anyone know of any big name radiators out there that are going to cool my truck a whole lot better than the stock one? i dont like running hot so im thinking bout replacing the stock radiator. pwr makes ones for the 95-97 but i dunno if it will fit my 98 4.0L. any help is appreciated..
josh

 

honestly i cant think of any reason why the stock radiator wouldnt cool well enough, unless the fins are bent and touching or there is something major blocking the wind.

all in all i think it would be money wasted.

 

im considering it cause the temp gauge seems to rise to just slightly more than half and i dont like that. i heard fords run a little on the hot side. is there any truth to that? this is my first truck and first ford. and i havent done a coolant change since i got the truck last month. i guess i should do that before buying something like this. i need to use more common sense..
josh

 

Its just the gauge being off.. It will always be the same temperature once its warmed up. Its controlled by the thermostat..
You have an engine driven fan.. so you dont even have the variation
of an electric fan kicking on and off in traffic(or @idle)
I wouldnt worry about it unless one day its alot higher than it normally is..

I second what bob said .. WASTE OF MONEY.
unless your factory one is bad.. plugged , leaking.. falling apart etc

If you want to spend some money.. consider doing the routine maintnence
if you dont know when its been done..
~~ = aprox

fuel filter ~~ 30k
have balljoints checked - they seem to go bad alot in as little as 30k miles
Spark plugs + wires ... autolite double platinum (I recommend)
Dont cheap out on the wires either.. the autozone 19.99 special is BAD.
Napa or motorcraft are generally high quality. Dont always believe
what they say on the box.. ... IE LOW OHM RESISTANCE.. how do you
know thats even a desired quality?

O2 sensors (3) of them.. can start going bad as early as 50k miles
reducing gas mileage

PCV Valve.. USE STOCK REPLACEMENT ONLY...

The list goes on.

much more useful way to spend money though..

OH you could flush/fill your cooling system.. :)

Rand

 

i did all most of the routine things right after i bought the truck. only thing i didnt do is the cooling system flush, balljoints, and 2 of the o2 sensors. i didnt do the balljoints cause they said there were new ones on there from when they installed the lift kit. the other 2 o2 were somewhat pricey so i opted to do a standard tune up. i had the redline water wetter stuff and i saw a noticeable difference in my 4cyl neon i suppose id see a good difference in my v6. ill give that a go and see how it fairs up on my heat gauge. thanks man.
josh

 

i wouldnt use the water wetter, its not really worth it. if you want, do a flush and fill.

now i have do to an amsoil plug. amsoils antifrieeze lasts up to 3 times longer than standard antifreeze, up to 75,000 miles before it needs to be flushed. its also essentially nontoxic and biodegradable. its $16 a gallon and well worth it

 

ill take a look into that amsoil when i do my flush. you seem to be standing by it pretty well so maybe its worth it.
josh