Mishimoto Radiators - STAY AWAY

[nrubenstein]

Oem are great but when you have weather like here in Florida it just won't cut it. Then add AC and you have even further cooling problem. Got to remember these motors are not cooling in the engine bay like they were originally intended too. The airflow is not the same.

1) The MZ3 radiator is a large upgrade over stock.
2) You are assuming that the Mishimoto radiator is actually better, which is deeply questionable.

The standard E36 Mishimoto is *definitely* worse than the MZ3, and the big X-line Mishi is not proven to be better. Worse yet, the big Mishi drastically impacts fan clearance. If it's not a track car, you're better off with a little less radiator and a lot more fan.

3) The Mishimoto radiators are definitely not proven to be *more* reliable than stock, either. There are enough known failures that I certainly wouldn't pay extra for one.

[der affe]

Will they reimburse you for the repair to the old one (if you still have it ) & honor the warranty still.

I have repaired and modified ALOT of aftermarket aluminium radiators to fit into different applications. I know that is not the idea situation, but just a thought. All you need to do is flush and clean it with ZEPALUM before you start welding it and it should be good to go.

I wish you were local, I would just have you bring it over.

[dirty30]

cross posting this from your build thread:

I'm right there with you on this one. In my 11+ years in BMW forums and other car stuff I have probably once written an unfavorable review of a product. There is a theory in customer service that states you either give the customer everything they ask for or nothing at all. Making an offer to a customer without totally fulfilling their request or denying it altogether, however generous it may be, still doesn't fix the issue. You asked for a new radiator because it has clearly been manufactured incorrectly and they countered it with store credit. Even if you took their offer they end up shelling out money to a customer that in the end is still upset with the product or service being offered. Makes no sense to me and makes even less sense when their claim to fame is basically a no questions asked warranty!

[nando]

IMO these radiators are all hype. yeah, they're aluminum - but at double the cost (or more) of stock, it would take you 15+ years to get that investment back. whether it's aluminum or plastic it won't last forever. with them being in china, good luck forcing them to honor a lifetime warranty.

[Poorboyz]

Has anyone attempted to put an electric fan that pushes more air than the normal SPAL electric fans to see if the cooling gets better?

Maybe a smaller radiator with a bigger (RPM ) fan?

Ford made some pretty badass electric fans for the early to mid 90s Taurus, thunderbird and Lincoln Mark VIII.



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[JGood]

Justin, while I can't comment on the three core radiator... I've had my E36 one for over 4 years now. Leak free.

We've sold tons of the E36 ones without any issues. I guess this is a design flaw within the three core radiator that they offer. Having said that, we do know of other customers that have had no trouble replacing their faulty radiators.

Yep, like I said, getting a replacement radiator has been trouble free. They're unmatched in that regard. Even though my first 2 radiators failed after 1yr/10k miles, I was still a supporter of the company, and recommended that particular radiator to others. It was only when they were unable to provide me with a usable replacement, that it became an issue.

[dude8383]

Justin, while I can't comment on the three core radiator... I've had my E36 one for over 4 years now. Leak free.

We've sold tons of the E36 ones without any issues. I guess this is a design flaw within the three core radiator that they offer. Having said that, we do know of other customers that have had no trouble replacing their faulty radiators.

[Old city bimmer]

Oem are great but when you have weather like here in Florida it just won't cut it. Then add AC and you have even further cooling problem. Got to remember these motors are not cooling in the engine bay like they were originally intended too. The airflow is not the same.

[nrubenstein]

Yeah, this is why I just went with the MZ3 radiator. I've yet to see any convincing reason to go with one of the aftermarket aluminum ones. They cost more, they are, at best, no more reliable, and the OE radiators are *very* reliable as long as you accept that they just need to be replaced every 80-100k.

[Old city bimmer]

Jgood - you have point. The design was changed so they should make good on it. I would just take the replacement and sell it for a down pmnt on a custom rad.

On different note I ordered a clone 3 row from eBay and it had the exact same flaw. I forced it in there and so far so good.

[diegom6]

I would put the old leaky radiator and add the stop leak powder stuff and see what happens. Mine survived several track days and daily use w/o problems.

[JGood]

Broken nipple, bottom half of threads missing:




This is what the internal 1/16" NPT 'threads' in the radiator look like from the factory. You can also see the marks on the radiator from screwdrivers, picks and various other tools I used to try to force the hose on

[ThatOneEuroE30]

That's some bs

[JGood]

If I remember right my
E36 one was the same way. I just used a flat head to push the hose and clamps on it worked fine. Plus it's extra assurance if your hose clamp fails the hose will never blow off haha

No, as I've said a few times now, the Z3M and e36 radiators are totally different. The space on the e36 radiators is close, but nowhere near as close as this. The fittings are also not the same material. The fitting on the new Z3M radiator is brittle cast aluminum. Mine snapped in half with the slightest amount of pressure.

If I could just push the hose on with a screwdriver I would have done it...

[ThatOneEuroE30]

If I remember right my
E36 one was the same way. I just used a flat head to push the hose and clamps on it worked fine. Plus it's extra assurance if your hose clamp fails the hose will never blow off haha