Baja or bust 2007- cooling thoughts

[rwright07]

allright so its close... 7-10 days now depending on stuff.
i just bought a warn 8274 for 400 w/ EVERYTHING...and it works
moving on to lighting and was thinking about the diesel cooling system..
is my stock system going to be adequate for the 100degree heat?
the truck allready has aftermarket oil and tranny coolers so thats not the worry, but will my stock radiator, etc work?

thoughts?
ideas?

thanks for everything

 

[sled_dog]

probably will, but wouldn't a nice lighter aluminum one be better anyway?

If it were me, I'd run a nice big 2 core aluminum radiator with a pusher fan that hits all the coolers and the engine mounted fan as well.

 

[rwright07]

keep in mind... senior in HS... all my money is allready dumped into the truck... i have liek 500 bucks to my name untill i get back and can start summer work

ps goto the pismo thread... that $hit is sweet ( and i'll be going to school 20 minutes from there next year)
ha

 

[sled_dog]

gotcha, best I can say is run the piss out of it a few days when its hottest. See what it doesn't Won't really be a great test, but it will help you figure it out.

Go buy some "Radiator Flush" or "Cooling System Flush" chemical. Remove enough coolant to pour the whole bottle in. Pour it in, then drive the truck until it gets good and hot. Draing all the coolant when its still hot(no fun but its the best way to get the coolant out without a vacuum machine). Lower rad hose is the best way to get debris out too(petcock doesn't always allow crap out). Fill it back up with a 50/50 mixture of coolant and water, and maybe a bottle of Water Wetter too. Could go like 60/40 or a little heavier on the water to help cooling, but you still want a lot of anti-freeze.

I have seen vehicles run quite a bit cooler under normal conditions after a good coolant flush. If the coolant still looks nasty after a good flush, repeat. Clean cooling systems are efficient cooling systems.

 

[juanblzer]

not to make you worry... but...

I spoke with my friend who runs baja a lot every year. He runs his dodge cummins extended cab, xr 400 dirtbike, or his tacoma. I was discussinng my winch needs for ventures into baja. He told me that he has seen even the heaviest duty winch taxed during pulls in baja. I originally wanted a 8274 for my blazer /truggy but he said that is too small. He said I should go with the biggest winch I can get. He said ideally the biggest warn would be awesome. He knows his stuff for sure. He was the TTC winner in 1995 and he owns and operates randyellisdesign.com. His adventures in baja are pretty extreme. Here are some pics:

 

[ntsqd]

That last pic has to be the San Ignacio Silt beds. Nasty stuff right there.