Your car’s engine gets really hot. Mainly due to the thousands of explosions per minute. To cool the engine your car uses coolant, to cool the coolant, you have a radiator. Modern cars use newer and more high performance radiators for coolant to pass through the cooling system.
So whether you’ve got an aluminium radiator, brass radiator, plastic radiator, copper core etc, they all act as a heat exchanger. Some more efficient than others. Generally, applications will depend on the types of car and the level of heat transferability will depend on what’s required.
What is a Radiator?
A radiator is a series of tubes that carry hot coolant from one end to the other. The air passing through the tubes cools the hot coolant via thermodynamics and the transfer of energy. The cooled coolant returns to the feed reservoir where it is sucked back into the engine by the water pump.
That’s all very scientific. Your radiator cools your coolant, and often your transmission fluid. Some really high performance cars also have oil coolers. They all work roughly the same way, they take something hot, exchange the heat with the outside ambient air, send the cooled liquid where it needs to be.
What are Radiators made out of?
Now we’re getting into the nitty gritty radiator chat. This is what we like to see.
Radiators are constructed out of a variety of metals and alloys, even plastic composites, that allow for easy thermal transmission. You want the tubes that carry the coolant to change temperature very quickly. This allows the coolant inside to transfer its heat to the air passing it, easily.
Radiators have gone through a series of evolutions through the years.
The go to for many years was copper. Your house’s plumbing uses copper piping for moving hot water around from the cylinder. Your radiator used to use it to cool it. The basic structure and tanks were made of brass. As you can imagine, those are some heavy materials.
It was due to the weight and the fatigue that these radiators were phased out. What replaced them was a combination of materials.
Plastic radiators. These are mass produced and mass used. They’re cheap, they do the job, and they’re light. This reduces car weight and increases fuel efficiency. The main issues are that they aren’t as good at cooling as aluminium or even copper, in relation to cooling efficiency. Also, if your plastic radiator cracks or ruptures, you need a whole new radiator. Repairs aren’t worth the money, a full replacement is often the only solution.
Aluminium radiators are the top of the heap. They exchange the heat from the coolant to the atmosphere extremely efficiently. They are extremely light and when coupled with their cooling ability, they are the radiator of choice for performance and supercars. The biggest drawback is their price and cost.
What do I do if my Radiator is leaking?
If you’re having any issues with your radiator or any coolant leaks, we can help. Just click here and we can connect you with a great mechanic for an even better price. Keep your car cool over a hot summer.