold Case radiator into my 55 in the 6 cylinder position....I also will be installing an A/C condenser in front of it in the future....The distance between the bar and the radiator is 5/8 to 3/4"....I am concerned that I will have interference between the hood latch plate and condenser....I realize that they make shortened hood latch plates for 55's...However, I see already that there will be a problem.

Has anyone experienced this thus far with a 55 Cold Case radiator in the six cylinder position with A/C? How much clearance between the bar and radiator does everyone else have with this configuration?...At this point, I see no choice but to slot the bracket attachment holes toward the front, in hopes that the radiator will move far enough to the rear.







 
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#2 ·
Pop's, the gap between the radiator and the cross bar does seem excessive for sure. I don't think you have any choice but to try and slot the holes and move it rearward if you can. From the picture it looks like their bracket may not be welded in the correct position to all the radiator to move back and touch to upper cross bar.

I recently installed a griffin radiator in my 55 and it was all the way back touching the cross bar.
 
#3 ·
Thanks Carl....Do you have a pic of the radiator to bar clearance that I can show Cold Case?
 
#5 ·
Okay buddy :shakehands: Now I remember why I left that God forsaken place. :)
 
#6 ·
On a 55 you need the radiator to be closer to the radiator support if you're going to have an a/c condenser too. Get that gap down to 1/8" or less.

You can only cut 1/4" or so off the hood latch plate. And you still may have to do that if you move it closer. A 5/8" gap won't cut it.
 
#7 ·
Thanks Rick...After see many 55's at the car shows and taking a good look under the hood, I know exactly what you are talking about.

Will get that down to 1/8" one way or another.

Sounds to me like Cold Case needs to weld the brackets out forward further on their 6 cylinder radiators.
 
#8 ·
Just got done installing a Cold Case radiator in the V8 position. None of the holes in the radiator brackets lined up with the factory holes in the radiator support. Had to drill and slot my own holes in the radiator brackets. Appeared to me Cold Case had either welded the brackets on wrong or punched the holes wrong. I let them know I wasn’t happy and that perhaps they needed to take a look at their quality control.
 
#11 ·
Dave and I have been exchanging information on this issue for a couple of weeks now. We're trying to determine whether this is an isolated problem, a full production run or whether that's just a design change we need to make. The fact that we've had these units on the market for over a year and there's a bunch of them out there, leads me to believe we may have just had a production run issue. Hard to believe that literally ALL of the other customers aren't running AC.

Rest assured, we'll get to the bottom of this. That's why we're here on these forums! :)
 
#12 ·
Thanks for your input Chris...I'd like to relay to our members that I have no issue with the Cold Case company and their handling of this matter....They have been nothing but understanding, respectful and cooperative....I would not hesitate to buy another product from them in the future.

Getting back to the task at hand though....I should have measured the distance from the bracket bend to the front of the radiator, before I left the house for the weekend...Chris and I could then compare notes in that regard.

 
#13 ·
Mark sent me a pic of his 6 cyl Griffin radiator clearance (below)

I'm still looking for that guy (or gal) who has a similar situation (55 Cold Case 6 cyl radiator) to see how far from the support bar their installed radiator ended up.

 
#15 ·
I was concerned about the clearnce because i wanted tp put in an Electric fan sooner or later The room just was not going to be there, but once i get the 6 cylinder radiator installed.and mechanical fan i'll be good to go for awhile pops thank you very much for the good pics you sent. Picture is worth a1000 words

bob s:tu:tu:tu t
 
#14 ·
There should be NO gap between the radiator and support, no matter who makes it. Any gap will allow the fan to pull air around the radiator instead of through it. Even if there isn't a clearance issue such as the 55 condensor to hood latch issue.
 
#17 ·
Update: Many thanks to TriFive.com member Greg Turner....After seeing Greg's reply in Bob's thread, I decided that I would get in touch with him to get some measurements for comparison.

Greg was very accommodating, going way above and beyond to help me out...After sending several messages and pictures, back and forth, we found the problem....Greg's radiator measures 1 1/2" from the 90* bend in the bracket, where mine is 2 1/4"....This totally explained why I could not get my radiator close enough to the support bar...You can see in the photos below where Greg can go back plenty, where mine is at the limit.

My radiator install




Greg's radiator install


 
#18 ·
Once I found out about Greg's radiator dimensions, I contacted Cold Case with this information....Again I received nothing but understanding, respect and assistance....I felt that they were as determined as I was to get to the bottom of this and resolve the issue.

Chris worked with me some...Then Brian, Cold Case's Product Manager, took over when Chris had to hit the road for a couple of auto events....I exchanged information with Brian on the differences between Greg's radiator and mine....He search through his radiators, until he finally found one that had the same dimensions as Greg's unit....So, now we can swap radiators and bring this to a conclusion....Many thanks to Chris and Brian of Cold Case. :):tu
 
#19 ·
I hope they have plans to scrap/re-work all the in stock radiators with all their vendors who have inventory. Sounds like they had a production error on welding the bracket in the correct location. Sure don't want to see other customers have the same issue Pop's that you had to go thru. Glad you have it worked out they provided good customer service, always good to know,
 
#20 ·
Too early to tell what Cold Case's plans are yet Carl....However, Chris' attitude leads me to believe that he will do everything he can to get things right.

In the evolution of this process, I found that they offer a blemished radiator, Product ID : 2-563A that the ill fitting radiators are sold under....And no, mine was not one of them....At least the box was not marked as such.
 
#22 ·
Today....I received a radiator from Cold Case this evening with the correct dimension from the 90* bend in the bracket to the front of the radiator (1 1/2")....Over 3/4" difference....Brian (their Product Manager) searched through his 55, 6 cylinder radiators, until he found it....I did a quick check on the radiator and it fits exactly as it should now with no modifications necessary. :):tu

First Radiator





Second Radiator


 
#23 ·
Wrapping This Up

Yesterday I went down to Daytona Beach to meet Chris at the Spring Turkey Run show....We talked about the uniqueness of putting the 55 radiator in the six cylinder position and how critical it is to be able to get it as close to the bar as possible.

I could tell that Chris is extremely concerned and serious about getting his radiators right..He was very receptive to and appreciative of the info that I relayed to him...The meeting was very productive....I left convinced that Chris Casperson is one honest, dedicated, and professional individual. :):tu

 
#24 · (Edited)
Radiator setback

Well, that explains it! I'm in the process of putting the sheetmetal back on the front of my '57 Handyman. I just can't seem to get the radiator splash guard to go far enough back to mate with the radiator saddle filler panels. It hits the bottom corners of the radiator, a Coldcase in the 6 cylinder position. I was going to ask the Chevy radiator gurus if that was a common problem & should I get out the hammer when I came across this thread. As you can see in the pic, I have the same problem that Pops did; it's too far forward. I'll call Coldcase Monday & see what to do. I REALLY don't know how I could have done this project without you guys.
 

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#25 ·
Well, that explains it! I'm in the process of putting the sheetmetal back on the front of my '57 Handyman. I just can't seem to get the radiator splash guard to go far enough back to mate with the radiator saddle filler panels. It hits the bottom corners of the radiator, a Coldcase in the 6 cylinder position. I was going to ask the Chevy radiator gurus if that was a common problem & should I get out the hammer when I came across this thread. As you can see in the pic, I have the same problem that Pops did; it's too far forward. I'll call Coldcase tomorrow & see what to do. I REALLY don't know how I could have done this project without you guys.
Yep, looks like the brackets are welded on in the wrong place. Will moving the radiator back that much allow it to clear the splash pan? Do you have a 57 radiator with the offset top hose inlet?
 
#26 ·
Tom...Thanks for chiming in with your issue....I didn't realize the 57 would have a problem in this area as well....Is that a Cold Case fan shroud? Can you take a pic from this perspective?

 
#27 ·
I'm sorry, but I can't post a picture from the passenger's side because I've already taken the radiator out so I can continue putting the sheet metal splash pans together. I'm keen to get the fenders on so I can get one last ding pulled out & repaired so I can get the car to the painter. That is a Coldcase fan shroud. I looked & it will fit inside the radiator mount.To answer your other question; Yes, everything is in the stock position; the hoses are offset (Getting them sorted out is another story). I'm running a 5.3 LS motor from a 2011 Silverado. The Handyman had a 235 & Powerglide originally & I saw no reason to change the radiator setup as long as the stock configuration worked, which I'm confident it will.
 
#28 ·
Very nice to see Cold Case stepped up and is addressing the missed-built 6 cylinder position radiators. Some other vendors should wake up and take note.

For those of us mounting radiators up front (6 cyl position) and using mechanical fan and shroud is very important not to have any gaps between radiator core and support to promote good air flow and no leak around between radiator and support as noted above. Same is true for minimal gaps between shroud and back of support. I use rubber insulation between radiator core and support even with minimal gaps as well as between shroud and support.

Now, for those using front (6 cyl position) mounted radiators with built in shroud and electric fan(s) I do not believe any such gap would be a problem as long as the built in shroud/fan(s) unit fits tightly around the entire perimeter of the rear of the radiator core. I'm thinking it would not really matter where such a radiator with properly built on shroud/fan(s) is mounted so far as air flow is concerned.

Of course 55 owners need all the room they can get when mounting radiator/condenser combo units out front because of close proximity to hood latch mechanism. Eddie MotorSport makes a "skinny" hood support/latch plate combo unit for 55 Chevy to helps solve the real estate problem. I have not installed mine (waiting for radiator) yet, but just looking at it it appears the new latch and pedestal will provide an additional 1/2" - 3/4" clearance between AC condenser and hood latch. I wish they offered a plain steel version.

MS274-40P 1955 Chevy Hood Latch & Support
 
#29 ·
Jim....I saw that latch support and plate on a 55 at Daytona beach, during the Spring Turkey Rod Run....To tell you the truth, it was a nice looking piece, but I wasn't all that impressed with the clearance.

The best 55 hood latch support that I've seen was made by a company called Sweet Components....However, they are no longer around....Here is a pic below:



 
#30 ·
Jim....I saw that latch support and plate on a 55 at Daytona beach, during the Spring Turkey Rod Run....To tell you the truth, it was a nice looking piece, but I wasn't all that impressed with the clearance.

The best 55 hood latch support that I've seen was made by a company called Sweet Components....However, they are no longer around....Here is a pic below:

I've never knowingly seen one installed on a 55. If I get a fingers worth of clearance between AC condenser and latch I'll be happy...we'll see when I get that far.

It is difficult to tell from your picture, but I see insufficient room to add an AC condenser with that Sweet Components latch.
 
#32 ·
Jim....I believe this is your Eddie Motor Sports hood latch installed....I should have asked the owner if he would let me do the finger check.

 
#34 ·
I found a pic of my buddy Ken's latch and support...Due to the way it is constructed, the amount of space it occupies is the absolute minimum.

 
#35 ·
Wow, that one is a tight fit compared to the picture above it. Obviously, there are variables like how thick the radiator/condenser combo pack is and how far forward it protrudes from the core support.

I should get my crossflow radiator/condenser combo next week. I'm anxious to see how it fits against my stock V8 support and the hood latch tower.

My Griffin dealer (a classic Chevy shop in SC) recommended the Eddie MotorSport latch. That is what they use for all their 55 Chevy Griffin crossflow radiator/condenser installations.
 
#37 ·
A thought. Tape a piece of cardboard to the front of radiator/condenser to keep from bending the fins when test fitting. MAGA
Like this :)

 
#39 ·
Well, I decided to unpack the radiator & try it again in case the radiator saddle being canted a bit back a little made any difference. It does, but not enough to get the radiator flush with the bar.Since I have a truck LS motor with its stock water pump, being set forward a little helps the clearance problem with the fan motor (I have to saw off the knob sticking out from the pulley, too). I think I can get it in there if I redrill the mounting holes. Hopefully it won't sit too high for the hood to close. They don't call it making a custom car for nothing.
 
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